Podcast
The Game Production Academy
Hosted by Liam Wickham · EN
Welcome to the Game Production Academy podcast. I am Liam Wickham. This podcast is for game producers and production leaders who want more predictable delivery without burning teams out. I cover planning, leadership and risk management with practical tools you can use immediately - templates, examples and case breakdowns.
I am also the author of Risk Management for Video Game Professionals (CRC Press, 2026) - the link is below. If you teach or study game production, you can use the same material to build industry-ready practice.
Links
Risk Management Book
game-production.com/riskmanagementbook
Free Resource Library
game-production.com/freeresources
Newsletter
game-production.com/newsletter
Game Production Academy
game-production.com
13episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Art Production in Mobile Games vs. Console Games: Key Differences and Challenges
Feb 400:30:10Tap to summarizeIn this episode, Purva Garg, experienced senior game producer, dives deep into the intricacies of art production in mobile games compared to console games. We discuss the differences in volume, pace, and complexity of assets, and how these factors impact production timelines. The conversation reveals the unique pressures and mindsets in mobile game development, highlighting the constant need for content due to the live and free-to-play nature of mobile games. We also explore the impact of user acquisition costs, the role of LiveOps, and the crucial balance producers need to maintain between planned and reactive work. Tune in to understand the complexities and strategies involved in managing art production in the fast-paced world of mobile gaming.00:00 Introduction to Art Production in Games00:08 Differences in Output Volume and Speed00:43 Challenges in Mobile Game Art Production02:59 Live Games and Continuous Content Generation03:56 Prototyping and Agile Development in Mobile Games05:18 Importance of Visuals in Mobile Games06:49 Marketing's Impact on Game Development09:18 User Acquisition and Retention Strategies13:10 Prioritization and Team Management25:46 Balancing Tech Debt and Content CreationOriginal YouTube recording:https://youtu.be/sl1Vy6s96UUWelcome to Game Production Academy. I am Liam Wickham. This channel is for game producers and production leaders who want more predictable delivery without burning teams out. I cover planning, leadership and risk management with practical tools you can use immediately - templates, examples and case breakdowns. I am also the author of Risk Management for Video Game Professionals (CRC Press, 2026). If you teach or study game production, you can use the same material to build industry-ready practice.LinksRisk Management Bookgame-production.com/riskmanagementbookFree Resource Librarygame-production.com/freeresourcesNewsletter...
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9 Critical Game Development Risks (Market Fit, Scope, QA, Launch, Trust)
Jan 3000:46:25Tap to summarizeIn this webinar-to-podcast episode, Liam Wickham breaks down nine critical risks that repeatedly derail game projects, with early warning signals and practical mitigations you can apply immediately.You will hear:Why risk management gives teams a shared language to spot problems early and act before delivery becomes unstableThe nine critical risk patterns, including:Market misalignment (building a game nobody wants) and vision driftPre-production shortcuts that create expensive late surprisesScope churn (scope creep and feature creep) as a predictable crunch and delay engineCommunication gaps (silos, undocumented decisions, delayed propagation)QA underinvestment, where defects compound until stability and delivery collapsesLaunch failures, negative reception and the public trust spiral after release - plus what credible recovery looks likeThis is designed for producers, studio leads and discipline leads who want fewer late surprises, less rework and more predictable delivery.Free companion PDF (board export):https://game-production.thinkific.com/products/digital_downloads/criticalrisksOriginal webinar recording:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bp-Sfj9rVqcWelcome to Game Production Academy. I am Liam Wickham. This channel is for game producers and production leaders who want more predictable delivery without burning teams out. I cover planning, leadership and risk management with practical tools you can use immediately - templates, examples and case breakdowns. I am also the author of Risk Management for Video Game Professionals (CRC Press, 2026). If you teach or study game production, you can use the same material to build industry-ready practice.LinksRisk Management Bookgame-production.com/riskmanagementbookFree Resource Librarygame-production.com/freeresourcesNewsletter...
