In this LevelUp episode, Melissa Zeloof sits down with John Wright, CEO at Turborilla and ex-VP of Mobile Games at Kwalee, to discuss his vision of the mobile gaming market. They explore the biggest trends impacting the industry, the role of AI in development, funding strategies, the evolution of hybrid games, and the potential of alternative app stores.
In this LevelUp episode, Melissa Zeloof sits down with Stefano Accossato, Head of Business Development at TutoTOONS. They discuss how TutoTOONS is thinking about IP and brand partnerships, the challenges and opportunities they face, and how they communicate the value of these partnerships to brands.
In this LevelUp episode, Melissa Zeloof sits down with Yi Gong, VP of Growth at Tilting Point. They get into how Tilting Point is leveraging D2C webstores to drive new revenue streams, why Tilting Point decided to use a third-party platform for theirs, and how Yi sees the market's future.
In this LevelUp episode, Jess Overton sits down with Božo Janković, Head of Ad Monetization at GameBiz Consulting. Together, they dive into the new TCF 2.2 requirements, how to comply with them, what you need to know about Consent Management Platforms, and how to choose the right one for you. Tune in here or read the highlights below: https://www.is.com/community/podcasts/levelup/the-new-tcf-cmps-what-you-need-to-know/
In this LevelUp episode, Melissa sits down with Phillip Black, Game Economist at Game Economist Consulting and a cohost of the Deconstructor of Fun podcast. Together, they dive into what makes a game economist, the differences between game economies and real-world economics, the success of Roblox, and what other apps can learn for their own virtual economies. Tune in or read the highlights here: https://www.is.com/community/podcasts/levelup/roblox-properly-understood-lessons-for-virtual-economie...
In this LevelUp episode, Melissa sits down with Emory Irpan and Nathan TenBoer, Director of Operations, Consultancy, and Insights and Lead Partner Manager and Insights at Unity respectively - two of the minds behind the Unity Gaming Report. Together, they get into the data behind the gaming industry, what didn't make the cut, why 2D games are making a comeback, and the value of pretty charts. Tune in or read the highlights here: https://www.is.com/community/podcasts/levelup/the-unity-gaming-repo...
In this LevelUp episode, Jasmine sits down with Sophie Vo, GM at Savage Games. Together, they dive into the the role of empathy in leadership, what leadership means and looks like in games, how to spot a leader in your team, and more. Tune in or read the highlights: https://www.is.com/community/podcasts/levelup/leadership-in-games-solving-the-human-puzzle-genre/
In this LevelUp episode, Melissa sits down with Lisa Brunette, Narrative Designer and Game Writer at Brunette Games. They take a deep dive into the importance of narrative, why gameplay should always come first, how to write for mobile games, and how (and why) Lisa gamified her gardening. Tune in or keep reading for the highlights: https://www.is.com/community/podcasts/levelup/narrative-in-mobile-games-why-the-story-matters/
In this LevelUp episode, Melissa sits down with Om Tandon, UX Director at UX Reviewer Games Consultancy. They dive into what makes good UX, the similarities between producing games and films, the differences between user and human-centered design, and how to put design thinking into practice. Tune in or keep reading for the highlights: https://www.is.com/community/podcasts/levelup/ux-in-games-user-centered-vs-human-centered-design/
In this LevelUp episode, Melissa sits down with Anna Popereko, Game Design Consultant at ironSource from Unity. They talk about the importance of user motivations, what even are they, why they should be a part of your monetization strategy, and more. Tune in or read the highlights here: https://www.is.com/community/podcasts/levelup/user-motivations-where-game-design-and-monetization-meet/
In this LevelUp episode, Melissa sits down with Josh Burns, Senior Director of Business Development at FunPlus. They get into the history of IPs in mobile games, what to look for in an IP, their role in 2023, Josh's advice for smaller studios looking to leverage them, and more. Tune in here or read the highlights: https://www.is.com/community/podcasts/levelup/mastering-the-world-of-ips/
In this LevelUp episode, Melissa sits down with Danny Moy, Chief Strategy Officer at SciPlay. They dive into the role of business strategy at mobile games studios, the secret to navigating M&As (from both sides), how to create long-term plans while working in a fast-changing industry, and a whole lot more. Tune in here or read the highlights: https://www.is.com/community/podcasts/levelup/danny-moy-gaming-business-strategy/
In this LevelUp episode, Melissa sits down with our very own maestro of creatives Dan Greenberg, Chief Design Officer at ironSource. They talk AI image generation, what it is, how it can be used now, and what it needs to truly change the game. Tune in here or read the highlights: https://www.is.com/community/podcasts/levelup/dan-greenberg-ai-and-creatives/
In this episode of LevelUp, Melissa sits down with Matej Lancaric, UA consultant extraordinaire, host of the 2 & a half gamers podcast, and the king of no-BS actionable tips. Together, they dive into the rules, or lack of, of UA, what it takes to build a culture of experimentation from the outside, and Matej’s hottest takes. Tune in here or read the highlights: https://www.is.com/community/podcasts/levelup/matej-lancaric-experimentation-in-ua-teams/
In this LevelUp episode, Melissa gets into building the dream creative team with Vitaly Gladkov, Creative Department Lead at AppQuantum. They attempt to finally answer the question: does it just make sense to move your creatives all in-house? Bonus content includes: why do you need a creative team anyway? Tune in here or read the highlights: https://www.is.com/community/podcasts/levelup/vitaly-gladkov-appquantum-building-creatives/
In this episode of the LevelUp podcast, Mike Taramykin, CEO at HypGames, sits down with our host Melissa Zeloof, VP Marketing at ironSource. They discuss the evolution of sports games, including the challenges moving from console to F2P, how to work with licensors, and what to expect in the future. Tune in here or read the transcript:https://www.is.com/community/podcasts/levelup/mike-Taramykin-hypgames-evolution-sports/
In this episode of LevelUp, Tom Hammond, CEO & Co-Founder of UserWise sits down with our host Melissa Zeloof, VP Marketing at ironSource. They discuss how game developers can better understand user psychology, putting user motivations into action within a game, and how game developers can utilize personalization with LiveOps. Tune in here or read the transcript: https://www.is.com/community/podcasts/levelup/tom-hammond-userwise-in-game-personalization/
In this episode of LevelUp, our host Melissa Zeloof, VP Marketing at ironSource, sits down with Deconstructor of Fun's Javier Barnes and Ethan Levy, host of the Deconstructor of Fun Podcast. They discuss why developers and gamers should start utilizing blockchain, the main challenges keeping blockchain from becoming an industry standard, and what exactly gaming industry leaders need to do to bring blockchain to the mainstream. Tune in here or read the transcript: https://www.is.com/community/pod...
