Naavik Gaming Podcast

Over the past months, we’ve seen a significant backlash from the gaming community when gaming companies announced they were experimenting with NFTs in their games. In this Naavik Metacast Crypto Corner episode, Lars Doucet and Ethan Levy join your host Nico to have an open-minded discussion about whether these concerns are really valid, and what the blockchain gaming community can do to address them. If you would like us to discuss any other blockchain gaming-related topics, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! Join the discussion: DiscordLearn more: Newsletter or Go PremiumFollow us: Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook | Website

For many in the games industry, 2021 was a rollercoaster ride. We saw Roblox going public, Apple’s ATT come into effect, discriminatory practices in the largest game companies come to light, play-to-earn burst onto the scene and so much more.In this special Metacast Roundtable episode, Fawzi Itani, Ryan Foo and Florian Ziegler join your host Nicolas Vereecke to look back at 2021 and share their biggest learnings. If you would like us to discuss any another gaming-related topics, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! Join the discussion: DiscordLearn more: Newsletter or Go PremiumFollow us: Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook | Website

In this Metacast Crypto Corner episode, Khaled Alroumi, Anton Backman and Sebastian Park join your host Nico to take a deep dive into the complexities of Blockchain Games and high level competition + esports.If you would like us to discuss another blockchain gaming-related topic, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! Join the discussion: DiscordLearn more: Newsletter or Go Premium Follow us: Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook | Website

In this Metacast episode, Chong Ahn, David Amor and Florian Ziegler join your host Nicolas Vereecke to discuss; #1: The Rise of Blockchain Gaming Ecosystem FundsAll over the Crypto Gaming space, blockchains are partnering up with Venture Capital funds to create Blockchain Gaming Ecosystem funds. The goal of these funds is to support games teams to build on these respective blockchains. This is a solid strategy to kickstart network effects, but we are wary of these ecosystems becoming too closed off from the rest of the Blockchain Gaming world. #2: Rec Room Raises $145MRec Room, the social gaming and UGC platform, has seen 450% MAU growth over the past year, which explains the valuation of $3.5b only nine months after raising $100m at a $1.25b valuation. The company is on a strong growth trajectory, and will now need to focus on providing great experiences and tools for its creators to sustain it. #3: Amazon Prime Gaming Partners with Blankos Block Party to give NFTs to its SubscribersAfter linking their account, subscribers of Amazon Prime Gaming were able to receive a free Blankos Block Party NFT to play with on the Blankos platform. Chong, VP of Product at Mythical Games, walks us through the rationale behind the partnership, and its results. As this week’s bonus segment, we are predicting the major topics in the games industry for 2022. If you would like us to discuss any another gaming-related topics, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! Join the discussion: DiscordLearn more: Newsletter or Go Premium Follow us: Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook | Website

In this Metacast Crypto Corner episode, Derek Lau and LordOfAFew join your host Nico to take a deep dive into how we’ll scale Blockchain Games.If you would like us to discuss another blockchain gaming-related topic, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! Join the discussion: DiscordLearn more: Newsletter or Go Premium Follow us: Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook | Website

In this Metacast episode, Aaron Bush, Yonatan Raz-Fridman and Miikka Ahonen join your host Nicolas Vereecke to discuss; #1: PlayStation SpartacusSony is (allegedly) planning a new subscription service to compete with Microsoft’s Xbox Game Pass. The service will allow PlayStation owners to pay a monthly fee for access to a catalog of modern and classic games.Launch expected in spring, the service will merge Sony’s two existing subscription plans, PlayStation Plus and PlayStation Now. #2: Tencent to Increase Supercell StakeSupercell has seen revenue fall nearly every year since Tencent’s acquisition of a majority stake in 2016. The Information now reports that the Chinese internet giant is to boost that stake in Supercell at a valuation of roughly 11b. This is 10% higher than the valuation in 2016.It will do that by buying some of the shares held by the partners that bought in back in 2016. Note - our recording happened minutes before this went live. #3: The Game AwardsThe Game Awards is an award show honoring the best video games of the year. It was held in LA on Thursday last week, and was live streamed globally. I Takes Two won Game Of The Year, but we feel that the awards are very niche and too focused on AAA console/PC games. Aaron now plans to launch the Naavik Games Industry Awards Show. And as this week’s bonus segment, we are predicting what will be the most successful game of 2022. If you would like us to discuss any another gaming-related topics, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! Join the discussion: DiscordLearn more: Newsletter or Go Premium Follow us: Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook | Website

