It takes courage to build a game company. It takes courage to decide to close a company. It takes double courage to talk about it and share the learnings.
In this episode, we follow the journey of Shelby Moledina, co-founder of Double Loop Games, from the aspiring start in 2019 to the difficult decision to close the company in 2023.
Shelby shares the story of founding Double Loop Games, focusing on creating mobile games for underserved audiences, particularly women, and the process of building the company from prototyping to fundraising. Despite the eventual closure of Double Loop Games due to market pressures and funding challenges, Shelby's story is one of resilience, strategic pivoting, and commitment to her team until the last day of closing the company.
This episode sheds light on the importance of community support as a founder, self-reflection, and the courage to make tough decisions for the team's well-being and personal integrity.
Double Loop Games raised a seed round of $2.5M in 2020 and $8M in Series A in 2021: https://www.gamedeveloper.com/game-platforms/double-loop-games-raises-8-million-to-create-meaningfully-charming-mobile-games
02:42 The Founding Story of Double Loop Games
03:12 From Corporate to Co-Founder: Shelby's Transition
15:13 The Early Days of Double Loop: Prototyping and Team Building
20:05 Navigating the Fundraising Landscape: Seed to Series A
28:45 Adapting to a Changing Investment Environment in 2024
32:29 The Evolution of Game Development Strategies
32:30 Insights from Soft Launch Experiences
33:26 Reflecting on the Final Months and Decision to Close
33:42 Pivoting to a New Game Concept
36:11 Exploring the Merge Game Market and Strategy Development
38:56 The Emotional Journey of Shutting Down and Moving Forward
53:20 New Beginnings: From Game Development to Filmmaking
58:57 Reflections and Future Directions
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122. Co-Founder Shelby Moledina's Diary: Founding And Closing Double Loop Games