Ryan K. Rigney
@pushtotalk.gg
• Marketing guy on a16z speedrun
• Prev: Omega Strikers, Apex Legends, PUBG, League of Legends
• I write a weekly newsletter about the art and biz of games: https://pushtotalk.gg
• Prev: Omega Strikers, Apex Legends, PUBG, League of Legends
• I write a weekly newsletter about the art and biz of games: https://pushtotalk.gg
Obsessed with this Norwegian game Northern Journey. Very strange Half-Life style 1st person adventure. Someone in the Steam reviews said “it’s like a Viking took shrooms and suddenly understood how to make an N64 game.”
July 25, 2025 at 4:05 PM
Obsessed with this Norwegian game Northern Journey. Very strange Half-Life style 1st person adventure. Someone in the Steam reviews said “it’s like a Viking took shrooms and suddenly understood how to make an N64 game.”
Reposted by Ryan K. Rigney
Garrett Martin is too humble to say this, but modern games journalism wouldn't exist without him.
For *many* years, he has been the great spotter and supporter of talent. He used Paste as an incubator for an entire generation of writers, critics, and reporters.
Read Endless Mode!
For *many* years, he has been the great spotter and supporter of talent. He used Paste as an incubator for an entire generation of writers, critics, and reporters.
Read Endless Mode!
Welcome to Endless Mode: infinite possibilities in games, anime, theme parks, and more. www.endlessmode.com/video-games/...
Endless Mode: It's the New Thing
Welcome to Endless Mode: infinite possibilities in games, anime, theme parks, and a whole lot more--like, uh, pinball.
www.endlessmode.com
July 1, 2025 at 3:11 PM
Garrett Martin is too humble to say this, but modern games journalism wouldn't exist without him.
For *many* years, he has been the great spotter and supporter of talent. He used Paste as an incubator for an entire generation of writers, critics, and reporters.
Read Endless Mode!
For *many* years, he has been the great spotter and supporter of talent. He used Paste as an incubator for an entire generation of writers, critics, and reporters.
Read Endless Mode!
Reposted by Ryan K. Rigney
my first story for Endless Mode is up TODAY actually
It's been five years since the pandemic started, and we're now seeing a wave of video games that are clearly about Covid--including Death Stranding 2, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, and Date Everything. @midimyers.com for Endless Mode: www.endlessmode.com/video-games/...
We Have Now Entered the Age of Covid-19 Inspired Games
It's been five years since the pandemic started, and we're now seeing a wave of video games that are clearly about Covid.
www.endlessmode.com
July 1, 2025 at 12:06 PM
my first story for Endless Mode is up TODAY actually
Reposted by Ryan K. Rigney
"Slowly, gradually, the Playdate has evolved into something more like a large-scale, collaborative, physical version of UFO 50. It’s an alternate history Game Boy with dozens upon dozens of genuinely great games." 👍
pushtotalk.gg/p/how-much-game-can-you-fit-in-27-inches
pushtotalk.gg/p/how-much-game-can-you-fit-in-27-inches
How Much Game Can You Fit in 2.7 Inches?
Conversations with artists pushing the limits of the world's tiniest games console
www.pushtotalk.gg
June 13, 2025 at 6:25 PM
"Slowly, gradually, the Playdate has evolved into something more like a large-scale, collaborative, physical version of UFO 50. It’s an alternate history Game Boy with dozens upon dozens of genuinely great games." 👍
pushtotalk.gg/p/how-much-game-can-you-fit-in-27-inches
pushtotalk.gg/p/how-much-game-can-you-fit-in-27-inches
New op-ed: It's time for Valve to follow Epic's lead by offering 0% fees on each dev's first $1 million.
Steam is an amazing force for good in games. But it is also incredibly dominant, and Valve has the power to make business more fair for small game developers.
www.pushtotalk.gg/p/valves-30-...
