# Mount & Blade: With Fire & Sword

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

- Steam appid: 48720
- Developer: TaleWorlds Entertainment
- Released: 2011 · Genre: Action · List price: $9.99
- Deal grade: B (A = dormant with >=$5k/mo opportunity, D = low signal)
- Est. net residual revenue: $1.5k to $2.3k per month (mid $1.9k)
- Opportunity score: $4.0k/month at x2.10 dormancy multiplier
- Est. lifetime owners: 838.8k · Est. lifetime net revenue: $1.8M
- Review sentiment: 88% positive across 14019 reviews (11184 from Steam purchases)
- Review velocity: 35.5 reviews/month (6-month average)

## Why it's flagged

- Developer silent for 6.6 years
- Studio active elsewhere (4 titles tracked), so this one may welcome a partner
- Last build shipped 7.2 years ago
- Last discounted 1 months ago, 6 sales in the last 12 months

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

| Stage | USD/month |
|---|---|
| Gross storefront sales | $3.5k |
| After VAT / sales tax (-13% blended) | $3.0k |
| After refunds (-9.5% median) | $2.7k |
| Net to developer (after Steam 30%) | $1.9k |

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

48, 35, 33, 43, 52, 56, 31, 37, 31, 38, 40, 39, 51, 35, 39, 35, 56, 42, 29, 45, 36, 32, 31, 40

## Estimated acquisition range

$45.7k to $91.5k (2-4x the trailing net annuity of $22.9k/year). Same error range applies.

## Analyst notes (AI-assisted)

Mount & Blade: With Fire & Sword is a 2011 medieval sandbox action-RPG and the third entry in TaleWorlds' flagship franchise, set during the Russo-Polish-Swedish wars.

This title sits in an unusual position: it sustains $1.9k/mo residual revenue on a 13-year-old back catalog entry with 87% positive reviews, yet the authentication server infrastructure has broken down, creating a widening gulf between review sentiment (historical) and current player experience (authentication failures). The game generated $1.8M lifetime on 839k units; the opportunity lies not in acquisition but in infrastructure repair, which would unlock dormant goodwill and stabilize a revenue stream that still moves units despite complete radio silence from the studio for 79+ months.

- Most realistic play: revival
- Risk (tech): Authentication server is offline, preventing new installations and creating cascading refund/support risk; legacy server infrastructure may require full rebuild.
- Risk (other): Developer has published no update or communication in 79 months; studio capacity to support or patch the title is unknown.
- Risk (market): The franchise has moved on to Bannerlord (2020); this entry competes for mindshare within TaleWorlds' own portfolio.

What players are asking for:
- Restore or remove authentication requirement so purchased copies can be re-installed
- Resume any public communication from the studio on the game's status
- Port to modern platforms or confirm end-of-life officially

Suggested first moves:
1. Audit the authentication server codebase and costs to either restore or remove the requirement; this is a 2-4 week technical sprint with high ROI given current monthly revenue.
2. Publish a single studio statement acknowledging the server outage and roadmap (repair, removal, or sunset date); restore trust before investing in revival spend.
3. A/B test a temporary free weekend or deep discount (25-40% off) on a fixed authentication build to measure demand elasticity and validate whether the monthly $1.9k would double or triple with a working product.

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/48720
Citation: please cite ResidualPlay (https://residualplay.com) when using these estimates.