Support this show on Patreon.com/jeffgrubb Join my Discord: https://discord.gg/qktBHjGG8W On this episode of How Games Make Money, host Jeff Grubb talks to PopCap Vancouver producer Melvin Teo. The team at PopCap is porting Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville to the Nintendo Switch, and Teo explains what that process was like. That includes the challenges of bringing the Frostbite Engine that powers PVZ to the Switch for the first time. Teo also talks about working with a porting studio and about hopes of reaching a new audience on Switch.
Support this show on Patreon.com/jeffgrubb Join my Discord: https://discord.gg/qktBHjGG8W David Whatley is the founder and chief executive officer of game developer Simutronics, which he founded out of his parents home in 1987. He built games back then that are still in active development today. Now, however, his team is working on a new mech shooter called Galahad 3093 that is getting an open test on Steam this Saturday, February 6.
games+podcast@venturebeat.com @HGMMShow @JeffGrubb gamesbeat.com Rate us on Apple Podcasts YouTuber and video producer Jake Baldino of Gameranx joins host Jeff Grubb this week to talk about that job. Jake explains how he came to accept the "YouTuber" job title over time. He also explains the back-and-forth relationship that Gameranx has with YouTube's algorithm, viewer expectations, and sponsorships. Join us, won't you? Theme music: Blippy Trance by Kevin MacLeod Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5759-blippy-trance License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
games+podcast@venturebeat.com @HGMMShow @JeffGrubb gamesbeat.com Rate us on Apple Podcasts On this week's episode, host Jeff Grubb talks with Idil Canal, the general manager of Max at AppLovin. She oversees a product that enables developers to monetize their games with ads. She also explains how that process has improved over time and whether there's still room for innovation in mobile gaming. Join us, won't you? Theme music: Blippy Trance by Kevin MacLeod Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5759-blippy-trance License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Microsoft is releasing Gears Tactics for Windows 10, Xbox Game Pass for PC, and Steam next week, so host Jeff Grubb sits down with the company to talk about it. How did The Coalition settle on a PC-first Gears game? And what does Games Pass enable the studio to do that it otherwise wouldn't? We talk about all that and more. Join us!
games+podcast@venturebeat.com @HGMMShow @JeffGrubb gamesbeat.com Rate us on Apple Podcasts On this week's episode of How Games Make Money, host Jeff Grubb talks with developer Rootpew, who is the creator of prisoner's-dilemma simulator Split or Steal. While Split or Steal has found an audience, it's not a huge source of income for Rootpew. And he talks about how he overcame the costs of keeping the game up and running.
games+podcast@venturebeat.com @HGMMShow @JeffGrubb gamesbeat.com Rate us on Apple Podcasts Over the last three weeks, 17 million people filed a jobless claim in the United States. The country is certainly in a recession (or even a depression) -- as is the rest of the world. But hey -- at least video games are "recession proof," right? That's the line Activision chief executive officer Bobby Kotick gave investors back in 2008. But indie developer Rami Ismail doesn't agree with that. Ismail is one half of indie studio Vlambeer, and the executive director of the online multilingual GameDev.World event. And this week he joins the How Games Make Money podcast to talk about all of that and more.
games+podcast@venturebeat.com @HGMMShow @JeffGrubb gamesbeat.com Rate us on Apple Podcasts This week host Jeff Grubb talks with Amber chief executive officer Mihai Pohontu. Amber is a game-development agency that produces its own games but also works with external companies to provide support services. That includes art assets, game design, engineering, and more. Mihai gets into how that business works. He also provides insight into what coronavirus and the COVID-19 pandemic mean for the future of making games. Mihai then tells the story of how Amber started a studio in Guadalajara, Mexico. Join us, won't you?
Email: games+podcast.com @HGMMShow My twitter: @JeffGrubb gamesbeat.com Rate us on Apple Podcasts Mobile gaming is a massive business that makes billions of dollars worldwide each year. On this week's episode, host Jeff Grubb speaks with Metamoki chief game designer Mitch Zamara (@IMakeDotFun). Mitch provides perspective on what it's like to work as a game designer within the rapid-paced environment of mobile games. Join us, won't you!