Steam is an amazing force for good in games. But it is also incredibly dominant, and Valve has the power to make business more fair for small game developers.
www.pushtotalk.gg/p/valves-30-...
Valve's 30% Platform Tax is Bad for Small Developers
It's time to follow Epic's lead by offering 0% fees on each dev's first $1 million.
www.pushtotalk.gg
May 30, 2025 at 3:41 PM
New op-ed: It's time for Valve to follow Epic's lead by offering 0% fees on each dev's first $1 million.
Steam is an amazing force for good in games. But it is also incredibly dominant, and Valve has the power to make business more fair for small game developers.
www.pushtotalk.gg/p/valves-30-...
Steam is an amazing force for good in games. But it is also incredibly dominant, and Valve has the power to make business more fair for small game developers.
www.pushtotalk.gg/p/valves-30-...
I have no idea why the Kepler Interactive people are playing so coy about the budget for Expedition 33, but this quote makes me more likely to believe the rumor I heard, which was that it was between $5m–$10m.
If true, that'd be incredible, and Kepler/Sandfall ought to share more on their process.
If true, that'd be incredible, and Kepler/Sandfall ought to share more on their process.
May 27, 2025 at 3:37 PM
I have no idea why the Kepler Interactive people are playing so coy about the budget for Expedition 33, but this quote makes me more likely to believe the rumor I heard, which was that it was between $5m–$10m.
If true, that'd be incredible, and Kepler/Sandfall ought to share more on their process.
If true, that'd be incredible, and Kepler/Sandfall ought to share more on their process.
Reposted by Ryan K. Rigney
If you’re not burned out on “deprofessionalization” discourse yet @pushtotalk.gg has a great chat with @brkeogh.bsky.social up that digs into more nuance.
Some of that nuance is *yeah this whole deprofessionalization thing would suck a lot less if we had universal health care and basic income!!!!!*
Some of that nuance is *yeah this whole deprofessionalization thing would suck a lot less if we had universal health care and basic income!!!!!*
Gaming’s Great Downsizing and the Garage-Band Game Economy
Brendan Keogh explains the post-2008 collapse of the Australian games industry and how it might prefigure changes coming for the rest of the world
www.pushtotalk.gg
May 23, 2025 at 5:13 PM
If you’re not burned out on “deprofessionalization” discourse yet @pushtotalk.gg has a great chat with @brkeogh.bsky.social up that digs into more nuance.
Some of that nuance is *yeah this whole deprofessionalization thing would suck a lot less if we had universal health care and basic income!!!!!*
Some of that nuance is *yeah this whole deprofessionalization thing would suck a lot less if we had universal health care and basic income!!!!!*
Reposted by Ryan K. Rigney
liked this @pushtotalk.gg article with @brkeogh.bsky.social on game industry economies: www.pushtotalk.gg/p/gamings-gr... … so if small game studios are like bands, are game bundles like our version of support acts? are all these game fests like touring?
May 24, 2025 at 12:50 AM
liked this @pushtotalk.gg article with @brkeogh.bsky.social on game industry economies: www.pushtotalk.gg/p/gamings-gr... … so if small game studios are like bands, are game bundles like our version of support acts? are all these game fests like touring?
Reposted by Ryan K. Rigney
If you liked or hated my takes on ‘deprofessionalisation’, I went into a lot more detail in this great chat with @pushtotalk.gg for his newsletter.
Connected what’s going on now to what I observed in the Australian industry in the 2010s
www.pushtotalk.gg/p/gamings-gr...
Connected what’s going on now to what I observed in the Australian industry in the 2010s
www.pushtotalk.gg/p/gamings-gr...
Gaming’s Great Downsizing and the Garage-Band Game Economy
Brendan Keogh explains the post-2008 collapse of the Australian games industry and how it might prefigure changes coming for the rest of the world
www.pushtotalk.gg
May 24, 2025 at 12:30 AM
If you liked or hated my takes on ‘deprofessionalisation’, I went into a lot more detail in this great chat with @pushtotalk.gg for his newsletter.