In this Metacast Crypto Corner episode, your host Nico is joined by Ryan Foo and Oweh Soh to take a deep dive into the Wolf Game phenomenon. If you would like us to discuss another blockchain gaming-related topic, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! Join the discussion: DiscordLearn more: Newsletter or Go Premium Follow us: Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook | Website

What is a MMOCG or Massively Multiplayer On-Chain Game? How does it work? What can we do with it? Is this going to be a thing?Find out this and more in this week’s roundtable!In this Metacast episode, Florian Ziegler, David Amor and Matej Lancaric are joined by your host Nicolas Vereecke to discuss; Massively Multiplayer On-Chain GamesMMOCGs are games that are both Open-Source and Open-State. The whole game lives completely on the blockchain, which has some profound and interesting consequences. Ubisoft takes a first step into NFTsUbisoft announced the first implementation of blockchain technology into one of its games with the addition of NFTs to the PC version of Ghost Recon Breakpoint. The response was overwhelmingly negative, and the company removed the announcement video from YouTube. The move feels like a conservative experiment into NFTs, and we can only applaud Ubisoft for being the first AAA publisher to do it. Moon Active raises $300m at a $5b valuationMoon Active, the maker of Coin Master, is killing it. The company is not afraid to experiment with different types of games, and it’s paying off. We’re curious to see what they’ll do with this war chest! As this week’s bonus segment, we are giving bold predictions about Ubisoft. If you would like us to discuss any another gaming-related topics, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! Join the discussion: DiscordRead more: NewsletterFollow us: Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook | Website

In this Metacast CryptoCorner episode, your host Nico is joined by Lars Doucet, Ryan Foo and Miko Matsumura to discuss the sustainability of Play-to-Earn Economies.If you would like us to discuss another blockchain gaming-related topic, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! Join the discussion: DiscordLearn more: Newsletter or Go Premium Follow us: Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook | Website

In this Metacast CryptoCorner episode, your host Nico is joined by Joost Van Dreunen, Antubel Moreda and Sebastian Park to discuss the next steps in bringing Blockchain Gaming to the masses.We talk about what the biggest challenges still are, who the next gamers will be, and what companies will thrive in this space.If you would like us to discuss another blockchain gaming-related topic, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! Join the discussion: DiscordLearn more: Newsletter or Go PremiumFollow us: Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook | Website

In this Metacast episode, Miikka Ahonen, Matej Lancaric and Anton Gorodetsky are joined by your host Nicolas Vereecke to discuss; InvestGame’s Gaming Deals Activity Report Q1-Q3 2021Find the report here Brands in GamesNike and Roblox partnered to bring Nikeland onto the platform. We discuss how brands look at games, how they can build exposure within them and what games companies can do to facilitate that. Facebook/Meta Reveals Haptic GlovesMeta has silently been working on haptic technology to augment the Oculus VR Experience. We discuss how it works, the potential of this technology and the roadblocks ahead. As this week’s bonus segment, we are giving bold predictions about Gaming Industry deals. If you would like us to discuss any another gaming-related topics, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! Join the discussion: DiscordRead more: NewsletterFollow us: Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook | Website

Salone Sehgal is a general partner at Lumikai, India’s first gaming and interactive media fund. She previously founded her own gaming startup and served as a GP at London Venture Partners. We chat about the India games market — its potential to bring gaming to the next 1B users — key macro market trends, and specialized gaming VCs. Enjoy!

