Deconstructor of Fun 319. Building Games That Don't Die: The Zynga Model
Jan 27, 2026
Yaron Leyvan, Zynga EVP of Mobile Studios with 13 years at the company, talks building long-lived "forever" franchises and integrating acquired studios. He covers the 70-20-10 framework, early hit signals and KPIs, preserving studio culture after acquisition, and practical AI uses. Short, focused takes on autonomy, kill decisions, and balancing art with data.
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Forever Franchises Defined
- A Forever Franchise is a game built to last at least five years and reach meaningful scale, typically $100M+ annual revenue.
- Yaron Leyvan argues longevity improves player experience and business returns when games are continuously refreshed.
Use Market Research—Don't Clone
- Study market winners to learn what resonates but avoid cloning because cloning fails in entertainment.
- Break out by combining mechanics across categories or introducing genuinely new elements to stand out.
Prove The Core Game Works First
- Validate the core game first: the core loop must be fun without meta features or systems.
- If players return to the core experience on its own, scale and meta can follow; otherwise fix the core.
