Naavik Gaming Podcast

A deep dive into Savvy Games Group: its $38 billion mandate, rapid acquisitions, and how Scopely and ESL Faceit fit into the plan. Discussion of Monopoly Go’s revenue shock and why Moonton and Southeast Asia matter. A look at PIF’s listed stakes being folded in and how gaming serves Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 ambitions.

Julia Palatovska, Co-founder and CEO of Dorian, builds a no-code platform turning fans into creators. She discusses creator-driven interactive storytelling, free-to-play monetization that pays creators, analytics-led iteration and A/B testing, and why female-first fandoms and niche microdramas can scale into major IPs.

They explore why China’s big studios are moving away from combat-heavy ARPGs toward cozy lifestyle sims. The conversation covers game design shifts that remove progression anxiety and favor low-pressure play. Monetization strategies get a rethink, focusing on cosmetics, soft purchases, and creator-driven economies. Practical takeaways for developers on scalability and UGC wrap up the discussion.

Terry Lee, CEO of Fusebox Games, a leader in narrative mobile games built on licensed TV IP. He talks about scaling content cadence, turning writing into the studio’s competitive moat, and using data-driven testing to evolve characters live. They discuss fandoms crossing TV and games, expanding beyond romance into formats like Big Brother and The Traitors, and how AI augments creative teams.

A deep look at Unity's post-2025 rebound and the leadership moves that sparked it. Exploration of Vector, the rebuilt ad platform powering revenue growth. Discussion of Unity's in-editor AI strategy versus a modular approach. Examination of product gaps closed like day-28 ROAS and whether data or execution fuels Vector's edge. Review of risks around ad momentum and AI product-market fit.

Nicolas Vizioli, founder of Lemonade and long-time Minecraft/Roblox developer, builds AI coding tools to help first-time Roblox creators ship games. He explains how Lemonade plugs into Roblox Studio, why coding is the focus, early traction and creator wins, and technical gaps like spatial map generation. Short takes on workflow, product differentiation, and where AI fits across user-generated content.

Conversation probes the surge of AI-made mobile games and whether many are just low-effort churn. They trace policy shifts and platform data behind the release spike. Regional patterns and which countries and publishers are driving growth get examined. The talk highlights which simple genres dominate new releases and contrasts volume with actual success rates.

Ninel Anderson, founder and CEO of Devoted Studios, builds remote co-development teams that handle engineering and end-to-production art. She breaks down what co-development really means versus outsourcing. The conversation covers why pipelines and process matter more than cheap labor, how studios retain creative vision, and practical practices for successful partnerships.

A tour of music games' landscape, from rock's streaming resurgence to the return of plastic instruments. Licensing hurdles and the 'setlist problem' get unpacked. Mobile hits and creative UGC workarounds are compared. New education plays and festival-style revivals are explored as alternative paths forward.

Aaron Bush, Managing Partner and Co-founder of Naavik, brings games-industry strategy and trend insight. He maps where AI is actually used today and separates hype from production wins. They discuss concrete uses like ideation, placeholder assets, AI voice and QA, mobile Live Ops, tooling shifts, and which companies stand to gain.