The Final Boss
Every month an industry leader wraps up MCV/DEVELOP with their unique insight
James Leedham, Director at 16-Bit Consulting
You just launched a brand-new company! Tell me all about it. Earlier this year, I decided it was time for a new challenge and chose to branch out on my own. With years of experience in commercial teams at both a publisher and in retail, across physical and digital, I saw a gap where my experience in commercial strategy could make a real difference.
I noticed plenty of agencies in other disciplines, but relatively few that focused on commercial support. I thought I would work
mainly with developers, but since launching I have also spoken with service providers, retailers, and distributors. The idea behind 16-Bit Consulting is simple: let clients focus on what they do best while I help make them as commercially successful as possible. This includes forecasting, lifecycle management, distribution, pitch feedback, deal negotiation, and first-party store management.
What sets 16-Bit Consulting apart from your competitors? Most consultants in this space have similar skills, but something I beleive sets me apart is the range of experience I have gained across retail and publishing, physical and digital, and titles of all sizes.
One thing I try to avoid is corporate jargon, or what I call
“word salad.” Too often people use a lot of words to say something simple, or nothing at all. Clients need advice they can act on right away, in plain language they do not have to translate, and that is what I focus on.
What are the big challenges you’re currently facing, and how are you taking them on?
One of the biggest challenges is helping people understand what “commercial” really means. Many assume it includes both sales and marketing, but I see marketing as a separate discipline entirely. Commercial is about sales, revenue generation, and business development, making sure the game earns what it should, while marketing and brand focus on awareness and positioning. I do not run ad campaigns or manage marketing budgets. Clarifying this early helps clients understand where I fit in and how I can help them succeed.
54 | MCV/DEVELOP August/September 2025 Building a diverse roster of clients is another challenge. It is
reassuring to have regular, larger clients, but relying too heavily on one or two is risky. I focus on networking, being visible at events, and taking opportunities like this interview.
What are your biggest ambitions for the future? My goal now is to build a sustainable, profitable business that supports me and my family. Over time, I would love to grow into a team, creating opportunities for some of the brilliant people I have worked with over the years. What really drives me is being able to look back and see where I have made a difference, not just in numbers, but by helping small teams and studios succeed and knowing that can have a big impact on their lives. My oldest son has already told me he wants to work for me when he is older, so apparently I need to scale up in the next six or seven years.
What would you like to change about video games in the next few years?
I would love to see the industry stop chasing trends like mergers and acquisitions, live service everything, and now AI just to satisfy shareholders, and instead focus again on making the games they believe in, the ones they would want to play themselves.
During COVID, the industry had its best years ever. Growth slowed afterwards, but even today the market is above pre- pandemic levels. Yet instead of celebrating that, too many companies seem to mourn the end of the pandemic because it hurt their numbers. There is a telling line from Mythic Quest, an Apple TV+ comedy about a game studio: “We have also had some lows, like COVID… ending. When the pandemic ended and life went back to normal, the video game industry took a hit and we felt it here at home. Mythic Quest lost a lot of good people… when we fired them.” That awkward truth sounds like something you might hear in a
real boardroom today. Hopefully, with easier access to tools and a growing talent pool, we will see more independent developers and studios succeed without being bound by shareholder expectations. When independent studios thrive, players get more creative and authentic experiences. