Tag pairdata 30 Sep 2026
Strategy + Military: a typical launch earns $1,456 in its first year
That is the median of 61 indie paid launches, 2024 Q4 to 2025 Q3. 11 of 114 matured launches earned $100k or more, against 12.4 expected for their price and launch quarter. Releases rose 53% on the year before: 118 against 77.
- Big publishers: over 85% from majors or $40+ games
- Price
- $1,456 median of 61 launches
- Price vs a year earlier
- +50.2% four quarters on the four before
- Releases, 12 months
- 118 77 the year before
- Upcoming games
- 293 coming soon on Steam
- Games on the store
- 922 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. | 0.38%share of upcoming wishlist heat | 0.17% to 0.62% | 32 ranked of 294 upcoming gameswishlist rank 30 Sep 2026 | #611 of 7,193pairs on this board |
Launch successLaunches earning $100k or more, against the number expected for their price tier and launch quarter.
| 0.91xhits against expected | 0.64x to 1.32x | 114 launchesindie paid launches 31 Mar 2024 to 1 Apr 2026 (6 to 30 months old) | #3,372 of 6,324pairs on this board |
| Fewer new releasesFewer launches relative to players. Historically this did not predict better launches. | +5%player demand against new supply, relative to Steam | −24% to +38% | 45 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025; releases 30 Sep 2025 to 30 Sep 2026 vs prior 12 months | #1,280 of 2,361pairs on this board |
| Rising demandGaining players faster than same-age games. Descriptive, not a launch signal. | +16%review growth against same-age games | +2% to +30% | 45 tracked gamesJun 2026 to Aug 2026 vs Jun 2025 to Aug 2025 | #91 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
- 114
- Hit rate
- 9.6%6.0% to 16.7%
- Expected rate
- 10.9%
- Against expected
- 0.91x0.64x to 1.32x
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
114 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
- $0
- Median
- $1,487
- Top tenth
- $78,264
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
- +53%
- Against Steam
- +11%after Steam-wide growth, shrunk by 5 releases
Parent tags
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.
- Hell Let Loose: Vietnam (opens the Steam store)2026 · 11,087 reviews, 61% positiveest. $8.9M
- Gallipoli (opens the Steam store)2026 · 4,191 reviews, 77% positiveest. $2.5M
- Master of Command (opens the Steam store)2025 · 3,876 reviews, 92% positiveest. $2.3M
- Three Kingdoms Mushouden (opens the Steam store)2025 · 1,880 reviews, 72% positiveest. $951k
- Sir, We Have an Orc Problem (opens the Steam store)2026 · 4,400 reviews, 86% positiveest. $890k
- War Hospital (opens the Steam store)2024 · 1,019 reviews, 59% positiveest. $619k
- KAISERPUNK (opens the Steam store)2025 · 887 reviews, 70% positiveest. $539k
- Task Force Admiral - Vol.1: American Carrier Battles (opens the Steam store)2026 · 647 reviews, 87% positiveest. $524k
More with Strategy
pairs with Strategy- Strategy + Roguelike Deckbuilder$8,599104 launches priced, 217 releases in 12 months
- Strategy + Base Building$6,139160 launches priced, 260 releases in 12 months
- Strategy + Turn-Based$5,85566 launches priced, 104 releases in 12 months
- Strategy + Historical$4,25980 launches priced, 157 releases in 12 months
- Strategy + Party-Based RPG$3,88255 launches priced, 102 releases in 12 months
- Strategy + Story Rich$3,64284 launches priced, 149 releases in 12 months
More with Military
pairs with Military- Simulation + Military$2,91247 launches priced, 94 releases in 12 months
- War + Military$2,15564 launches priced, 90 releases in 12 months
- Military + Wargame$1,21466 launches priced, 94 releases in 12 months
- First-Person + Military$97133 launches priced, 47 releases in 12 months
- Action + Military$80987 launches priced, 123 releases in 12 months
- Shooter + Military$54557 launches priced, 97 releases in 12 months
Verdicts
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