Email: games+podcast.com @HGMMShow My twitter: @JeffGrubb gamesbeat.com Rate us on Apple Podcasts On this week's episode of the How Games Make Money podcast, Kahlief Adams of Spawn On Me (@kahjahkins) swoops in to talk about scraping by in the world of content creation. Kahlief makes a podcast about people of color in gaming. He's worked on Spawn On Me for the last six years. For this How Games Make Money, he talks about the costs involved with that project. Blippy Trance by Kevin MacLeod Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5759-blippy-trance License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Email: games+podcast.com @HGMMShow My twitter: @JeffGrubb gamesbeat.com Rate us on Apple Podcasts Making money in video games isn't just about developing games and tools. Sometimes it's about developing an audience that wants to hear you talk about PlayStation, Xbox, and more. That's exactly the business that Kinda Funny cofounder Greg Miller is in, and we talk about all of that and more on this week's episode of How Games Make Money. Blippy Trance by Kevin MacLeod Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5759-blippy-trance License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
On this week's episode of How Games Make Money, host Jeff Grubb speaks with Out of the Park Developments chief operating officer Rich Grisham. Out of the Park is the name of the studio as well as its beloved baseball-management simulator, which has had a new release every year for the last two decades. While OOTP has always relied on selling their game as a product, things are starting to change. Now, the studio is getting into subscription services like EA Access, and it has even introduced microtransactions in its new Perfect Team mode. We talk about all of that and more. Join us, won't you? Theme music: Blippy Trance by Kevin MacLeod Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5759-blippy-trance License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
On the pilot episode of How Games Make Money, host Jeffrey Grubb talks with Ironsource chief financial officer Omer Kaplan about serving up ads in hypercasual games. Do those ads really make money? And why are those ads always for other games? We talk about all of that and more, so listen, won't you? Theme music: Blippy Trance by Kevin MacLeod Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5759-blippy-trance License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Adam Lieb sits down with me to talk about GameSight, which is a performance marketing company for the rest of us. While performance marketing has dominated mobile gaming, it’s coming late to the traditional console and PC space. GameSight tries to connect data from various resources to determine how spending money can make developers and publishers even more money – but it brings in that data from places like television ads and other traditional avenues for marketing.
I talk with Z and Kevin Zhang of Serenity Forge, which is here in Colorado. I met these fellas back at a Denver Comic Con a few years ago, and now they have found themselves in the business of publishing physical games. Most recently, they distributed Doki Doki Literature Club+ into Targets and Walmarts around the world. And they have plans for more projects like that in the future. Discord Patreon
I talk to Steven Spohn and Dr. Chris Power from Able Gamers about their APX certification for game developers. This is a certification that teaches best practices for accessibility to game creators. Steven and Chris explain how those conversations with devs have changed over the last few years as well as the challenges they continue to face. APX Discord Patreon
On this episode of How Games Make Money, host Jeff Grubb speaks with one of the cofounders of Megadev, Robert Maroschik, about its game-cheat service Plitch. That is a subscription program that uses programs called "trainers" that can adjust the way games behave. But unlike similar programs, like Cheat Engine, Plitch takes out all of the guesswork. But while Plitch is simple, it faces a complicated landscape where game cheats are no longer part of the norm. Megadev wants to change that. Plitch Discord Patreon
Discord Patreon I speak with 1047 cofounder Ian Proulx. Ian helped build 1047’s Splitgate competitive shooter that combines combat with a futuresport aesthetic. Splitgate is already available on PC, where it has gained a lot of traction. But now it is headed to console as well, and we talk about that process, self-publishing, and a lot more.
Discord Patreon On this episode, Jeff Grubb speaks with Colossal Order chief executive officer Mariina Hallikainen about the studio’s city-building simulator Cities: Skylines, which is now six years old. Mariina and Jeff talk about supporting a game for more than half a decade as well as how things change when a game immediately surpasses its sales expectations.
Discord Patreon On this episode of How Games Make Money, host Jeff Grubb has a conversation with Intel's Joakim Algstam about the new Tiger Lake-H CPUs. These chips are speedy, great for gaming, and great for creation, and Intel is working with OEMs to build laptops that can serve all of those needs.