In this episode of the Naavik Gaming Podcast, host Niko Vuori interviews Antti Hattara, co-founder and CEO of StarBerry Games, about their successful mobile game, Merge Mayor. As the game surpasses the $25 million revenue milestone, the conversation covers the game's journey from an idle game that pivoted into a merge-2 (along the lines of Metacore…

AI is increasingly touching every corner of the games industry, and one of the areas it may have the largest impact on is user acquisition. Today, host Aaron Bush is joined by Robert Huynh, co-founder and CEO of Reforged Labs, to discuss how AI will transform the way gaming creatives are made, experimented with, and ultimately convert consumers. Th…

Today, host Devin Becker is joined by Sam Means, Founder of Wavlake, and Ben Cousens, Chief Strategy Officer of ZBD, for an exploration of alternative payment systems for creators in the music and gaming industries. The conversation dives into how Wavlake leverages Bitcoin to revolutionize artist payments and music distribution, offering unique ben…

In this episode of the Naavik Gaming podcast, host Niko Vuori interviews Álvaro Pinto, co-founder and COO of Aptoide, an independent app store with over 430 million users and 10 billion downloads. They discuss the evolution of app distribution, the concept of decentralization, and how Aptoide has grown and adapted over the years. Álvaro shares insi…

One of UEFN's biggest strengths is that it is a melting pot of intellectual property. Jeremy Pedron, Lead Game Designer at JOGO Studios, calls it “a vast childhood playroom”, a place where you can combine playing with Batman while also playing with Legos. As creative costs go down to zero, the modern gaming market is undergoing a transformation in …

Host Devin Becker is joined by Zach Nass, Head of Gaming at nSure.ai, to discuss the complex and evolving landscape of payment fraud prevention in gaming. Zach shares insights into why payment fraud in gaming has become such a critical issue today, the unique challenges posed by game-specific economies and marketplaces, and the importance of nuance…

Host Niko Vuori and guest George Isichos, core contributor at Game7, discuss the current state of web3 gaming, focusing on the latest Game7 x Naavik research report (which you can download here). They explore the evolution of the ecosystem, the impact of platforms like Telegram and Epic Games Store, and emerging economic models such as Play-to-Aird…

If you’re reading this, you’re probably one of LinkedIn’s 1B+ global users. You might have also noticed some of your professional connections playing one of LinkedIn’s new games — Queens, Pinpoint, Crossclimb, or Tango — and may even be wondering "why are there games on LinkedIn?" Host Alexandra Takei, Director at Ruckus Games, sits down with Laksh…

A new frontier is emerging with the advent of "web shops," also known as direct-to-consumer distribution methods. Alexandra Takei, Director at Ruckus Games, sits down with Chris Faught, the CEO and founder of Neon, a direct-to-consumer payments service currently working with Space Ape, Metacore, and Theorycraft to build customizable web shops and g…

Host Aaron Bush welcomes Shahar Sorek, CMO of Overwolf, and Nick Tuosto, co-founder of Griffin Gaming Partners and GoodGame Advisors, to discuss the growing – and increasingly interconnected – impact of transmedia and modding on the gaming industry. As beloved entertainment IPs partner with more types of game creators, we examine how these transmed…

Fortnite has paid out roughly $500 million to creators since UEFN and Creator Economy 2.0 launched in March of 2023. These payouts, which have increased 32.5% YoY (measured from March through September), are showing no signs of slowing down. However, Fortnite Creative engagement as a proportion of total Fortnite engagement has actually declined as …

In this episode, host Niko Vuori and guest Sean Ryan delve into the emerging category of social sweepstakes, a gaming model that barely existed as recently as 2017 but has rapidly evolved into a multi-billion dollar industry. In 2023, social sweeps generated almost $6 billion in revenue, and this number is expected to double to nearly $12 billion b…

Sebastian Park, co-founder of Infinite Canvas and a favorite recurring guest, joins host Aaron Bush to dive into the fascinating topic of building games on new platforms and with new technologies. They discuss how Infinite Canvas rapidly iterates, uses off-the-shelf LLM tech, and what the team has learned lately from building on Discord, Twitch, an…

In this episode, host Niko Vuori and guest Danny Moy, Chief Strategy Officer at SciPlay, delve into the highly competitive category of social casino. They discuss the evolution of SciPlay, the demographics of social casino players, and the integration of casino mechanics into mainstream games. The conversation also touches on the importance of live…

What is culture, and why does it matter? Seth Sivak, the founder and ex-CEO of Proletariat, a studio most known for its title Spellbreak, joins our host, Alexandra Takei, Director at Ruckus Games, to discuss the importance of organizational culture in the gaming industry. Proletariat was founded in 2012 by Seth and four other co-founders and went t…

With metagames becoming a key component of player engagement and monetization, it’s more important than ever to get them right. Host Devin Becker welcomes Christopher Molozian, CEO of Heroic Labs, to discuss the evolving landscape of metagame systems and the technology that powers them. Christopher explains how Heroic Labs' platform integrates seam…