In this Metacast episode, Yonatan Raz-Fridman and Chong Ahn are joined by your host Nicolas Vereecke to discuss; RobloxRoblox saw impressive revenue growth over the past quarter, even without Forte & the rise of Blockchain Gaming Infrastructure CompaniesForte differentiates itself from other infrastructure providers by offering an all-in one cross-chain solution. Because what they’re building is so ambitious, they’ll be able to make very good use of the $750m they just rasied. Riot Forge announces/drops 4 gamesRiot is killing it these days, and the company is on its way to build the first games-first global multi-media IP. As this week’s bonus segment, we are giving bold predictions about Riot Games If you would like us to discuss any another gaming-related topics, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! Join the discussion: DiscordRead more: NewsletterFollow us: Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook | Website

“Loot is a time machine into the future of human collaboration and work. We are building the Star Wars of the next generation”In this Metacast CryptoCorner episode, your host Nico is joined by Timshel and LordOfAFew to take a deep dive into the Lootverse.What emerges from the conversation is a mind boggling journey into the Hyperverse. The Hyperverse is a place where hundreds of builders are collaborating in a trustless, permissionless, distributed, global, pseudonymous and asynchronous way. It’s not clean. It’s not pretty. It might not go anywhere. But no one can stop them, and what might emerge could change the way we look at how humans work and collaborate.If you would like us to discuss another blockchain gaming-related topic, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! Join the discussion: DiscordLearn more: Newsletter or Go Premium Follow us: Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook | Website

Naavik is launching a new research service dedicated to blockchain games, and this episode is a discussion about our pilot report that was written by Jimmy, Lars, Anthony, Aaron and Manyu.The team is joined by Nico to discuss important industry developments and dig deep into Axie Infinity. We walk through the game's history, game design, tokenomics, economic issues, future roadmap, and how we think the development team can set itself up for greater success. Remember, if you wish to make us your personal blockchain games research department, go to naavik.co/premium and use the promo code "METACAST" in the next 30 days at checkout to save 25% for the first year subscription. If you would like us to discuss any another gaming-related topics, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! Join the discussion: DiscordRead more: NewsletterFollow us: Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook | Website

Why did Facebook change its name to Meta? Does it make sense? More importantly - will it work?Find out in this week’s roundtable!In this Metacast episode, Aaron Bush and Carlos Pereira are joined by your host Nicolas Vereecke to discuss; Facebook going full Meta Quarterly earnings reports ofSonyMicrosoftUbisoftActivision Blizzard If you would like us to discuss any another gaming-related topics, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! Join the discussion: DiscordRead more: NewsletterFollow us: Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook | Website

In this debut Crypto Corner episode, Michael Wagner, Co-Founder & CEO of Star Atlas, is joined by our own Nicolas Vereecke.Star Atlas is a space-themed video game metaverse of grand strategy, open world exploration, territorial conquest, and political domination. The underlying technology consists of the latest in hi-fidelity game development, Unreal Engine, stunning visuals, and a blockchain base layer utilizing Solana.We discuss Star Atlas’ vision, roadmap and technology, and dig deep in the potential of blockchain-enabled gaming plus what it will mean for the Metaverse.If you would like us to discuss another blockchain gaming-related topic, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! Join the discussion: DiscordLearn more: Newsletter or Go Premium Follow us: Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook | Website

!WARNING! the Metacast team is ‘winging it’ this weekIn this Metacast episode, Aaron Bush and Abhimanyu Kumar are joined by your host Nicolas Vereecke to discuss; The current state of Loot NFT galleries (check out Nico’s) Founder-lead gaming companies As this week’s bonus segment, we are giving bold predictions about whatever we feel like! If you would like us to discuss any another gaming-related topics, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! Join the discussion: DiscordRead more: NewsletterFollow us: Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook | Website