Transcribe →Widen Your Job Search: Games Skills to Tech Roles
Jan 1900:11:38Tap to summarizeHello! I’ve put a free download on Game Production Academy. I made it for anyone who has been job-hunting in games for months and needs more options quickly. I have worked inside and outside the games industry, and I have had to translate my own CV between games roles and non-games roles regularly. I have also worked across nearly all of the role types covered in this toolkit, so the guidance here is grounded in how these jobs operate day to day.This episode is actually an audio only version of my YouTube video but I reckon it's ok to listen to! I talk you through what's in the guide.https://youtu.be/822DXdbyGrs?si=tgHJVXGxzTyNuDZSThis 30 page toolkit, written by me, helps you: Identify role targets that match what you already do Translate your CV and LinkedIn profile into language employers outside games recognise Understand which gaps matter and which do not Apply more widely without pretending to be someone you are not Download here:https://game-production.thinkific.com/products/digital_downloads/unlock-potential-outside-gaming If you know someone who’s out of work, please share it with them. (You can still apply for games roles. This is about widening the net, not “leaving games”.) Welcome to Game Production Academy. I am Liam Wickham. This channel is for game producers and production leaders who want more predictable delivery without burning teams out. I cover planning, leadership and risk management with practical tools you can use immediately - templates, examples and case breakdowns. I am also the author of Risk Management for Video Game Professionals (CRC Press, 2026). If you teach or study game production, you can use the same material to build industry-ready practice.LinksRisk Management Bookgame-production.com/riskmanagementbookFree Resource Librarygame-production.com/freeresourcesNewsletter...
Transcribe →Recruitment Masterclass with Simon Hope from Aardwark Swift
Feb 14, 202501:02:17Tap to summarizeMe and Simon Hope had a chat about production recruitment back in 2022 I think it was. Hope you enjoy it!Welcome to Game Production Academy. I am Liam Wickham. This channel is for game producers and production leaders who want more predictable delivery without burning teams out. I cover planning, leadership and risk management with practical tools you can use immediately - templates, examples and case breakdowns. I am also the author of Risk Management for Video Game Professionals (CRC Press, 2026). If you teach or study game production, you can use the same material to build industry-ready practice.LinksRisk Management Bookgame-production.com/riskmanagementbookFree Resource Librarygame-production.com/freeresourcesNewsletter...
Transcribe →Renee Wooten - Associate Producer - Part 1
Feb 14, 202501:29:50Tap to summarizeMe and Renee chat back in 2020 about game production.ABOUT GAME PRODUCTION ACADEMYOur Vision is to enable games industry professionals to plan better, lead better and stop the crunch culture, through building a community of support, knowledge and training. COURSESUdemy is hosting my 5 star Risk Management course:https://www.udemy.com/course/risk-management-in-video-game-development/?referralCode=D6412142A30B4794B550 This is free to students and those who have lost their jobs in the games industry - just reach out to me directly for the coupons you need.Please visit the website, which exists as a place to gather and chat, swap ideas and learn from each other, accumulate expertise and even accreditation. We are gradually building a library of podcasts, videos, training, articles and guides. Please sign up to the newsletter too.http://www.game-production.com YouTube Channel:https://www.youtube.com/@game-production-academy
Transcribe →Production Chats: Chris Sykora, Associate Producer
Feb 14, 202501:27:57Tap to summarizeMe and Chris have a chat around production - from 2020.ABOUT GAME PRODUCTION ACADEMYOur Vision is to enable games industry professionals to plan better, lead better and stop the crunch culture, through building a community of support, knowledge and training. COURSESUdemy is hosting my 5 star Risk Management course:https://www.udemy.com/course/risk-management-in-video-game-development/?referralCode=D6412142A30B4794B550 This is free to students and those who have lost their jobs in the games industry - just reach out to me directly for the coupons you need.Please visit the website, which exists as a place to gather and chat, swap ideas and learn from each other, accumulate expertise and even accreditation. We are gradually building a library of podcasts, videos, training, articles and guides. Please sign up to the newsletter too.http://www.game-production.com YouTube Channel:https://www.youtube.com/@game-production-academy