Connected what’s going on now to what I observed in the Australian industry in the 2010s
www.pushtotalk.gg/p/gamings-gr...
Connected what’s going on now to what I observed in the Australian industry in the 2010s
www.pushtotalk.gg/p/gamings-gr...
Reposted by Ryan K. Rigney
New from me—I had a great time at PAX East last week and met truly incredible developers. I was also pulling my hair out at how many small teams outnumbered proper-sized studios.
It's good that indies can punch above their weight. It's bad that it's replacing stable work in games!
It's good that indies can punch above their weight. It's bad that it's replacing stable work in games!
The 'deprofessionalization of video games' was on full display at PAX East
The 'deprofessionalization of video games' was on full display at PAX East
PAX East felt like a warning: explosively successful games by solo devs and small teams are great, but it could lead to a dearth of vital specialists.
www.gamedeveloper.com
May 16, 2025 at 1:58 PM
New from me—I had a great time at PAX East last week and met truly incredible developers. I was also pulling my hair out at how many small teams outnumbered proper-sized studios.
It's good that indies can punch above their weight. It's bad that it's replacing stable work in games!
It's good that indies can punch above their weight. It's bad that it's replacing stable work in games!
my story's in the tier 1 slot on @polygon.com !!!
April 5, 2025 at 4:17 PM
my story's in the tier 1 slot on @polygon.com !!!
Interviewed @lente.me about her life as a game dev who lives on a solarpunk-ass boat—and got a surprisingly touching story about reclaiming childhood
www.pushtotalk.gg/p/the-surpri...
www.pushtotalk.gg/p/the-surpri...
The Surprisingly Solarpunk Life of the Game Dev Behind "Spilled!"
How a 25-year-old Dutch game developer reclaimed her childhood
www.pushtotalk.gg
April 4, 2025 at 4:15 PM
Interviewed @lente.me about her life as a game dev who lives on a solarpunk-ass boat—and got a surprisingly touching story about reclaiming childhood
www.pushtotalk.gg/p/the-surpri...
www.pushtotalk.gg/p/the-surpri...
We’re still in the early days of games as an art form. You can just send an email to people who invented genres in the 90s and ask them things.
30 years after leading design on Ultima Online, Raph Koster is still working to fulfill his grand vision of “an alternate holodeck world you step into.”
30 years after leading design on Ultima Online, Raph Koster is still working to fulfill his grand vision of “an alternate holodeck world you step into.”
A Theory of the MMO
"The dream of having an alternate holodeck world you step into is too damn big for us to walk away from. People are going to keep trying."
www.pushtotalk.gg
March 21, 2025 at 9:09 PM
We’re still in the early days of games as an art form. You can just send an email to people who invented genres in the 90s and ask them things.
30 years after leading design on Ultima Online, Raph Koster is still working to fulfill his grand vision of “an alternate holodeck world you step into.”
30 years after leading design on Ultima Online, Raph Koster is still working to fulfill his grand vision of “an alternate holodeck world you step into.”
Reposted by Ryan K. Rigney
Announcing Process, a novel by @matthewseiji.com, which takes readers on an intense psychological journey into the dark heart of Seattle’s tech startup world.
Design @markwynne20.bsky.social
Brutalist illustrations @itsfredi1.bsky.social
#booksky 💙📚
www.tuneandfairweather.com/products/pro...
Design @markwynne20.bsky.social
Brutalist illustrations @itsfredi1.bsky.social
#booksky 💙📚
www.tuneandfairweather.com/products/pro...
March 12, 2025 at 3:00 PM
Announcing Process, a novel by @matthewseiji.com, which takes readers on an intense psychological journey into the dark heart of Seattle’s tech startup world.
Design @markwynne20.bsky.social
Brutalist illustrations @itsfredi1.bsky.social
#booksky 💙📚
www.tuneandfairweather.com/products/pro...
