The 10 Moves Every Studio Needs To Make Before It’s Too Late

1) Build a business first, a game second

Studios rarely fail for lack of passion. They fail when cash and clarity run out. Treat your studio like an operating company that reliably ships products and collects cash, not a project that occasionally invoices. Think runway, decision rights, and repeatable revenue before features and shaders.

Do this next

  • Map 12 months of cash in and cash out. Update every Friday.

  • Assign owner-level responsibilities. Who signs off on product, people, and P and L.

  • Keep a 30 percent contingency on budgets and a separate cash buffer equal to 3 to 6 months of operating costs.

  • Hire slow. Default to lean, cross-functional roles until revenue is repeatable.

2) Find your je ne sais quoi

Thousands of games launch every year. You win when a player can explain your hook in one sentence. If they cannot repeat your difference, you do not have one.

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  • Write a single-sentence differentiation. If it sounds like three other games, keep working.

  • Pick a specific niche you can reach. List the subreddits, Discords, and creators that already gather there.

  • Define your first 1,000 superfans. Where they hang out, what they value, how you will show up.

  • Audit your store page and trailer. If a stranger cannot grasp the hook in five seconds, fix it.

3) Right-size your dream before you run out of Steam

Scope discipline is survival. Plan the full runway, then design a game that can ship without betting the company.

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  • Model the full cost to 1.0. Do not pitch prototype-only budgets.

  • Decide now: Early Access or not. Only choose it if your genre compounds with iteration and community.

  • Challenge nice-to-haves. Multiplayer, photo mode, complex crafting, or heavy live service may not be essential to the core loop.

  • Pick a platform sequence you can afford. PC first is fine. Earn your way to more.

4) Build your Voltron

You do not need every seat in house. Assemble specialists for the problem at hand and treat each launch like a tailored stack.

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  • Map gaps: localization, PR, community, external dev, porting, release management.

  • Source two credible partners per gap and write a one-page brief for each.

  • Set SLAs, a reporting cadence, and one internal owner to orchestrate the stack.

  • Review partner performance monthly and prune weak links.

5) Make that pitch slap

A strong pitch respects time, leads with proof, and takes the room on a short journey.

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  • Know your audience. Study what they ship or fund and how they define success.

  • Set expectations at the start. If there is no trailer or playable, say it up front.

  • Show the razzle dazzle fast. Trailer or demo in the first minute.

  • Take them on a journey. Clear stakes, the core loop, and why now.

  • Pitch order: Friendlies, then Rejectors, then Outliers, then Targets. Learn before it matters most.

6) There is no fun in funding

Money has a personality. Match your story to the source and know the tradeoffs before you sign.

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  • Publishers: align on advances, recoup, any exclusivity, and backend share.

  • Venture capital: sell a company growth plan across multiple products, with a credible path to 5 to 10x.

  • Private equity: think mature assets and operational uplift, measured by IRR.

  • Family offices and angels: clarify motives, from culture to returns.

  • Platforms: understand buyouts, subscription deals, and marketing value.

  • Build a one-page matrix across sources: control, IP, recoup, reporting, timeline, risk.

7) Make your garden grow

Community is compounding interest. Trust forms when you show up, listen, and act.

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  • Pick the plot: Discord, Reddit, or owned forums. Commit to one primary home.

  • Staff the space: a community manager or trained volunteers with clear guidelines.

  • Feed consistently: roadmaps, patch notes, and bite-size wins on a predictable rhythm.

  • Close the loop: capture feedback, act on it, and show what changed.

8) Turn right on red

When the light is red, do not freeze. Find a safe, legal way to keep moving. Plan detours before you need them.

Do this next

  • Run a pre-mortem. List your 10 most likely blockers and the 24-hour detour for each, with a named owner.

  • Prepare for zero CCU. If multiplayer stalls, the game still plays. Bots, solo fun, or drop-in and drop-out are designed and tested.

  • Build platform and regional allies early. Know the humans behind editorial, partner support, certification, and key regional distributors.

  • Treat regions as different games to market. Ask experts about China, SEA, and MENA before you set dates or budgets.

9) Show, don’t tell

People believe what they can play and what you deliver consistently.

Do this next

  • Ship small, shippable slices. Regular updates beat big promises.

  • Be transparent and consistent. Explain decisions and tradeoffs in plain language.

  • Share a public, living roadmap with dates you intend to hit.

  • Overdeliver on a few visible moments and tell that story well.

10) Phone a friend

You are never more than one conversation away from your next breakthrough.

Do this next

  • Map your help graph: advisors, peers, platform contacts, creators, community leaders.

  • Ask early and share constraints so people can actually help.

  • Trade value. Offer your expertise back to the network.

  • Set a quarterly goal to add five high-quality relationships.

How to use this post
Pick one section per week. Do the actions. Review results every Friday. Repeat. Studios that treat these as operating habits, not one-time tasks, build resilience, earn trust, and give their games the best chance to matter.