Blockchain and gaming and the metaverse? Oh my. Elad Yakobowicz, Founder at Business Evolution explores the state of the metaverse today and how blockchain games have managed to integrate into this vast digital world. Elad is interviewed by Melissa Zeloof, VP Marketing at ironSource and Anton Backman, Principal at Play Ventures. They dive into the metaverse, what connects it to blockchain gaming, and what this collaboration could mean for the future of technology. Tune in here or keep reading fo...
What’s it like to build a blockchain company from the ground up? Hear it straight from the source. David Amor, CEO at Playmint - a blockchain gaming company founded in 2021 - discusses what it's like to be on the frontline of the blockchain gaming revolution. David is interviewed by Melissa Zeloof, VP Marketing at ironSource, Anton Backman, Principal at Play Ventures, and Kenrick Drijoningen, General Partner at Play Ventures, where they explore building his company, modern blockchain gaming tech...
We’re back for the second episode of our blockchain gaming mini-series - this time we’re exploring how online communities are set to shape the future of blockchain games. Join Melissa Zeloof, VP Marketing at ironSource, along with Anton Backman and Kenrick Drijoningen from Play Ventures, and our guest Jon Jordan, Consultant at Playmint, for the conversation. Together they explore the ins and outs of Discord communities, the biggest challenge traditional game developers have in the space, and the...
It’s the buzzword on everyone’s lips: blockchain games. Melissa Zeloof, VP Marketing at ironSource, kicks off the first episode in a new mini-series all about blockchain gaming, along with Anton Backman and Kenrick Drijoningen from Play Ventures - a games VC with promising blockchain games in their portfolio. Together, they review clear and concise definitions of key blockchain gaming terms, top companies to watch in the space, trends and predictions for the future, as well as the practicalities...
In the fifth episode of our "What I Wish I Knew When" series for indie developers, Melissa Zeloof is joined by Emily Greer, founder and CEO of Double Loop Games, who also co-founded Kongregate over a decade ago with her brother. Emily discusses her experience establishing a new games studio and key tips for developers looking to do the same.
In the fourth episode of “What I Wish I Knew When...”, our series for indie developers, Melissa Zeloof is joined by Bozo Jankovic, who heads up Business Development at GamesBiz Consulting. Bozo and his team spend a lot of time working with indie developers to strengthen their game's monetization performance, so we thought it would be a good idea to pick his brains on this topic and discuss what he wishes he knew about game monetization earlier on in his career, to help devs who are just started ...
Sally Lu, Director of Customer Success at Unity, joins Melissa Zeloof to discuss the role of Unity and gametech more generally in the games industry, and what we might expect for the future.
Simon Davis, Co-Founder and CEO at Mighty Bear Games, joins Melissa Zeloof in our "What I wish I knew when..." series to talk about his process for identifying and evaluating new game concepts, the learning curve he's experienced, and how to avoid bias
Host Melissa Zeloof is joined by Nate Morgan, Global Gaming Lead at Facebook Audience Network, to discuss the rise of in-game ads and the key innovations in this space, the shift to hybrid monetization models, and the opportunities in-app bidding opens up for developers.
Melissa Zeloof is joined by Spike Laurie, Venture Director at Hiro Capital, and Mario Lu, VP at Barclays and Lead Analyst for video game stocks. We’ll be talking about the game investment landscape, the gaming industry and its relationship to gametech, and how gametech is spilling over to other industries.
This is the second episode in our series for indie developers called, “what I wish I knew when.” Host Melissa Zeloof welcomes Antti Hattara, the CEO and co-founder of Starberry Games, the developer behind the hit idle game, Coffee Corp, and winner of ‘Best Indie Developer’ Award at the Pocket Gamer Mobile Games Awards in 2019. We’ll be talking about what he wishes he knew when first pitching to investors and getting funding for his startup.
Oliver Kern, Chief Commercial Officer at Lockwood Publishing, who are behind the hit mobile game Avakin Life, joins Melissa Zeloof to discuss the challenges of building a “virtual world” game (how does one integrate a live music concert from a real life pop star into a mobile game?!), how they scaled their daily active users to 1.5M, the metaverse, and games as the new social media.