How is Roblox doing 6 months after its IPO? What are some key design decisions when building an NFT-based game economy?Answer to this and more in this week’s roundtable!In this Metacast episode, Aaron Bush , Yonatan Raz-Fridman and Miikka Ahonen are joined by your host Nicolas Vereecke to discuss; The Present and Future of RobloxRoblox is betting big on multiple angles: - Higher immersion through voice chat, better textures & more lifelike avatars- More & better developer tooling- Monetization through limited items & royalties It is successfully innovating on different fronts, and thereby impressively deepening its competitive moat. NFTs and player-run Game EconomiesMobileDevMemo articleAccording to the article: - The promise of NFTs for games lies in the fact that the game marketplace is not controlled or operated by the game developer, that there is transparency and that there is potential for fractional ownership. - Essential requirements are that the value of in-game assets is not determined by an inflow of new players, NFTs contribute to core gameplay, and NFTs need to be freely accessible to all players.- Some design choices that fulfill these requirements are; items are non-permanent (they can degrade or be lost upon death), there is derived scarcity (based on land for example), and items need intrinsic utility beyond speculation. The above is a solid starting point for a comprehensive framework around NFT-based economies, but lacks some flexibility. As this week’s bonus segment, we are sharing bold predictions about game economies! If you would like us to discuss any another gaming-related topics, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! Join the discussion: DiscordRead more: NewsletterFollow us: Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook | Website

In this Metacast Interview episode, Scott Reismanis, Founder & CEO of mod.io, is joined by our own Aaron Bush.Mod.io is building a platform that gives studios fully integrated and cross-platform mod solutions for their games. We discuss Scott’s history with Mod DB, why modding has failed to cross the chasm, why and how that might change, and how mod.io will be part of the solution. I learned a lot and expect you will too - enjoy!If you would like us to interview anyone else (or you have something interesting to share), do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! If you’d like to join the discussion, feel free to join our Discord!

What are Social Tokens and why should you care about them? Why is Paris Hilton building an experience in Roblox? What did we learn from the Twitch Leaks?Answer to this and more in this week’s roundtable!In this Metacast episode, Chong Ahn , Anton Gorodetsky and David Amor are joined by your host Nicolas Vereecke to discuss; The Twitch Leaks1. Streamer earnings are concentrated at the top, and will remain there2. A potential Steam competitor by Amazon will likely need to successfully leverage Deep pockets Exclusive, high-quality games Integrations with Twitch/AmazonOverall, not likely to happen Paris Hilton builds a Roblox ExperienceCelebs & brands will increasingly use games to find more points of contact with their audiences Social tokens Are a new way for content creators to Do early fundraising Build and reward their community Cut out middlemen like Twitch, Patreon etc. Expect a large number of creators to start issuing Social Tokens over the next years More info here: https://digitalnative.substack.com/p/social-tokens-and-creator-centric As this week’s bonus segment, we are making bold predictions about game streamers! If you’d like to join the discussion, feel free to join our Discord! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! If you’d like more content, check us out at www.naavik.co. You can also find us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

Matej’s piece: https://lancaric.me/how-to-save-millions-with-marketability-testing/What are some best practices when creating a new game from scratch? And how can you include marketability testing in that process?Also - why is Honor of Kings the first Mobile Game to reach $10b in player spending?Answer to this and more in this week’s roundtable!In this Metacast episode, Miikka Ahonen, Matej Lancaric and David Amor are joined by your host Nicolas Vereecke to discuss; - New Game Creation best practices - Honor of Kings reaches $10b in lifetime revenue - Facebook messes up (again) As this week’s bonus segment, we are making bold predictions about mobile games! If you’d like to join the discussion, feel free to join our Discord! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! If you’d like more content, check us out at www.naavik.co. You can also find us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

In this Metacast Interview episode, Gabby Dizon, Co-founder of Yield Guild Games, is joined by our own Nicolas Vereecke.They discuss what Yield Guild is, how Blockchain is changing the Games Industry and how Games Companies can take advantage of it. If you would like us to interview anyone else (or you have something interesting to share), do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! If you’d like to join the discussion, feel free to join our Discord!

What is the real opportunity behind Blockchain Games? Why is everyone so bullish?Also - what is the so-called Creator Economy and where is it going?Answer to this and more in this week’s roundtable!In this Metacast episode, Aaron Bush, Matej Lancaric and David Amor are joined by your host Nicolas Vereecke to discuss; - The Opportunity behind Blockchain Games - The rise of the Creator Economy and its implications for games As this week’s bonus segment, we are making bold predictions about the creator economy! If you’d like to join the discussion, feel free to join our Discord! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! If you’d like more content, check us out at www.naavik.co. You can also find us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

