The two makers of physics-based tower defense game Sir, We Have an Orc Problem are officially Steam millionaires.
After an explosive launch that brought in $360,000 of revenue in just 24 hours, small German developer Mumpitz Games says its orc-obliterating strategy game has now earned $1,053,927 in gross revenue after "exactly one week," or $898,460 in net revenue with taxes, refunds, and chargebacks removed.
Bear in mind, this game took four months to make, though it was notably made by people with many years of experience and other games under their belt. Obviously, more fees will also be cut out of this lump sum, including Valve's Steam tax, but that's still an enviable payday.
Importantly, the game is good. Short and sweet, Sir, We Have an Orc Problem sits at 2,106 Steam reviews averaging 86% positive. According to the dev's Steam backend data, the median player is putting 5 hours and 20 minutes into the game, which is more than enough to finish it according to many Steam reviews. And I do love me a short, $10 game.
"We will continue to improve the game," Mumpitz adds in its Twitter post. One of the devs previously admitted that, yeah, the art "kinda looks bad to be honest," hoping "maybe we can make it a bit prettier soon."
I do want to pause on those numbers for a minute, because this is a useful example of how wide the reviews-to-sales ratio can swing on Steam. With just over 2,100 reviews but over 128,000 copies sold, Sir, We Have an Orc Problem is averaging around one review per 60 units, which is far above the common napkin math estimate of about one to 30 or so.
Responding to a recent Twitter reply which argued the game has a solid cure but "the balance, art, depth, content are really lackluster," the Mumpitz account says, "I appreciate the valid feedback."
There's also another important number in this mix, and it's something many small teams dream of after releasing a game on Steam. Sir, We Have an Orc Problem is going to keep selling, and it's already comfortably above the revenue threshold believed to be used by Valve when sending out gifts of chocolate.
As Steam sleuth Chris Zukowski explained last year (after the Peak devs lamented previously missing Valve's coveted "chocolate tier"), Steam developers who earn approximately $800,000 in annual revenue receive an actual box of chocolate, estimated to be worth around $150, from Valve as a little thank-you and congratulations. If you cross $2 million or so, your chocolate is apparently upgraded to a $250 gourmet box.
There's a lot of 2026 left, so while Sir, We Have an Orc Problem will surely slow down after the launch sales boom, I wouldn't be surprised if it ends up hitting $2 million eventually. It is, after all, in what Zukowski calls "real Steam," the algorithmic promised land that will keep a game ticking over until the sun burns out.
