Leisure

The Business of Video Games Podcast

by The Business of Video Games Podcast

Claiming needs an RSS feed. Contact us.

Listen on Apple Podcasts

Chart positions today · Brazil

Not on the Brazil charts we track today.

If you like The Business of Video Games Podcast, try…

Making Games

Also in Leisure

Play Some Video Games

Also in Leisure

The Purpose Made Podcast

Also in Leisure

Operation Game Night

Also in Leisure

Game Scoop!

Also in Leisure

Board Game Hot Takes

Also in Leisure

Latest episodes

Episode 66 - Our redemption arc - Søren Lundgaard

October 16, 2026 · 1 hr 18 min

It's Friday! Søren Lundgaard from Ghost Ship Games returns to discuss the recent triumphs and setbacks while once again sharing his wisdom with Shams and Fernando on the studio's growth and their expansion into publishing. And of course…
Episode 65 - Made by Claude

October 2, 2026 · 1 hr 4 min

It's Friday! Shams and Fernando are finally addressing the AI elephant in the room, but not before dissecting Microsoft’s brutal studio cuts and why the old Game Pass pipe dream hasn't gone the way they planned. Then, we dive headfirst…
Episode 64 - Off by 700% - Johan Pilestedt Pt. 3

September 17, 2026 · 1 hr 40 min

It's Friday! And holy moly. Trust us when we say - this one is one for the books. Our dear friend Johan Pilestedt is finally back(!) to the interrogation room, to take us down the very depths of developing and releasing Magicka under…
Episode 63 - Gamescom was good

September 4, 2026 · 49 min

Welcome back dear listener and sorry to keep you waiting! Fernando and Shams are fresh (+ one week give or take) off the Gamescom floor and ready to share a little bit of what happened when over 360 000 gamers and industry people flooded…
Episode 62 - People don't buy new games

August 6, 2026 · 47 min

It's Friday and we are back to to tackle two major industry deep-dives, but not before touching base on Microsoft and EA, comparing BBC quotes and teasing a Patreon-exclusive story about a spectacularly failed kosher salt business. First…

Show 7 more episodesShow fewer episodes

Episode 61 - Basically too many games - Jon Shafer

July 24, 2026 · 1 hr 15 min

Shams and Fernando bring on their buddy Jon Shafer (former Lead Designer on Civ V) from Conifer Games to cut through the noise and break down the actual state of PC gaming post-Steam Next Fest! Spoiler alert: that 2010s indie golden age…
Episode 60 - 14 layers

July 10, 2026 · 1 hr 3 min

It's Friday! And what do you expect? After our last conversation unexpectedly blew up and wormed its way into the gaming news cycle for a day or two (or three?), we are now back to talk about ... you guessed it! Xbox! In this episode, we…
Episode 59 - Basically institutionalized crunch

June 26, 2026 · 1 hr 1 min

It's Friday and what a show we got for you today! Shams and Fernando are tearing into the harsh new realities of the games industry where Microsoft’s new leadership has brought out the big black hammer, as well as slowing down on Game…
Episode 58 - A reflective optimist - Tim Bender

June 12, 2026 · 1 hr 3 min

While Fernando is off enjoying Italy, Shams is flying solo and holding down the fort for today's episode. Today, our dear friend Tim Bender returns to talk about the incredible early access launch of Olden Era, which has by the time of…
Episode 57 - We need to drop out of college now - Johan Pilestedt Pt. 2

May 28, 2026 · 1 hr 7 min

Did you ever wonder what happens when a bunch of cocky college students decide they're going to take over the games industry? Spoiler alert: it involves immediate debt, panic attacks, and practically begging a publisher for survival. Yes…
Episode 56 - From the ass end of nowhere - Johan Pilestedt Pt. 1

May 14, 2026 · 47 min

It's finally time for the first round of our exclusive deep-dive series with Arrowhead Game Studios CCO & Founder Johan Pilestedt! In this kickoff episode, we take a closer look at Johan's roots in Gällivare, a remote Swedish mining town…
Episode 55 - Recoup is self-destructive - Tim Bender Pt. 2

May 1, 2026 · 59 min

We are back with the second part of our conversation together with our good friend Tim Bender as the we dive deeper into the weeds of some of the most surprising moves in the industry lately. Why not start with the backstory of the…

Full episode archive on Apple Podcasts →

About the show

Welcome to The Business of Video Games Podcast. A show where we shed some light on the inner workings of the games industry—the why, how, who, and what the hell?! behind business decisions, publishing calls, and the steps (and missteps) that happen behind the scenes. Basically: the inside view on how and why things are actually done the way they are. Not just guesswork on 4Chan. The podcast is hosted by Shams Jorjani (CEO of Arrowhead Game Studios, Chairman of the Board at Hooded Horse, and founder of the Almost Ready Games Fund) and Fernando Rizo (former Chief Sales & Business Development Officer at Raw Fury, now Partner at Kaboodle Games). In every episode, we invite a guest from the industry to unpack an interesting decision or event, share lessons learned, or explain why all of us armchair experts got it wrong (or occasionally right). This podcast previously ran for four years at Paradox Interactive and was available there until they decided to remove it. It might yet return someday - as a DLC in one of their games.