Design @markwynne20.bsky.social
Brutalist illustrations @itsfredi1.bsky.social
#booksky 💙📚
www.tuneandfairweather.com/products/pro...
Chatted with the GOAT of indie game trailers
I had fun talking to @pushtotalk.gg about how AAA game marketing compares to indies.
I always assumed AAA folks are on galaxy brain level thinking compared to me, but Ryan basically said it's decades of the same tactics with lots of money.
When it works it works great, and when it doesn't... 😱
I always assumed AAA folks are on galaxy brain level thinking compared to me, but Ryan basically said it's decades of the same tactics with lots of money.
When it works it works great, and when it doesn't... 😱
What Can AAA Games Marketers Learn From Indies?
Tips from the creator of some of indie gaming's greatest trailers
www.pushtotalk.gg
March 7, 2025 at 7:57 PM
Chatted with the GOAT of indie game trailers
Reposted by Ryan K. Rigney
I had fun talking to @pushtotalk.gg about how AAA game marketing compares to indies.
I always assumed AAA folks are on galaxy brain level thinking compared to me, but Ryan basically said it's decades of the same tactics with lots of money.
When it works it works great, and when it doesn't... 😱
I always assumed AAA folks are on galaxy brain level thinking compared to me, but Ryan basically said it's decades of the same tactics with lots of money.
When it works it works great, and when it doesn't... 😱
What Can AAA Games Marketers Learn From Indies?
Tips from the creator of some of indie gaming's greatest trailers
www.pushtotalk.gg
March 7, 2025 at 6:01 PM
I had fun talking to @pushtotalk.gg about how AAA game marketing compares to indies.
I always assumed AAA folks are on galaxy brain level thinking compared to me, but Ryan basically said it's decades of the same tactics with lots of money.
When it works it works great, and when it doesn't... 😱
I always assumed AAA folks are on galaxy brain level thinking compared to me, but Ryan basically said it's decades of the same tactics with lots of money.
When it works it works great, and when it doesn't... 😱
Reposted by Ryan K. Rigney
✨ PRE-ORDER MY BOOK ✨
My book Mastering Community Management is finally ready!!!
➡️ Learn how to create long-term, sustainable, and intentional game spaces online
➡️ Pre to post-launch community guide
➡️ Case studies, engagement, and infrastructure tips
Shares appreciated. ❤️
www.victoriatran.com/book
My book Mastering Community Management is finally ready!!!
➡️ Learn how to create long-term, sustainable, and intentional game spaces online
➡️ Pre to post-launch community guide
➡️ Case studies, engagement, and infrastructure tips
Shares appreciated. ❤️
www.victoriatran.com/book
Mastering Community Management Book — Victoria Tran
Learn how to do community management for video games right. This book covers the fundamental concepts of designing an online community from the core basics of what it is, and then the journey from pre...
www.victoriatran.com
March 5, 2025 at 6:16 PM
✨ PRE-ORDER MY BOOK ✨
My book Mastering Community Management is finally ready!!!
➡️ Learn how to create long-term, sustainable, and intentional game spaces online
➡️ Pre to post-launch community guide
➡️ Case studies, engagement, and infrastructure tips
Shares appreciated. ❤️
www.victoriatran.com/book
My book Mastering Community Management is finally ready!!!
