They Create Worlds

https://podcast.theycreateworlds.com/feed.xml

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The games we love reveal something true about who we are, and about the world that made them. They Create Worlds is a podcast about the people, technology, and forces that built the video game industry.

Through video game history, the show looks at how culture, business, and technology shaped what we play, tracing the choices and circumstances that led to the games so many people around the world enjoy.

Each episode digs into where games came from, who made them, and why they were made the way they were. Business decisions, technological shifts, and creative choices all shaped what ended up on screen, and the show covers all of it together, not just one piece in isolation.

Hosted by Alex Smith and Jeffrey Daum, They Create Worlds grew out of long conversations about the strange corners of the industry and the patterns that only show up when you look across companies, platforms, and decades. That conversational feel remains, built on careful research, clear structure and editing that makes even the deepest topics easy to listen to.

History turns out to be less settled than it looks. New documents surface, memories conflict, and the clean stories about why things happened the way they did rarely survive contact with the evidence. The show digs into all of that, following the creative and business forces that pushed and pulled on each other, and uncovering the human stories that lie beneath the games so many people around the world enjoy.

New episodes are released twice a month.

Episodes

Friday Aug 01, 2025

Nintendo: Wii Were Struggling

Friday Aug 01, 2025

TCW Podcast Episode 239 - Nintendo: Wii Were Struggling

Nintendo’s struggle for cultural relevance in the lead-up to the Wii was marked by the N64’s poor fit for Japanese homes and the GameCube’s failure to outsell even the fledgling Xbox globally. Internally, a power struggle unfolded as Hiroshi Yamauchi prepared to retire. Former Sharp executive Atsushi Asada was brought in and became Executive Vice President and later Chairman of the Board. Satoru Iwata, whom Yamauchi saw great potential in, was appointed president of HAL Laboratory as part of a Yamauchi-backed bailout and ultimately succeeded Yamauchi as president of Nintendo. Minoru Arakawa was passed over, removed from the board, and after his retirement, replaced at Nintendo of America by Tatsumi Kimishima, who was later placed on the board himself, giving credence to the idea that Arakawa was pushed aside in favor of Iwata. We explore how, despite not facing financial collapse, Nintendo risked losing its creative identity after two struggling consoles and Sony's rising threat to its handheld dominance.

Iwata Asks Interviews: https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/

Simpsons all you can eat Court Case: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CqT-AvswCZo

TCW 153 - Nintendo Playing with Cards: https://podcast.theycreateworlds.com/e/nintendo-playing-with-cards/

TCW 154 - Nintendo Playing with Controversy: https://podcast.theycreateworlds.com/e/nintendo-playing-with-controversy/

TCW 155 - Nintendo Playing with Toys: https://podcast.theycreateworlds.com/e/nintendo-playing-with-toys/

TCW 014 - Nintendo Playing with Power: https://podcast.theycreateworlds.com/e/nintendo-playing-with-power/

TCW 128 - Nintendo in 1985: https://podcast.theycreateworlds.com/e/nintendo-in-1985/?utm_source=chatgpt.com

TCW 037 - Nintendo and Gumpei Yokoi: https://podcast.theycreateworlds.com/e/nintendo-and-gunpei-yokoi/

TCW 063 - Lawsuits for Nintendo: https://podcast.theycreateworlds.com/e/lawsuits-for-nintendo/

TCW 068 - SEGA vs Nintendo Round 1: https://podcast.theycreateworlds.com/e/sega-vs-nintendo-round-1/

TCW 069 - SEGA vs Nintendo Round 2: https://podcast.theycreateworlds.com/e/sega-vs-nintendo-round-2

TCW 070 - SEGA vs Nintendo Round 3: https://podcast.theycreateworlds.com/e/sega-vs-nintendo-round-3