Deconstructor of Fun

Deconstructor of Fun’s Eric Kress is right on this one! Konvoy should not have included $SBET in its analysis of private investments into game companies. Sharplink is basically being converted into an Ethereum treasury company by Consensys - like a SPAC strategy. What’s happening here is not a “gaming” investment, it’s just being used as an already public vehicle to do this. $SBET is an interesting crypto story (I own it) but not a gaming one. Once you back that out of the numbers, private investment is flat and low. No story on PE coming to save the day here - it’s just the TripleDot deal!

Happy Thursday...? Still not happy… still sucks. The dust is far from settling but at least we have Deconstructor of Fun and TWIG to provide more hot takes on this mess. While Pendragon Wachtel and build out the Digital Hazard Studio empire from our humble office (Rodolfo Segleau is here in spirit though if he actually was here in person it would be a bit more cramped 120 Square feet is cozy in the best of times…) Understand our doors are open. Happy to talk about our mission, our strategy but more importantly to the many of you facing layoffs, we offer our ears, networks and any resources that can be of value. Its a tough week but understand the games community is one of the best around the care and support is unmatched during the best of times and especially during these dark moments. I will have comments in this post to links to helpful discord servers. Including Amir Satvat and Brandon Donnelly as well as Kenn White, CSM, CSPO. We push forward together. Help is here when you are ready for it.

Pour yourself a MEGA PINT of wine 🍷 because we got a big one coming your way... The Deconstructor of Fun TWIG crew unpacks a week of spicy news and strategic contradictions, starting with Supercell’s latest investments and how VC incentives often clash with long-term game building. Yours truly is flirting with the deportation by criticizing the royalty of Finland while Eric Kress comes like Beetlejuice at Moritz Baier-Lentz 🎮 We weigh in on GamesBeat’s move to independence, the ongoing esports funding debate, and whether Netflix’s Rebel Moon game is a flex or a fumble. You don't need to know American sports to guess this one right. Phillip Black talks about Valorant Mobile’s China launch and how Tencent continues to dominate with titles like Gunfight King. Finall we dive into Disney’s Solitaire push, Habby’s intriguing new soft launch, and the return of Royal Kingdom’s celebrity-fueled ad campaign—capped off by a heated debate led by our very own strategic marketer Jen Donahoe At the end of the episode you'll be able to answer whether TV ads still move the needle for mobile games, or are we watching legacy marketing die in real time? https://xmrrwallet.com/cmx.plnkd.in/dDtZrHBp

Lightspeed's Moritz Baier-Lentz 🎮  joined the podcast for a no-holds-barred conversation on venture capital, gaming, and the inner workings of multi-billion-dollar venture funds. No fluff—just real talk about fund math, spotting exceptional founders, the future of AI in gaming, and why most investments won’t work out (and why that’s okay). Find the episode on YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from. Just search for Deconstructor of Fun and subscribe!

As someone who is relatively new to the gaming industry, the two podcasts I’ve religiously listened to are Gamecraft and Deconstructor of Fun Gamecraft is back this week with an excellent episode discussing the current state of the industry They discuss the three different vectors of growth, content & technology, and distribution and how each is tightly intertwined But distribution is the powerhouse that turns the dial with commerce, and without commerce, it’s hard to accelerate technology and content, especially now that a lot of investment has dried up As I’ve said before, distribution is the recurring theme from every meeting I’ve had at Pocket Gamer, DICE, and GDC, and what we hear every day from our >500 partners at Immutable.....it’s incredibly ripe for disruption In the podcast, they call out Minecraft going the DTC route in 2009, when players could access the game directly from the site - will we start to see more of this with the browser making a comeback? Looking forward the next episode 🤝 https://xmrrwallet.com/cmx.plnkd.in/e6f7XgQt

Stop the game. We won. The best shorts in the games business. Follow us on YouTube and get your LOL moments every single day. *No Sim was hurt during the development of this short #fatchecks

Netflix Games has a new strategy. And this time, according to Eric Kress, it even makes sense. It only took +3$ billion, 150 game (re)launches, and a full change of the leadership team to get here. But it's not how you start. It's how you finish. Catch the latest episode of Deconstructor of Fun This Week In Games (TWIG) segment on YouTube and your favorite podcast platform.

"The United States needs to f*cking grow right now for the mobile gaming market to be truly positive" Phillip Black Who has better clips than us in the industry? Follow Deconstructor of Fun on YouTube!

Are you heading to GDC? You won’t want to miss this! Join us for GDC Nights, a vibrant festival-style experience where game developers can unwind and connect after dark. Experience your favorite podcast LIVE, on stage, and in person with the entire crew on Thursday, March 20. It’s going to be an unforgettable event—yes, you heard that right! 🎟️ Register NOW and be part of the action: http://xmrrwallet.com/cmx.pbit.ly/41JmIkQ #GDC2025 #GDCNights Game Developers Conference

"Scopely is going to hate me for this..." Eric Kress Get your weekly dose of games industry insights coupled with unfiltered hot takes that regularly get our hosts blacklisted. Subscribe to the Deconstructor of Fun podcast on your favorite platform or watch it on YouTube for a full metaverse experience 🥸