When designing content creation tools for the masses, most platforms have to make trade-offs across accessibility, ease of use, capability, and power of the toolsets. However, AI has the potential to provide the best of both worlds. For instance, co-pilot technology empowers non-technical creators to write code, and 3D gen-AI enables entire environ…

“AAA is not in crisis; it is in a moment of change.” In this episode, Kate Kellogg, the COO of EA Studios, joins our host, Alexandra Takei, Director at Ruckus Games, to discuss game launches, EA's strategic approach, and how EA staffs and organizes itself to win. We discuss the challenge of aligning development resources with performance expectatio…

It's no secret that distribution across all major gaming platforms is virtually inaccessible to all but the most deep-pocketed developers. The go-go days of being able to bootstrap a studio or raise a modest amount of funding to grow and scale a title are long gone, and there have been very few emerging platforms that show outsized promise. But is …

In recent years, there’s been considerable discourse about the game industry’s challenges. However, according to today's guest, Jiten Dajee, one core element has been missing from the conversation: the root technical causes underlying many of today’s business woes. After all, game tech shapes the way games are developed and managed, which in turn d…

If you are into fantasy sports, Dream 11 is a household name. Boasting over 220M active users, it is one of the most popular fantasy sports platforms in the world. But what you might not know is that Dream 11 is just one part of the Dream Sports Group, which aspires to be a full 360 sports experience beyond fantasy (including merchandise, travel, s…

Over the last few years, brands have increasingly gravitated to platforms like Roblox as a way to reach younger audiences. In 2023 alone, we saw 240 brand activations on Roblox, which doubled from the year prior. In terms of revenue, this contributed to over $80 million in brand spend, which equates to roughly 10% of Roblox's developer earnings for…

The gaming industry is currently facing an identity crisis, with widespread layoffs, escalating budgets, and a flood of new games hitting the market. In light of these macro trends, game studios and platforms need to find ways to leverage their existing strengths or develop new strategies for long-term success. Ben Feder, Managing Partner at Tirta …

UGC is hot, hot, hot right now. Roblox is on track to pay out half a billion USD to creators - annually - and never has it been more possible for young, individual creators to make a meaningful living as “game developers.” But is Roblox the only place for such creators? HiberWorld, a platform that's empowering anyone to build and share their own 3D…

On August 28th, the Securities and Exchange Commission issued a Wells Notice to OpenSea, notifying the largest NFT marketplace that it is under investigation for operating as an unlicensed exchange, labeling the NFTs traded on the platform as securities. Founder & CEO of OpenSea, Devin Finzer, posted that “[t]his is a move into uncharted territory.…

Hasbro is known for iconic properties like Dungeons and Dragons and Monopoly, but is sometimes overlooked as the licensor of incredible video game successes such as Baldur's Gate III and Monopoly Go! In the last 12 months, Hasbro's licensed games have generated a staggering $3.25 billion, making it the largest entertainment IP licensor in video gam…

Today, we explore what it takes to build the next big video game franchise powered by user-generated games. It's a daunting task as Epic Games paid roughly $320 million to creators in the past year in order to incentivize creators to build new experiences on its platform. That's enough money to develop and market a new AAA franchise every year. How…

Animoca has been an unwavering web3 cheerleader since day one, with a stated goal of leveraging blockchain technologies to “deliver digital property rights to consumers around the world and to help to establish the open metaverse.” The company develops and publishes a broad portfolio of both original and licensed IP, and has its finger in about as …

One of the biggest web3 hits of 2022, the horse racing game Pegaxy, generated over $200 million in sales, second only to Axie Infinity during that period. After building heads down during the crypto bear market through the end of the 2023, the company behind Pegaxy, Mirai Labs, is ready to ride again, now with its second game, Petopia, a top-down r…

There are 3B gamers in the world, and many of those players have disabilities. Often called “accessibility” or “adaptive gaming”, this is one of the most important topics (and markets) in the gaming industry. From mobility, visual, and hearing impairments to cognitive and speech impairments, the industry has begun making strides in addressing how w…

Online safety for kids has only become more important over time, and it's become a thorny compliance topic for games teams to wrestle with. Fortunately, talented entrepreneurs are creating solutions that make it easier for games teams (and beyond) to tackle these challenges. To help explore this nuanced topic, host Aaron Bush is joined by Kieran Do…

Voice games have had a quiet history compared to mobile, console, and the PC gaming arena. However, Lightspeed and Microsoft’s M12 Ventures see Volley Games as a leader and game changer in the space, co-leading a $55M Series C on the backs of solid MAU and ARR. Our host, Alexandra Takei, Director at Ruckus Games, speaks with Max Child, CEO and Co-F…

Mobile gaming is a tough business, but Voodoo has been able to evolve with the times. After years of pioneering hypercasual, the company has more recently set its sights on making casual mobile games with deeper metas and monetization tactics. This pivot sparked major changes across the organization, but it’s already led to major hits – the largest…

