a16z Live

Ben Feder of Tencent America on Games Club

Episode Summary

How digital distribution and cloud changed gaming, taking the long view of the creative process, and next generation publishing and platforms with Ben Feder, president of international partnerships at Tencent America and former CEO of Take Two.

Episode Notes

• How Ben took over Take Two [1:42]
• How digital distribution and publishing changed gaming [8:36]
• What is a next generation publisher? [13:51]
• Can publishers add value as tastemakers? [17:36]
• How do you make sure studios ship on time? And in the era of persistent game worlds, does it matter? [22:01]
• Lessons learned from Take Two [27:27]
• Taking the long view of the creative process — "Every overnight success was ten years in the making." [30:53]
• Is there a successful game that surprised Ben? [37:08]
• What's the next big gaming platform? [46:07]
• Where will subscription models lead? [52:06]
• Sabbaticals and life advice [56:50]

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