Steam Revenue Report Analyzes Top Genres and Success Rates Using User Tags

A recent study on weloveit.io, conducted by Ichiro Lambe, Matt Martindale, and Dr. Tim Ermilov, has analyzed the financial performance and success rates of over 100,000 games on Steam. Because the trio does not possess Valve’s internal sales data, they utilized the Boxleiter method to estimate earnings. This technique assumes that a game's review count is proportional to its sales, multiplying user reviews by a constant of 35 for a standard estimate. For instance, the study estimates that Baldur's Gate 3 has earned $1,795,480,003 since its early access launch in late 2020, whereas the physics climbing game Free Solo generated an estimated $34.

The research also evaluated genre economics by tracking user tags, counting a game toward a genre only if the tag is one of its six most popular. According to the findings, sandbox games hold the highest hit rate—measured by the percentage of tagged games earning over $100,000—at 27.3%. However, researchers note that the sandbox tag encompasses vastly different experiences like Terraria, Red Dead Redemption 2, and Project Zomboid. The first-person shooter (FPS) tag followed closely in second place with a 21.6% hit rate. Rounding out the top ten are RPGs (19.4%), Simulation (16.9%), Visual Novel (16.5%), Horror (16.1%), Strategy (16.1%), Racing (15.8%), Roguelite (15.3%), and Sports (14.8%). Conversely, Hidden Object games and 2D platformers ranked at the bottom with hit rates of 5.4% and 5.5% respectively.

Alongside the genre breakdown, weekly revenue charts highlighted strong performers such as Counter-Strike 2, How to Fish, and Mortal Shell II. Additionally, Stalker 2 reappeared on the revenue list following a major 2.0 update and a steep discount. Notable recent and upcoming releases highlighted in deep cuts include Iron Blight, the metroidvania sequel Aggelos 2, the first-person horror game Can I Come In?, and the hack-and-slash title Divinum.