4X gameplay
Every paid Steam game tagged 4X, ranked by our estimated lifetime revenue. 826 games in the catalog, 490 with a sales estimate.
Games
826
Active paid titles tagged
Total Gross
$4.0B
Sum of estimated lifetime revenue
Median
$61.0K
Half earn less, half more
Hit Rate
43.3%
212 games earned $100K+
Revenue share - top 5 vs rest
- Sid Meier’s Civilization® VI 15.5%
- Stellaris 11.7%
- Europa Universalis IV 11.6%
- Manor Lords 7.6%
- Crusader Kings III 6.2%
- Other (485 games) 47.4%
Top 25 earners
The highest-earning 4X games by our estimator.
| # | Game | Released | Reviews | Peak CCU | Est. Units | Est. Gross |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Sid Meier’s Civilization® VI Firaxis Games, Aspyr (Mac), Aspyr (Linux) | 2016-10-20 | 379,187 | 162,314 | 10,427,643 | $624,615,816 |
| 2 |  Stellaris Paradox Development Studio | 2016-05-09 | 197,238 | 68,517 | 9,421,418 | $470,976,686 |
| 3 |  Europa Universalis IV Paradox Development Studio, Paradox Tinto | 2013-08-13 | 137,413 | 47,844 | 9,314,085 | $465,611,109 |
| 4 |  Manor Lords Slavic Magic | 2024-04-26 | 91,731 | 170,000 | 7,650,000 | $305,882,308 |
| 5 |  Crusader Kings III Paradox Development Studio | 2020-09-01 | 143,788 | 98,474 | 4,950,079 | $247,454,449 |
| 6 |  Sid Meier's Civilization VII Firaxis Games | 2025-02-11 | 61,977 | 84,558 | 3,408,735 | $238,543,275 |
| 7 |  Total War: WARHAMMER II CREATIVE ASSEMBLY, Feral Interactive (Mac), Feral Interactive (Linux) | 2017-09-28 | 121,473 | 84,254 | 3,644,190 | $218,614,958 |
| 8 |  Sid Meier's Civilization® V Firaxis Games, Aspyr (Mac), Aspyr (Linux) | 2010-09-23 | 210,854 | 91,020 | 6,325,620 | $189,515,575 |
| 9 |  Age of Empires IV: Anniversary Edition World's Edge, Relic Entertainment, Forgotten Empires, Climax Studios | 2021-10-28 | 95,682 | 64,911 | 2,105,004 | $84,179,110 |
| 10 |  Total War: WARHAMMER CREATIVE ASSEMBLY, Feral Interactive (Linux), Feral Interactive (Mac) | 2016-05-24 | 52,338 | 111,909 | 1,291,675 | $77,487,583 |
| 11 |  Europa Universalis V Paradox Tinto | 2025-11-04 | 30,741 | 77,260 | 1,232,842 | $73,958,192 |
| 12 |  Imperator: Rome Paradox Development Studio | 2019-04-25 | 26,910 | 13,616 | 1,776,060 | $71,024,639 |
| 13 |  ENDLESS Space™ 2 AMPLITUDE Studios | 2017-05-18 | 23,095 | 53,435 | 1,222,210 | $48,876,178 |
| 14 |  Frostpunk 2 11 bit studios | 2024-09-20 | 27,091 | 35,533 | 1,065,990 | $47,958,890 |
| 15 |  Northgard: Definitive Edition Shiro Games | 2018-03-07 | 68,752 | 20,083 | 1,182,296 | $41,338,135 |
| 16 |  X4: Foundations Egosoft | 2018-11-30 | 30,219 | 15,074 | 739,861 | $36,985,651 |
| 17 |  Against the Storm Eremite Games | 2023-12-08 | 37,504 | 12,832 | 1,164,634 | $34,927,374 |
| 18 |  Farthest Frontier Crate Entertainment | 2025-10-23 | 25,544 | 24,874 | 912,709 | $31,929,603 |
| 19 |  HUMANKIND™ AMPLITUDE Studios | 2021-08-17 | 28,829 | 55,232 | 634,238 | $31,705,558 |
| 20 |  Sid Meier's Civilization®: Beyond Earth™ Firaxis Games, Aspyr (Mac), Aspyr (Linux) | 2014-10-23 | 23,171 | 86,747 | 693,976 | $27,731,281 |
| 21 |  Workers & Resources: Soviet Republic 3Division | 2024-06-20 | 27,352 | 8,221 | 658,329 | $26,326,577 |
| 22 |  Total War: PHARAOH DYNASTIES CREATIVE ASSEMBLY | 2024-07-25 | 6,746 | 6,305 | 647,616 | $25,878,735 |
| 23 |  Sins of a Solar Empire II Ironclad Games Corporation, Stardock Entertainment | 2024-08-15 | 8,757 | 13,330 | 513,499 | $25,664,680 |
| 24 |  Age of Wonders 4 Triumph Studios | 2023-05-03 | 23,059 | 42,826 | 507,298 | $25,359,827 |
| 25 |  Norland Long Jaunt | 2024-07-18 | 10,480 | 11,775 | 759,492 | $22,777,165 |
Releases per year
Is 4X trending up or fading? Bars show new paid Steam releases with this tag each year. Green flecks are hits (≥$100K est. lifetime).
9
2010
5
2011
7
2012
8
2013
17
2014
23
2015
19
2016
21
2017
17
2018
26
2019
25
2020
40
2021
36
2022
56
2023
53
2024
79
2025
75
2026
Top upcoming
Highest-wishlist unreleased 4X games.
| # | Game | WL Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Falling Frontier Stutter Fox Studios | 37 |
| 2 |  Fragile Existence Fragile Continuum | 204 |
| 3 |  Afterworld Paradox Development Studio | 265 |
| 4 |  Capital Command Hellride Games | 290 |
| 5 |  Wild West Pioneers EmpireCraft Studios | 312 |
| 6 |  Ashes of the Singularity II Oxide Games | 402 |
| 7 |  Gilded Destiny Aquila Interactive | 468 |
| 8 |  Beyond Astra Nebule Games | 501 |
| 9 |  Alliance of the Sacred Suns KatHawk Studios | 574 |
| 10 |  Twilight Imperium Digital Red Square Games | 632 |
Top recent (12 months)
Highest-earning 4X games released in the past year.
| # | Game | Est. Gross |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | | $73,958,192 |
| 2 | | $31,929,603 |
| 3 |  | $19,413,967 |
| 4 |  | $15,210,996 |
| 5 |  | $13,612,953 |
| 6 |  | $12,698,265 |
| 7 |  | $6,537,384 |
| 8 |  | $4,957,408 |
| 9 |  | $4,622,376 |
| 10 |  | $2,770,686 |