# The Count Lucanor

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

- Steam appid: 440880
- Developer: Baroque Decay
- Publisher: Neon Doctrine
- Released: 2016 · Genre: Adventure · List price: $9.99
- Deal grade: B (A = dormant with >=$5k/mo opportunity, D = low signal)
- Est. net residual revenue: $973 to $1.5k per month (mid $1.2k)
- Opportunity score: $2.4k/month at x2.00 dormancy multiplier
- Est. lifetime owners: 158.5k · Est. lifetime net revenue: $340.4k
- Review sentiment: 93% positive across 2974 reviews (2439 from Steam purchases)
- Review velocity: 22.7 reviews/month (6-month average)

## Why it's flagged

- Developer active, last post 6 months ago
- Studio active elsewhere (2 titles tracked), so this one may welcome a partner
- Last build shipped 4.6 years ago
- No Steam discount in 4.0 years (deepest tracked: -0%)

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

| Stage | USD/month |
|---|---|
| Gross storefront sales | $2.2k |
| After VAT / sales tax (-13% blended) | $1.9k |
| After refunds (-9.5% median) | $1.7k |
| Net to developer (after Steam 30%) | $1.2k |

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

22, 16, 20, 23, 22, 32, 20, 23, 20, 10, 17, 24, 19, 23, 22, 17, 22, 20, 13, 25, 17, 11, 29, 41

## Missed seasonal-sale revenue (modeled)

Skipped 12 Steam seasonal sale window(s) in the last 24 months. Running a -50% discount in those windows is modeled at +$7.9k net in total, assuming a unit uplift of x3.0 (industry-typical for old catalog titles). Same ±30-50% error range applies.

## Estimated acquisition range

$29.2k to $58.4k (2-4x the trailing net annuity of $14.6k/year). Same error range applies.

## Analyst notes (AI-assisted)

A 2016 psychological horror adventure with branching narrative and multiple endings, built around exploration of a cursed mansion by a young protagonist.

The Count Lucanor has sustained 93% positive sentiment and ~23 reviews/mo over 54 months with zero recent sales velocity yet generates $973-1,460/mo residual revenue; it represents a quiet, profitable long-tail title with strong narrative design and IP belonging entirely to Baroque Decay. The game's modest $340k lifetime take and mainstream bypass suggest limited market saturation, making it a candidate for revival (console ports, sequel greenlight, bundle placement) rather than acquisition, though its franchise potential warrants watching as the studio matures.

- Most realistic play: revival
- Risk (market): Zero sales in past 12 months and no discount activity in 48 months suggests the title has exhausted organic discovery on PC; revival would require external marketing or platform expansion.
- Risk (other): Developer has published only 2 titles total; studio scaling and retention risk if pursuing sequel or console version.

What players are asking for:
- Sprint or faster movement option to reduce traversal friction
- Console ports (implied by comparison to Yuppie Psycho, the studio's 2019 success)
- Longer campaign or expanded content
- Demo availability (players reference Catechesis demo as superior experience)

Suggested first moves:
1. Audit Baroque Decay's IP portfolio and franchise expansion roadmap; determine if studio would greenlight a Count Lucanor sequel or spiritual successor given Yuppie Psycho's apparent reach.
2. Model console port economics (Switch, PlayStation) using the $1,217/mo baseline and the studio's 2019 momentum; psychological horror performs well on Nintendo platforms and could unlock dormant audiences.
3. Identify bundle, subscription or storefront partnerships (Epic, GOG, game pass) where narrative-driven, low-filesize horror titles have shown traction; zero discounting history suggests pricing power and untapped channel upside.

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/440880
Citation: please cite ResidualPlay (https://residualplay.com) when using these estimates.