# Forager

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

- Steam appid: 751780
- Developer: HopFrog
- Publisher: Balor Games
- Released: 2019 · Genre: Action · List price: $19.99
- Deal grade: A (A = dormant with >=$5k/mo opportunity, D = low signal)
- Est. net residual revenue: $18.5k to $27.7k per month (mid $23.1k)
- Opportunity score: $48.5k/month at x2.10 dormancy multiplier
- Est. lifetime owners: 1.4M · Est. lifetime net revenue: $6.1M
- Review sentiment: 89% positive across 43949 reviews (35323 from Steam purchases)
- Review velocity: 214.8 reviews/month (6-month average)

## Why it's flagged

- Developer silent for 5.3 years
- Studio inactive: no public activity across 1 tracked titles
- Last build shipped 5.6 years ago
- Last discounted 1 months ago, 7 sales in the last 12 months
- Proven demand elasticity: x1.4 review velocity during past deep sales

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

| Stage | USD/month |
|---|---|
| Gross storefront sales | $41.9k |
| After VAT / sales tax (-13% blended) | $36.4k |
| After refunds (-9.5% median) | $33.0k |
| Net to developer (after Steam 30%) | $23.1k |

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

322, 173, 145, 147, 293, 244, 145, 233, 154, 165, 161, 323, 315, 161, 206, 207, 285, 226, 137, 197, 302, 194, 241, 218

## Estimated acquisition range

$553.9k to $1.1M (2-4x the trailing net annuity of $276.9k/year). Same error range applies.

## Markets by review language

- french: 2%
- german: 7%
- english: 42%
- spanish: 10%
- japanese: 1%
- schinese: 11%
- brazilian: 12%
- koreana: 8%
- russian: 8%

## Analyst notes (AI-assisted)

Forager is a 2D crafting-and-progression sandbox where players expand islands, automate production chains, and unlock skills to become increasingly powerful.

Forager has generated $6.07M lifetime on 1.41M copies sold and currently earns $18.5–27.7K/mo despite zero developer updates since mid-2021. The game commands 89% positive Steam reviews and steady play volume (215 reviews/mo avg), with a devoted audience frustrated by platform ports, late-game grind design, and abandoned multiplayer promises. This is a classic 'finished but fixable' title: a content revival, console optimization patch, or light mod curation would directly address the most common complaints and unlock higher-engagement cohorts. Acquisition makes sense only if the buyer has console expertise and appetite for modest, high-confidence incremental revenue.

- Most realistic play: revival
- Risk (tech): Console ports (Switch especially) suffer known performance and motion-sickness issues that actively harm retention and reviews; technical debt may require significant QA investment.
- Risk (market): Late-game design is explicitly grindy and punishing (100+ nuclear structures, time-limited void encounters); players report fatigue rather than replayability, limiting long-term engagement upside.
- Risk (other): Developer ghost-shipped the title in 2019; no active studio or IP steward means buyer inherits full maintenance and IP control, but also zero ongoing support expectations.

What players are asking for:
- Fix Switch and console frame-rate/fullscreen/motion-sickness bugs to make ports actually playable
- Reduce late-game grind or add prestige/exponential progression systems to make 100% completion feel achievable
- Resume light content updates (quality-of-life, balance, cosmetics) or officially endorse/curate mod ecosystem

Suggested first moves:
1. Audit Switch/console port code and performance; prioritize frame-rate lock and motion-sickness accessibility fixes as phase 1 to recover lapsed console-player cohort.
2. Map late-game progression data (void DPS checks, nuclear structure counts) and model 2–3 rebalance scenarios (prestige loop, exponential unlock gates, or cosmetic-only grind path) to test with a closed community group.
3. Establish official mod gallery or feature 1–2 trusted quality-of-life mods (e.g., instant-craft toggle) in-game; clarify support roadmap (maintenance-only vs. light seasonal content) to reset community expectations.

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/751780
Citation: please cite ResidualPlay (https://residualplay.com) when using these estimates.