# IXION

> ResidualPlay case file: an overlooked Steam game still earning residual revenue. Estimates carry a ±30-50% error range per title.

- Steam appid: 1113120
- Developer: Bulwark Studios
- Publisher: Kasedo Games
- Released: 2022 · Genre: Indie · List price: $34.99
- Deal grade: A (A = dormant with >=$5k/mo opportunity, D = low signal)
- Est. net residual revenue: $19.5k to $29.2k per month (mid $24.3k)
- Opportunity score: $46.2k/month at x1.90 dormancy multiplier
- Est. lifetime owners: 482.0k · Est. lifetime net revenue: $4.2M
- Review sentiment: 79% positive across 17576 reviews (15063 from Steam purchases)
- Review velocity: 111.5 reviews/month (6-month average)

## Why it's flagged

- Developer silent for 2.2 years
- Studio active elsewhere (4 titles tracked), so this one may welcome a partner
- Last build shipped 26 months ago

## Where a gross dollar goes (monthly, at current velocity)

| Stage | USD/month |
|---|---|
| Gross storefront sales | $44.1k |
| After VAT / sales tax (-13% blended) | $38.4k |
| After refunds (-9.5% median) | $34.8k |
| Net to developer (after Steam 30%) | $24.3k |

## Monthly review counts, oldest to newest (24 months)

100, 228, 96, 66, 129, 98, 72, 165, 210, 114, 79, 127, 59, 58, 260, 108, 103, 128, 64, 155, 126, 81, 130, 113

## Estimated acquisition range

$583.7k to $1.2M (2-4x the trailing net annuity of $291.8k/year). Same error range applies.

## Markets by review language

- schinese: 15%
- french: 6%
- german: 6%
- koreana: 4%
- spanish: 2%
- japanese: 1%
- brazilian: 1% (game NOT localized in this language)
- english: 56%
- russian: 9%

## Analyst notes (AI-assisted)

A space-opera colony management sim where you shepherd humanity's last arkship across the stars, balancing resource production, crew survival, and narrative choices.

IXION has earned $4.2M lifetime on 482k units at $35, still generating $24.3k/mo residual revenue with 78% positive reviews and sustained engagement (111.5 reviews/mo). The core appeal is solid: a Frostpunk-in-space formula with stronger narrative and visual atmosphere. However, persistent design friction, resource spirals, late-game quality collapse, unaddressed bugs, and a punishing early difficulty, has capped mainstream adoption. Resale or publishing revival makes sense only if a buyer commits to narrative/balance remaster; pure financial hold is also defensible given low operational cost.

- Most realistic play: watch
- Risk (market): Frostpunk franchise (Frostpunk 2 shipped 2024) now owns the design space; IXION's differentiation is story-driven, not mechanical.
- Risk (tech): Multiple reports of unpatched bugs in late campaign that force loss of hours; no patches since build 25 months ago suggests dev bandwidth constraint.
- Risk (other): End-game narrative/design quality drops sharply per multiple reviews, making completion feel punitive rather than rewarding.
- Risk (market): Resource management difficulty curve inverts player agency; optimal play is grinding on easy rather than engaging with intended challenge.

What players are asking for:
- Balance economy so resource shortfalls are recoverable without restart, or make failure states less catastrophic
- Polish and patch the final act; story 180 undermines thematic setup
- Expand fleet micromanagement; current autopilot causes avoidable losses
- Clarify or relax progression gates to reduce save-scumming

Suggested first moves:
1. Audit late-game bugs and narrative arc; if fixable with 4–6 week engineering sprint, a 'Director's Cut' patch could unlock dormant wishlist and streaming coverage.
2. Benchmark player retention and churn by act; if Acts I–II hold 60%+ and Act III drops below 20%, remaster is ROI-positive.
3. Test simplified economy tuning (increased resource abundance, reduced negative debuff stacking, or optional 'narrative mode') in closed beta; gauge return-to-play from churned buyers.

Generated 2026-08-20 from public signals and player reviews. Directional, not diligence.

## Methodology

Units are estimated from Steam-purchase reviews times a release-cohort multiplier (Boxleiter method, 20-75x by year). Revenue uses an effective price (lifetime discounts and regional pricing) and nets out VAT (~13%), refunds (~9.5%) and Steam's 30% cut: roughly 55% of gross reaches the developer.

Source: https://residualplay.com/game/1113120
Citation: please cite ResidualPlay (https://residualplay.com) when using these estimates.