What are the differences between On-Chain game assets (NFTs) and regular in-game assets? What is up with Raph Koster’s new MMO? Is this the top of the NFT bubble?Answer to this and more in this week’s roundtable!In this Metacast episode, Abhimanyu Kumar and Miikka Ahonen are joined by your host Nicolas Vereecke to discuss; - The debate: On-chain vs Off-chain game assets - Raph Koster reveals tech for Playable Worlds - Statespace raises $50 million As this week’s bonus segment, we are making bold predictions about the NFT space! If you’d like to join the discussion, feel free to join our Discord! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! If you’d like more content, check us out at www.naavik.co. You can also find us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

In this Metacast Interview episode, Miska Katkoff, co-founder & CEO of Savage Game Studio’s and Founder of Deconstructor of Fun, is joined by our own Nicolas Vereecke.They discuss what it takes to be a good Product Manager in the Games Industry, how to build a new Games Studio, and why learning in public is a Superpower.If you would like us to interview anyone else (or you have something interesting to share), do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! If you’d like to join the discussion, feel free to join our Discord!

Why is an NFT of a Destroyed Diamond being sold for $18.000? What’s next for Epic and Apple? Why is Plants versus Zombies 3 going into soft launch, again?Answer to this and more in this week’s roundtable!In this Metacast episode, Matej Lancaric, David Amor and Chong Ahn are joined by your host Nicolas Vereecke to discuss; - Epic versus Apple, end of Chapter 1 - Plants vs Zombies 3 going into soft launch, again - The Destroyed Diamond NFT (prepare to get you mind blown) As this week’s bonus segment, we are doing another round of ‘Would you rather?’ If you’d like to join the discussion, feel free to join our Discord! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! If you’d like more content, check us out at www.naavik.co. You can also find us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

*Correction: Loot is an ERC721 token, NOT an ERC20 tokenIf you’re in the gaming industry and haven’t heard of Loot, stop what you’re doing and listen to this episode. As a bonus, you’ll get some fantastic insights into Blockchain and Games!In this Blockchain-heavy Metacast roundtable, Jayne Peressini, David Amor and Chong Ahn are joined by your host Nicolas Vereecke to discuss; - Loot (for adventurers) - Scalability for Blockchain Games - Best Practices in Blockchain and Games As this week’s bonus segment, we are doing another Bold Predictions round, and we stay on the blockchain hype train. If you’d like to join our discord to join the discussion, feel free to sign up for our newsletter at www.naavik.co. And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! If you’d like more content, check us out at www.naavik.co. You can also find us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

We had the pleasure of interviewing Uri Marchand, Founder and CEO of Overwolf. Overwolf is a modding-as-a-service platform that enables game developers to build a UGC strategy, and creators to easily build and scale mods and apps for their favourite games. We discuss why Uri is so bullish on creators, the future of modding, learnings from building a company, and much more. Enjoy!If you would like us to interview anyone else (or you have something interesting to share), do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! If you’d like more content, check us out at www.naavik.co. You can also find us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

Why is Netflix launching 2 Stranger Things games in Poland? How impactful are Apple’s recent concessions, really? What are the implications of China’s recent gaming ban?Answers to this and a whole lot of laughs in this week’s Roundtable!In this Metacast episode, Abhimanyu Kumar, Matej Lancaric and Anton Gorodetsky are joined by your host Nicolas Vereecke to discuss; - Netflix’s baby steps into gaming - Apple’s loosening of its App Store rules - China’s ban of more than 3 hours of gaming per week for minors. As this week’s bonus segment, we reintroduce Pitch your dream game. Panelists get a short time to pitch the game they would love to play, regardless of current technological limitations. If you have a question you’d like answered on the podcast, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! If you’d like more content, check us out at www.naavik.co. You can also find us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

Why did Google pay developers to publish only on the Google Play Store? How can a fully remote team successfully build something as complex as a video game? How fun is Supercell’s new game?Answers to this and much more in this week’s Roundtable!In this Metacast episode, Jayne Peressini, Miikka Ahonen and Yonatan Raz-Fridman are joined by your host Nicolas Vereecke to discuss; - Google’s response to Epic Games with ‘Project Hug’ - How to successfully build a fully remote organisation - Supercell’s new game Everdale As this week’s bonus segment, we introduce Pitch your dream game. Panelists get a short time to pitch the game they would love to play, regardless of current technological limitations. If you have a question you’d like answered on the podcast, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! If you’d like more content, check us out at www.naavik.co. You can also find us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

