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...
Nov 03, 2021•1 hr
!WARNING! the Metacast team is ‘winging it’ this week In 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 nicolas@naavik.co . We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback ...
Oct 29, 2021•46 min
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 Roblox Roblox is betting big on multiple angles: - Higher immersion through voice chat, better textures & more lifelike avatars - More & better developer tooling - M...
Oct 22, 2021•1 hr 11 min
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...
Oct 19, 2021•53 min
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 Leaks 1. Streamer earnings are concentrated at the top, and will remain there 2. A potential Steam competitor by Amazon will likely need to successfully leverage...
Oct 15, 2021•1 hr 3 min
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...
Oct 08, 2021•58 min
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 metacast@naavik.co. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help others ...
Oct 06, 2021•52 min
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...
Oct 01, 2021•1 hr 3 min
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 bo...
Sep 24, 2021•53 min
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 metacast@naavik.co. We’d love to hear your general thoughts an...
Sep 22, 2021•46 min
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 se...
Sep 17, 2021•1 hr 2 min
*Correction: Loot is an ERC721 token, NOT an ERC20 token If 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 ...
Sep 10, 2021•1 hr 6 min
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 metacas...
Sep 07, 2021•50 min
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 w...
Sep 03, 2021•48 min
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 - Superce...
Aug 27, 2021•54 min
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 (o...
Aug 17, 2021•1 hr 13 min
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 - Arian...
Aug 13, 2021•51 min
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. I n this conversation, Mike & Georgina discuss why they’re building Roblox, the importance of social-first games, and how to buil...
Aug 10, 2021•48 min
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...
Aug 06, 2021•54 min
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 ...
Aug 03, 2021•54 min
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 thin...
Jul 30, 2021•58 min
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 answ...
Jul 23, 2021•58 min
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 ta...
Jul 16, 2021•59 min
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 i...
Jul 09, 2021•1 hr 4 min
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 metacast@naavik.co. We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the episode, you can help ...
Jun 18, 2021•51 min
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 o...
Jun 11, 2021•53 min
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 strategy We also introduce a new segment, called ' Pitch the game ', where the panelists try to convince Nico to try out a ...
Jun 04, 2021•1 hr 1 min
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 world How UA can be used to validate game concepts in the early stages of game development and derisk the business overall If you have a question you’d like answered on the podcast, do reach out at metacast@naavik.co . We’d love to hear your general thoughts and feedback too! And as always, if you like the e...
May 28, 2021•47 min
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 case Is content king in the gaming industry? The power of platforms and ecosystems A future outlook on AppLovin If you have a question you’d like answered on the podcast, do reach out at metacast@naavik.co . 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 o...
May 21, 2021•1 hr 5 min
