Tag pairdata 30 Sep 2026
Niches / Story Rich / Dark Fantasy
Story Rich + Dark Fantasy: 61 releases in the last 12 months
There is no price yet: it needs 30 or more indie paid launches in the last four complete quarters. 8 of 71 matured launches earned $100k or more, against 8.5 expected for their price and launch quarter. Releases rose 45% on the year before: 61 against 42.
- Big publishers: over 85% from majors or $40+ games
- Price
- n/a under 30 launches
- Price vs a year earlier
- n/a no price
- Releases, 12 months
- 61 42 the year before
- Upcoming games
- 315 coming soon on Steam
- Games on the store
- 607 carrying both tags
Boards
as of 30 Sep 2026Where this pair stands on each board of the front page. Every value carries its 90% interval and its sample.
| Board | Value | Interval | Sample | Standing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Most anticipatedShare of all upcoming wishlist heat on Steam, with the number of upcoming games beside it.
| 1.81%share of upcoming wishlist heat | 0.48% to 3.33% | 52 ranked of 315 upcoming gameswishlist rank 30 Sep 2026 | #4,059 of 7,193pairs on this board |
Launch successLaunches earning $100k or more, against the number expected for their price tier and launch quarter.
| 0.96xhits against expected | 0.66x to 1.43x | 71 launchesindie paid launches 31 Mar 2024 to 1 Apr 2026 (6 to 30 months old) | #3,047 of 6,324pairs on this board |
Fewer new releasesFewer launches relative to players. Historically this did not predict better launches.
| +3%player demand against new supply, relative to Steam | −27% to +35% | 27 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025; releases 30 Sep 2025 to 30 Sep 2026 vs prior 12 months | #1,346 of 2,361pairs on this board |
Rising demandGaining players faster than same-age games. Descriptive, not a launch signal.
| +7%review growth against same-age games | −6% to +23% | 27 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025 | #496 of 2,461pairs on this board |
Pairs are noisier than genres: the demand boards at pair level are indicative only.
Launch success
launches 6 to 30 months oldMatured indie paid launches that earned an estimated $100k or more, against the number expected for games at the same price tier and launch quarter.
- Launches
- 71
- Hit rate
- 11.3%5.8% to 18.9%
- Expected rate
- 11.9%
- Against expected
- 0.96x0.66x to 1.43x
Launch window: indie paid launches 31 Mar 2024 to 1 Apr 2026 (6 to 30 months old). Hit odds are shrunk toward the Steam-wide rate by 3 expected hits.
Revenue spread
71 launchesEstimated lifetime gross of the same matured launches. Half earned less than the median; one in ten earned more than the top figure.
- Bottom tenth
- $61
- Median
- $3,238
- Top tenth
- $105,646
Estimated from Steam review counts. Lifetime to date, so it differs from the first-year price above.
Supply
raw release countsGames released with both tags, last 12 months against the 12 before.
- Change
- +45%
- Against Steam
- +4%after Steam-wide growth, shrunk by 5 releases
Parent tags
- Story RichNot a genreA theme, mood, feature or presentation tag: never ranked as a market on its own, only inside pairs.
- Dark FantasyNot a genreA theme, mood, feature or presentation tag: never ranked as a market on its own, only inside pairs.
Comparable games
8 indie titlesThe biggest indie games in this pair by estimated lifetime gross. Revenue is shown as a number at 50 or more reviews, as a range at 10 to 49, and not at all below 10.
- Lords of the Fallen (opens the Steam store)2023 · 38,043 reviews, 68% positiveest. $22M
- The Midnight Walk (opens the Steam store)2025 · 2,717 reviews, 92% positiveest. $1.7M
- Tails of Iron 2: Whiskers of Winter (opens the Steam store)2025 · 1,874 reviews, 79% positiveest. $948k
- The Life and Suffering of Prince Jerian (opens the Steam store)2026 · 1,381 reviews, 74% positiveest. $699k
- DevilConnection (opens the Steam store)2025 · 1,962 reviews, 98% positiveest. $662k
- Styx: Blades of Greed (opens the Steam store)2026 · 788 reviews, 66% positiveest. $638k
- 1666: Amsterdam (opens the Steam store)2026 · 821 reviews, 63% positiveest. $499k
- The Nameless: Slay Dragon (opens the Steam store)2024 · 2,061 reviews, 91% positiveest. $496k
More with Story Rich
pairs with Story Rich- Story Rich + Narrative$13,10440 launches priced, 59 releases in 12 months
- Story Rich + Historical$9,68533 launches priced, 53 releases in 12 months
- Story Rich + Investigation$8,90370 launches priced, 96 releases in 12 months
- Turn-Based Strategy + Story Rich$8,09741 launches priced, 43 releases in 12 months
- Story Rich + Supernatural$5,82533 launches priced, 45 releases in 12 months
- Story Rich + Dating Sim$5,71476 launches priced, 97 releases in 12 months
More with Dark Fantasy
pairs with Dark Fantasy- Dark Fantasy + Action Roguelike$4,04545 launches priced, 85 releases in 12 months
- Hack and Slash + Dark Fantasy$3,96244 launches priced, 67 releases in 12 months
- Action-Adventure + Dark Fantasy$3,09649 launches priced, 105 releases in 12 months
- Roguelite + Dark Fantasy$3,01348 launches priced, 122 releases in 12 months
- Adventure + Dark Fantasy$2,83293 launches priced, 207 releases in 12 months
- Action RPG + Dark Fantasy$2,34646 launches priced, 94 releases in 12 months
Verdicts
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