➡️ Learn how to create long-term, sustainable, and intentional game spaces online
➡️ Pre to post-launch community guide
➡️ Case studies, engagement, and infrastructure tips
Shares appreciated. ❤️
www.victoriatran.com/book
Reposted by Ryan K. Rigney
Thank you @pushtotalk.gg for starting a great conversation in my house after reading the latest Push To Talk.
www.pushtotalk.gg
www.pushtotalk.gg
Push to Talk | Ryan K. Rigney | Substack
A strategy guide for the games industry, delivered every Friday. Click to read Push to Talk, by Ryan K. Rigney, a Substack publication with thousands of subscribers.
www.pushtotalk.gg
February 28, 2025 at 11:09 PM
Thank you @pushtotalk.gg for starting a great conversation in my house after reading the latest Push To Talk.
www.pushtotalk.gg
www.pushtotalk.gg
I'm excited because this week I interviewed some teams making unambiguously cool AI stuff (e.g. VLC's new AI-powered subtitles in 100+ languages and Adobe's enhance speech tool) but I have to admit I might be too scared to post the link on this app. I assume I'll get cooked
January 25, 2025 at 7:02 PM
I'm excited because this week I interviewed some teams making unambiguously cool AI stuff (e.g. VLC's new AI-powered subtitles in 100+ languages and Adobe's enhance speech tool) but I have to admit I might be too scared to post the link on this app. I assume I'll get cooked
Many of the most successful indie devs seem to struggle under the weight of player expectations after shipping their first true hit. And it’s true that “Game 2” is almost never as big.
So we’ve gotta celebrate those who just keep shipping great work anyway.
My interview w/ the creator of Peglin:
So we’ve gotta celebrate those who just keep shipping great work anyway.
My interview w/ the creator of Peglin:
The Art of the Follow-Up
What do you do after striking game dev gold? (Probably crash out)
www.pushtotalk.gg
January 24, 2025 at 7:54 PM
Many of the most successful indie devs seem to struggle under the weight of player expectations after shipping their first true hit. And it’s true that “Game 2” is almost never as big.
So we’ve gotta celebrate those who just keep shipping great work anyway.
My interview w/ the creator of Peglin:
So we’ve gotta celebrate those who just keep shipping great work anyway.
My interview w/ the creator of Peglin:
Tried to solve a marketing mystery and it got weird www.pushtotalk.gg/p/are-random...
Are Random VR Games Making $100 Million?
Nothing about the VR games market makes sense
www.pushtotalk.gg
January 22, 2025 at 6:44 PM
Tried to solve a marketing mystery and it got weird www.pushtotalk.gg/p/are-random...
Reposted by Ryan K. Rigney
Game File is now a year old, so I'm sharing a very transparent status report about my first year as a reader-supported reporter
The good: 2nd-highest grossing gaming pub on substack
Key question: year 2 will prove if this is sustainable (and if I can expand)
www.gamefile.news/p/game-file-...
The good: 2nd-highest grossing gaming pub on substack
Key question: year 2 will prove if this is sustainable (and if I can expand)
www.gamefile.news/p/game-file-...
Game File, one year in...
Thoughts, worries, dreams, a lot of stats and a chance for you to decide when this site actually started.
www.gamefile.news
January 14, 2025 at 4:21 PM
Game File is now a year old, so I'm sharing a very transparent status report about my first year as a reader-supported reporter
The good: 2nd-highest grossing gaming pub on substack
Key question: year 2 will prove if this is sustainable (and if I can expand)
www.gamefile.news/p/game-file-...
The good: 2nd-highest grossing gaming pub on substack
Key question: year 2 will prove if this is sustainable (and if I can expand)
www.gamefile.news/p/game-file-...
Reposted by Ryan K. Rigney
How did these hit games find their first 1,000 players?
How did these hit games find their first 1,000 players?
...and also the tens of thousands of players after that.
buff.ly
January 12, 2025 at 2:10 PM
How did these hit games find their first 1,000 players?
My latest is in the lead story slot on Polygon. I asked four successful indie devs how and where they found their first 1,000 players.
Lot of useful marketing tips in this one (link in comments)
Lot of useful marketing tips in this one (link in comments)
January 12, 2025 at 7:58 PM
My latest is in the lead story slot on Polygon. I asked four successful indie devs how and where they found their first 1,000 players.
Lot of useful marketing tips in this one (link in comments)
Lot of useful marketing tips in this one (link in comments)