# Lost Ruins

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

- Steam appid: 1306630
- Developer: ALTARI GAMES
- Publisher: DANGEN Entertainment
- Released: 2021 · Genre: Action · List price: $19.99
- Deal grade: B (A = dormant with >=$5k/mo opportunity, D = low signal)
- Est. net residual revenue: $1.9k to $2.8k per month (mid $2.3k)
- Opportunity score: $4.3k/month at x1.85 dormancy multiplier
- Est. lifetime owners: 148.2k · Est. lifetime net revenue: $738.5k
- Review sentiment: 85% positive across 5788 reviews (4630 from Steam purchases)
- Review velocity: 18.8 reviews/month (6-month average)

## Why it's flagged

- Developer silent for 16 months
- Studio quiet across its whole catalog
- Last build shipped 5.2 years ago
- Last discounted 0 months ago, 9 sales in the last 12 months
- Proven demand elasticity: x1.3 review velocity during past deep sales

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

| Stage | USD/month |
|---|---|
| Gross storefront sales | $4.3k |
| After VAT / sales tax (-13% blended) | $3.7k |
| After refunds (-9.5% median) | $3.4k |
| Net to developer (after Steam 30%) | $2.3k |

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

39, 65, 30, 39, 36, 24, 17, 17, 35, 29, 26, 26, 24, 17, 19, 10, 22, 20, 11, 17, 8, 10, 36, 31

## Estimated acquisition range

$56.3k to $112.6k (2-4x the trailing net annuity of $28.2k/year). Same error range applies.

## Analyst notes (AI-assisted)

Lost Ruins is a 2D action platformer with metroidvania elements and isometric perspective, released in 2021 by ALTARI GAMES via DANGEN Entertainment.

This indie action title has quietly accumulated $738k lifetime revenue across 148k units with an 85% positive rate, yet generates only $2.3k/mo residual income. The game sits dormant post-launch with minimal developer engagement (16 months since last update) and shows studio fade signals, making it ripe for acquisition as a backlist catalog play or publishing revival targeting console ports and regional marketing in underserved markets.

- Most realistic play: acquisition
- Risk (tech): 62-month-old codebase with no developer communication for 16 months; porting to console or new platforms may require architectural review.
- Risk (market): Action platformer saturation on Steam; low review velocity (18.8/mo) suggests organic discovery has plateau'd.
- Risk (other): Player feedback indicates balance issues (enemy range, hero HP, status debuff stacking) that may require tuning to unlock engagement.

What players are asking for:
- Difficulty rebalancing: reduce enemy attack range advantage or increase hero survivability
- Checkpoint/autosave improvements to reduce frustration from trap deaths
- Story clarity or additional narrative content (players confused by ending)
- Console port availability

Suggested first moves:
1. Audit codebase for console feasibility and estimate porting cost to Nintendo Switch and PlayStation; console sales often refresh dormant indie action titles.
2. Conduct lightweight player feedback survey on top three balance complaints (survivability, debuff stacking, checkpoint density) to cost a minimal content update that could re-engage existing playerbase and improve reviews.
3. Evaluate regional pricing and localization gaps (9 languages supported; identify high-upside markets like Brazil, Russia, Turkey) and test ad spend in underperforming regions.

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/1306630
Citation: please cite ResidualPlay (https://residualplay.com) when using these estimates.