Transcribe →Production Chats: Chris Keeling, Executive Producer
Feb 14, 202501:32:45Tap to summarizeMe and Chris have a chat about production - from 2020.ABOUT GAME PRODUCTION ACADEMYOur Vision is to enable games industry professionals to plan better, lead better and stop the crunch culture, through building a community of support, knowledge and training. COURSESUdemy is hosting my 5 star Risk Management course:https://www.udemy.com/course/risk-management-in-video-game-development/?referralCode=D6412142A30B4794B550 This is free to students and those who have lost their jobs in the games industry - just reach out to me directly for the coupons you need.Please visit the website, which exists as a place to gather and chat, swap ideas and learn from each other, accumulate expertise and even accreditation. We are gradually building a library of podcasts, videos, training, articles and guides. Please sign up to the newsletter too.http://www.game-production.com YouTube Channel:https://www.youtube.com/@game-production-academy
Transcribe →Renee Wooten - Being a woman in the games industry
Feb 14, 202500:34:26Tap to summarizeRenee talked frankly about being a woman in the games industry, back in 2020.Welcome to Game Production Academy. I am Liam Wickham. This channel is for game producers and production leaders who want more predictable delivery without burning teams out. I cover planning, leadership and risk management with practical tools you can use immediately - templates, examples and case breakdowns. I am also the author of Risk Management for Video Game Professionals (CRC Press, 2026). If you teach or study game production, you can use the same material to build industry-ready practice.LinksRisk Management Bookgame-production.com/riskmanagementbookFree Resource Librarygame-production.com/freeresourcesNewsletter...
Transcribe →Risk Management for Game Producers - Part Two
Feb 14, 202500:41:13Tap to summarizePart 2 goes into more detail on actual risk and issue examples. I have based the categories on the only current academic research I could find on the topic. You can read that in full.In 2025 I launched a comprehensive Udemy course on the topic and you can find it here:https://www.udemy.com/course/risk-management-in-video-game-development/?referralCode=D6412142A30B4794B550Topics covered in Part 2 include:High level risksStaffing risksSchedule & Budget RisksInadequate specs (I decided to skip talking about Design specs here as that deserves its own section some other time)Fun FactorChange managementExpectations of third parties such as publishersSummaryPart 1, a more general introduction around risk management in the game industry, can be found here.Part 3 is a walkthrough of generating a Risk and Issue Log that you can download and use/abuse at your leisure.Welcome to Game Production Academy. I am Liam Wickham. This channel is for game producers and production leaders who want more predictable delivery without burning teams out. I cover planning, leadership and risk management with practical tools you can use immediately - templates, examples and case breakdowns. I am also the author of Risk Management for Video Game Professionals (CRC Press, 2026). If you teach or study game production, you can use the same material to build industry-ready practice.LinksRisk Management Bookgame-production.com/riskmanagementbookFree Resource Librarygame-production.com/freeresourcesNewsletter...
Transcribe →Risk Management for Game Producers - Part Three
Feb 14, 202500:39:56Tap to summarizeThis is the podcast version of my YouTube walkthrough.In 2025 I launched a comprehensive Udemy course on the topic and you can find it here:https://www.udemy.com/course/risk-management-in-video-game-development/?referralCode=D6412142A30B4794B550Part 3 is a walkthrough of generating a Risk and Issue Log that you can download and use/abuse at your leisure.Here's the links to those files as promised:ExcelGoogle SheetsPart 1, a more general introduction around risk management in the game industry, can be found here.Part 2 goes into more detail on actual risk and issue examples.Welcome to Game Production Academy. I am Liam Wickham. This channel is for game producers and production leaders who want more predictable delivery without burning teams out. I cover planning, leadership and risk management with practical tools you can use immediately - templates, examples and case breakdowns. I am also the author of Risk Management for Video Game Professionals (CRC Press, 2026). If you teach or study game production, you can use the same material to build industry-ready practice.LinksRisk Management Bookgame-production.com/riskmanagementbookFree Resource Librarygame-production.com/freeresourcesNewsletter...
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