Business Of Video Games Episode 43 - Games industry myths - Season 3 finale
In our final episode of the season, Shams and Fernando drop the guest format to tackle a few persistent myths and misconceptions that have been quietly annoying us all year.
We dig into things like:
How a game can be a bestseller and still be considered a disappointment
What minority investments really mean — and what they don’t
No shouting, no hot takes (okay, maybe one), just two people who’ve seen a few things, trying to make sense of a business that often doesn't.
Thanks for listening this season — see you soon.
support us on patreon: https://www.patreon.com/BusinessOfVideoGames
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Business Of Video Games Episode 42 - Should You Be Shadow Dropping Your Games? Feat. Landfall
Nobody does shadow drops (the act of releasing a game with no advance marketing) quite like Landfall Games, who've done it many times; most recently moving 2 million units of PEAK in less than 2 weeks after shadow dropping it in June.
Fernando talks to Landfall's Chief Business Officer Rebecca Lautner and Head of Publishing Kirsten-Lee Naidoo to get the inside story of how they've become the masters of this unusual tactic.
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Business Of Video Games Episode 41 - Business War Stories with XCOM Creator Jake Solomon
XCOM designer and Sid Meier protege Jake Solomon is embarking on a new mission: CEO of his own studio. Jake gives Shams and Fernando a window into his extraordinary career, telling stories from his days at Firaxis and talking about his journey to found Midsummer Studios.
Follow Jake's progress at https://www.midsummerstudios.com/
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Business Of Video Games Episode 40 - Forty Two immutable Laws of Games Business - Paul Kilduff Taylor
Fourty two is the answer to life - but it's also the number of points of wisdom justly dispensed by games industry veteran Paul Kilduff-Taylor - mastermind behind Developer/Publisher/Operator - Mode 7 Games. Paul wrote the list of "42 Essential Game Dev Tips That Are Immutably Correct and Must Never Be Disputed by Anyone Ever At Any Time!" and we unpack some of these and try to figure out why Paul is a very wise man. Because he is.
(sorry about Shams audio - its fixed in the next episode!)
Check out the original blog post here
https://modecollapse.substack.com/p/42-essential-game-dev-tips-that-are
And more info on Mode 7 Games: https://www.mode7.games/
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Business Of Video Games Episode 39 - The Indie Business Auteur - Xalavier Nelson Jr
Season 3 finally continues with a truly unique indie business auteur!
Xalavier Nelson Jr. runs Strange Scaffold, a game studio that defies convention—achieving repeated success while staying boldly artistic. Listen in to hear Xalavier and Strange Scaffold manage what so few others do.
👉 Visit Strange Scaffold and explore their games here. https://www.strangescaffold.com/
Welcome to The Business of Video Games Podcast.A show where we shed some light on the inner workings of the games industry—the why, how, who, and what the hell?! behind business decisions, publishing calls, and the steps (and missteps) that happen behind the scenes.
Basically: the inside view on how and why things are actually done the way they are. Not just guesswork on 4Chan.
The podcast is hosted by Shams Jorjani (CEO of Arrowhead Game Studios, Chairman of the Board at Hooded Horse, and founder of the Almost Ready Games Fund) and Fernando Rizo (former Chief Sales & Business Development Officer at Raw Fury, now Partner at Kaboodle Games).
In every episode, we invite a guest from the industry to unpack an interesting decision or event, share lessons learned, or explain why all of us armchair experts got it wrong (or occasionally right).
This podcast previously ran for four years at Paradox Interactive and was available there until they decided to remove it. It might yet return someday—as a DLC in one of their games.
Listen to The Business of Video Games Podcast, Think Fast Talk Smart: Communication Techniques and many other podcasts from around the world with the radio.net app
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