In this Metacast Interview episode, we had the pleasure of interviewing Josh Williams, CEO of Forte. Forte is building end-to-end infrastructure solutions that enable game developers to more easily build, launch, and manage blockchain games. We discuss why blockchain games matter, how Forte works, the company’s vision and plans for the future, and best practices for designing blockchain games. Enjoy his conversation with Naavik's own Aaron Bush!If you would like us to interview anyone else (or you have something interesting to share), do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! If you’d like more content, check us out at www.naavik.co. You can also find us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

Will Activision Blizzard be able to correct its culture issues? What does Android need to do to overtake iOS? What’s up with Ariana Grande and Fortnite? Why should Ubisoft and Spotify merge??Answers to these questions, and a whole lot of very bold predictions in this week’s Roundtable!In this Metacast episode, Aaron Bush, Matej Lancaric and Yonatan Raz-Fridman are joined by your host Nicolas Vereecke to discuss; - Activision’s Q2 results - Android’s moves in the mobile gaming industry - Ariana Grande in Fortnite As this week’s bonus segment, we do another round of Would you rather? In the games industry If you have a question you’d like answered on the podcast, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! If you’d like more content, check us out at www.naavik.co. You can also find us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

Talewind is a new, UK studio building a social sandbox RPG that’s exclusive to the Roblox platform. Founded by Mike Allender and Georgina Felce at the beginning of the year, the studio completed the Roblox Accelerator program and closed an Angel investment round of $800k to support their ambitions to build high quality, professional games for metaverse platforms. In this conversation, Mike & Georgina discuss why they’re building Roblox, the importance of social-first games, and how to build a strong company culture and community.If you would like us to interview anyone else (or you have something interesting to share), do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! If you’d like more content, check us out at www.naavik.co. You can also find us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

Why is Ubisoft investing in Free-to-Play games? What were the biggest games deals for the first half of this year? Why did Jam City REALLY cancel its SPAC? Answers to these questions and more in this week’s Roundtable!In this Metacast episode, Nicolas Vereecke is joined by Aaron Bush, Anton Gorodetsky and Grigory Bortnik to discuss; - Ubisoft’s shift in strategy - InvestGame’s H1 2021 Game Deal Report - Jam City’s cancelled SPAC As this week’s bonus segment, we introduce the popular party game “Would you rather?” in the games industry If you have a question you’d like answered on the podcast, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! If you’d like more content, check us out at www.naavik.co. You can also find us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

In this first Metacast Interview, we have the pleasure of speaking with Moritz Baier-Lentz, partner at BITKRAFT Ventures, with Nicolas Vereecke hosting.We start our conversation with Moritz’s experiences as a professional esports athlete and investment banker in the gaming industry. We then shift our focus to his work at BITKRAFT. Moritz lays out BITKRAFT’s thesis around “Synthetic Reality”, business models he’s particularly interested in, and technologies he’s keeping an eye on. Finally, he shares some tips for aspiring gaming entrepreneurs, gives us his view on the future of gaming, and ends with a spicy prediction.If you would like us to interview anyone else (or you have something interesting to share), do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! If you’d like more content, check us out at www.naavik.co. You can also find us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

What are the different ways to invest in the Play-to-Earn space? Should Facebook’s Metaverse aspirations concern us? How big is the threat of the Chinese Government? Answers to these questions and more on this week’s Roundtable!In this Metacast episode, Nicolas Vereecke is joined by Piers Kicks, Abhimanyu Kumar and Yonatan Raz-Fridman to discuss; - How investors can gain exposure to the booming #Playtoearn space - Why Facebook wants to become a Metaverse company, and whether that's a good thing - The threat of the Chinese government over games companies As this week’s bonus segment, we do another round of bold predictions! If you have a question you’d like answered on the podcast, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! If you’d like more content, check us out at www.naavik.co. You can also find us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

