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What Jason Schreier Missed About Game Publishers

Building Better Games

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What if the contract keeping your game studio funded is the exact thing preventing you from making a good game?

In this episode, Ben reacts in real time to Jason Schreier’s video on how video game publishers actually work. Diving deep into the mechanics of first-party vs. external publishing, milestone gates, and post-launch recoupment, Ben breaks down where popular internet takes fall short.

He exposes the production traps studio leaders fall into when trying to survive milestone schedules and shares how to maintain leverage, navigate power dynamics, and build a healthy collaborative relationship with funding partners without sacrificing the game's core experience.

What You'll Learn in This Episode:
● The REAL difference between first-party studios and publisher-funded external devs
● The Vertical Slice Trap: Why so many studios build impressive demos that fall apart in full production
● The uncomfortable truth about studio-publisher relationships and why studios have to own them
● How milestone-driven development can sabotage great games.
● Why "shipping a successful game" still isn't enough and how recoupment deals can shut down studios after launch
● The psychology publishers use when deciding whether to back your delay... or cancel your project
● How smart studios reduce risk early by staying lean, validating the fun, and avoiding expensive mistakes
If you're a leader in game dev who feels trapped between hitting rigid publisher milestones and actually making a fun, viable game, this episode is for you.

🔗Watch the original video here: How Video Game Publishers Actually Work
🔗Jason Schreier’s YouTube Channel: @jason-schreier
Connect with us:
🔗Ben’s LinkedIn: LinkedIn: benjamin-carcich
🔗BBG’s LinkedIn: LinkedIn: building-better-games
🔗Instagram: Instagram: buildingbettergames
🔗Website: https://www.buildingbettergames.gg
🔗YouTube: @buildingbettergames

If you want me to help producers or studios build better games through effective systems and leadership, you can reach me at: info@valarinconsulting.com

#GameDev #GameProduction #IndieDev #GameIndustry #BuildingBetterGames

00:00 Publishers vs Developers
01:12 Why Nuance Matters
05:33 Two Publisher Buckets
06:00 First Party Studio Dynamics
08:46 Milestones and Gate Funding
13:33 Leadership Accelerator Pitch
15:05 External Studio Funding Basics
18:40 Pitching Needs Prototypes
21:55 Pitch Circuit DICE to GDC
24:40 Signing the Deal Terms
26:06 Vertical Slice Explained
35:13 Milestone Incentives and Risks
36:36 Rejected Milestones Fallout
37:23 Kill Fees And IP Rights
39:55 Seedy Publishers And Milestones
41:29 Publisher Support Beyond Money
43:21 Hands On Vs Hands Off
46:59 Marketing And Platform Connections
48:20 Relationship Friction And Bias
55:36 Launch Recoup And Royalties
57:45 Deal Structures And Studio Survival
01:02:21 Negotiation And Extra Funding
01:04:53 Power Imbalance And Ethics
01:09:02 Rethinking Milestones For Learning
01:12:19 Collaborate Or Collapse
01:13:34 Final Thoughts And Wrap Up

12 Comments

@TacticalMindscapes 2 months ago

Great breakdown! I really appreciate how you balanced Jason's points with your own firsthand studio experience. That layer of nuance specifically about the 'vertical slice trap' and how milestone-driven contracts can sometimes hinder the creative process added so much valuable context that you just don't get from an outsider's perspective. Thanks for showing how studios can navigate these power dynamics more effectively.

@marsmotion 2 months ago

The biggest problem you're going to face with the publisher is they have 10 lawyers, and you have none. The contract is going to be very detailed and very hard to understand and very full of gotchas, and that's more true, the bigger the publisher. You could end up spending 80 hour weeks for 3 years, making your game and ending up not having enough money or any profit Out of it to make the next one or keep your lights on. This happens when I was working on hunted The demons forge for inxile published by Bethesda, who I later went to work for by the way, it's brutal, the money is not for free. I'd also say though that I've watched developers just p*** away. Money like it's nothing and take 7 years to make a freaking game and have nothing almost to show for it. And then they thought they could build their own dam engine too. So I've seen both sides.

@FiniteandtheInfinite 1 month ago

0:00

For anyone watching. I was worried when he started just watching the video it would just be a standard lazy video. He creates long breaks explaining or supplementing what Jason says. Very nice video.

@LocrianDorian 2 months ago (edited)

Hey, I've been in the industry for over a decade now and I really enjoyed your video, some really good insights and detail on Jason's original. The interesting thing about the publisher gates pitfalls is that the exact same thing applies to publishers themselves as publicly traded companies. Often they forget that they need to make the business sustainable long term and not solely focus on quarterly growth. This type of shortsightedness has been the downfall of many publicly traded companies in the gaming space. Nintendo is an excellent counter example, they operate with a long term vision and don't need explosive short term growth.

@susanooalarichard 2 months ago

This brought to mind a lot of past events. But, one that stands out was from around 2024. I was weirded out by looking at [Redacted] funding and their O&M costs in particular. There's no way I would've gotten my Senior Loan Underwriter friends, and I mean very close friends of mine, to approve such loans with those O&M numbers. There simply was no path back to black. Anyway, going back to just listening to this one. I think I think of this as the contracts in question. So, rarely thinking about anyone that isn't a party to the individual contracts in question.

@SilverrWinter 2 months ago

Nice insight

@arnarb89 2 months ago

Great video

@oogamania4261 2 months ago

There's self-funding, and publishers, but what about crowd-funding?

@ZahrDalsk 2 months ago

Why, in the age of Steam, would you use a publisher?

@Verloren167 2 months ago

Great video as usual, but when you talk over the video we usually hear neither of you.

@sliceofheaven3026 2 months ago (edited)

I do feel though like Jason is also simplifying us gamers sometimes. We gamers are not a single collective entity that thinks the same way about all things. We also come from various backgrounds and we might have also a whole variety of degrees in different fields of expertise. Despite this variety it sometimes feels like Jason treats us gamers as if we are people who dont understand nuance when it comes to game development and that only a journalist like Jason can truly enlighten us about these things.