Casual word games is a tough, tough category to compete in on mobile. Not only is it a very crowded red ocean, but casual games are notoriously hard to monetize effectively through IAPs, making user acquisition even more difficult than it already is in the post-IDFA world. That said, Funcraft is making it work in their favor, building a thriving, g…

Between Apple’s policy changes and growing government regulations, privacy concerns have sparked a significant shift in AdTech strategies. This episode investigates the potential for privacy-focused ads, exploring how companies are adapting to new regulations while still striving for effective targeting. Host Devin Becker is joined by Geeshan Willi…

Chess is a business that has, without a doubt, been supercharged by linear media and has been booming since COVID-19. As one of the most tactically complex games ever designed, Chess has over 700 years of retention and history. But what is it like to build a chess empire? Chess.com, purchased by Erik Allebest and his co-founder for $55K in 2005, ha…

Major toy companies like Spin Master, Mattel, and Hasbro have all been expanding their influence beyond traditional toys for many years. Spin Master, in particualr, is known for launching popular entertainment properties like PAW Patrol and Bakugan, which have seamlessly transitioned into digital formats in the form of TV series, movies, and video …

China is the second largest video game market in the world, and even though its industry has faced domestic challenges, China’s global impact on gaming continues to rise. However, if you’re an outsider, figuring out what’s happening in China can sometimes be opaque. That’s why host Aaron Bush is joined today by Josh Ye, a long-time reporter for all…

Apex Legends is known for having one of the most “boring” game launches in history in the best of ways. Jokingly called Uptime Legends, Apex pursued a multi-tiered cloud infrastructure that helped EA deliver one of the smoothest PvP launches in history. Sid Dhulipalla, CEO and Co-Founder of Hathora, and Steven Hartland, VP of Engineering at Rocket …

As the world of gaming matures, the influence of content creators is increasingly important. In this episode, host Devin Becker sits down with Justin Sacks, CEO of Nexus, and Bryan Herren, Director of Partnerships for offbrand, to dive into the pivotal role of content creators in shaping the gaming ecosystem. The conversation kicks off with an expl…

Modding has long been a force of innovation and creativity in the games industry, but the emergence of cross-platform, premium mods is set to take modding to another level. Thanks to platforms like Overwolf’s CurseForge, studios and publishers can now enable all sorts of creators — even other professional studios — to build on top of their games an…

The New York Times is one of the world’s most recognized newspapers and has been in circulation since 1851. With 10 million subscribers, the Times has a huge audience and an even larger cultural impact. But the Gray Lady isn’t content to just rest on her laurels and focus on news - other verticals in which the Times operates are product reviews (Th…

Quality assurance is one of the most crucial aspects of game development to ensure the game functions as intended and to provide a positive player experience. Around $300M in funding has been directed towards AI “efficiency tools for creators” and Christoffer Holmgard, Founder of Modl.AI, and Nathan Martz, Founder of Agentic, are pushing the fronti…

Yuga Labs, the heavyweight behind some of the biggest Web3 IP, including Bored Ape Yacht Club, CryptoPunks, and Meebits, made its first foray into games just over a year ago with its toilet-themed infinite runner, Dookey Dash. Now Yuga is here with a sequel called Dookey Dash: Unclogged, and there are a lot of innovations from the original - the mo…

Krafton is one of the world’s premier video game publishers. After experiencing the explosive success of PUBG in the late 2010s, Krafton rebranded in 2018, went public in 2021, and has since been working to not just extend the PUBG brand to new games, platforms, and regions but also kickstart new IPs with innovative playstyles and partner with emer…

Roblox is approaching 350M monthly active users. It’s a platform that generated $3.3B in bookings last year and paid $740M to its developers and creators. The low barriers to entry for developers and immediate access to an audience of 350M players has made it an appealing proposition for indie developers. According to Roblox’s most recent estimate,…

In an era of games where the financing sources are slim and marketing and community can make or break your game launch, your host Alexandra Takei, Director at Ruckus Games, welcomes Tim Morten and Cara LaForge, CEO and Director of Business Operations respectively at Frost Giant Studios, to discuss their experiences in running a widely successful cr…

Guild of Guardians is Immutable’s second major game after Gods Unchained, and is one of the most anticipated web3 games of 2024 - Immutable has called it their new “flagship game” and has been preparing for a global May 15th launch. After starting out as a real-time RPG, the game pivoted to a more casual auto-battler 15 months ago, driven by Gods U…

In the dynamic landscape of gaming, the fusion of cutting-edge financial technology and innovative incentives is shaping a new era of player acquisition and engagement. Host Devin Becker leads an insightful discussion with Ben Cousens, Chief Strategy Officer of ZBD, and Paul West, Founder of Fumb Games, on the transformative power of Bitcoin reward…

A new era of game developer has arrived to shake up narrative game making. In this episode, host Alexandra Takei, Director at Ruckus Games, welcomes Emily Pitcher, founder of Sondering, and Karla Reyes, founder of Anima Interactive, two Forbes 30 under 30 game developers focused on narrative innovation and socially conscious storytelling. The discu…