Why is Netflix moving into games? Will the Steam Deck be successful? How do you acquire users for a Blockchain game? Find out on this week’s roundtable!!!In this Metacast episode, Nicolas Vereecke is joined by Jayne Peressini, Matej Lancaric and Aaron Bush to discuss; - Netflix’ entry into video games. - Valve’s announcement of the Steam Deck, a handheld gaming PC. - How to approach User Acquisition for Play-to-Earn games like Axie Infinity or Gala Games. If you have a question you’d like answered on the podcast, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! If you’d like more content, check us out at www.masterthemeta.com. You can also find us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

How sustainable is the Play-to-Earn business model? Is it a Ponzi Scheme? Or is it the future of gaming? Find out on this week’s Roundtable episode!In this Metacast episode, Nicolas Vereecke is joined by David Amor, Miikka Ahonen, Florian Ziegler and Anton Gorodetsky to discuss; - The sustainability of the Play-to-Earn model with games like Axie Infinity - The past and future of instant games As today’s bonus segment, we have some more Bold Predictions, where panelists give us their spicy takes on the future of the video game industry. If you have a question you’d like answered on the podcast, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! If you’d like more content, check us out at www.masterthemeta.com. You can also find us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

This week's Metacast episode is a banger!We are proud to debut crypto expert and BITKRAFT's own Piers Kicks as part of our roundtable team! He's joined by Gala Games' Jayne, and Naavik's Aaron and Nico to discuss: - The newly emerging Play-to-Earn model, focusing on companies like Axie Infinity and Gala Games - The big moves Facebook is making in the VR space race As today’s bonus segment, we introduce Bold Predictions, where panelists make a prediction about the future of the video game industry. If you have a question you’d like answered on the podcast, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! If you’d like more content, check us out at www.masterthemeta.com. You can also find us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

In this Metacast episode, Nico is joined by David and Florian to discuss; - The benefits and drawbacks of using Blockchain in games - E3: The good, the bad and the ugly - Gaming subscriptions, the future of game monetization? As today’s bonus segment, we play 'Pitch the game, mobile version'! If you have a question you’d like answered on the podcast, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! If you’d like more content, check us out at www.masterthemeta.com. You can also find us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

In this Metacast episode, Nico is joined by Manyu, Matej and Florian to discuss - - First Time User Experience (FTUE), what HD/Console game developers can learn from Mobile games best practices - The future of Cloud gaming and Massive Interactive Live Events - Trends in the development of Ad Creatives We also introduce a new bonus segment, a game called 'Overrated/Underrated'. You find the post Matej refers to here. And our deep dive on MILEs here.If you have a question you’d like answered on the podcast, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review! If you’d like more content, check us out at www.masterthemeta.com. You can also find us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

In this Metacast episode, Nico is joined by Aaron, Yon and Anton to discuss -- The future of Roblox and why video game developers might consider building on UGC platforms- How different companies build ecosystems around their offerings and leverage them to succeed in bigger way- Embracer Group's last earnings report, plus the sustainability of its M&A-focused growth strategyWe also introduce a new segment, called 'Pitch the game', where the panelists try to convince Nico to try out a game of their choosing. If you have a question you’d like answered on the podcast, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too!And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review!If you’d like more content, check us out at www.masterthemeta.com. You can also find us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

In this marketing heavy Metacast episode, Nico and Manyu are joined by Jayne, Matej and Florian to discuss -How Player Networks might hold the key to User Acquisition growth in a post-IDFA worldHow UA can be used to validate game concepts in the early stages of game development and derisk the business overallIf you have a question you’d like answered on the podcast, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too!And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review!If you’d like more content, check us out at www.masterthemeta.com. You can also find us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

In The Metacast’s maiden episode, Nico is joined by Aaron, Manyu and Sergey to discuss -The data gold mine unveiled in the Apple vs Epic court caseIs content king in the gaming industry? The power of platforms and ecosystemsA future outlook on AppLovinIf you have a question you’d like answered on the podcast, do reach out at [email protected]. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too!And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others find us by leaving a rating or review!If you’d like more content, check us out at www.masterthemeta.com. You can also find us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.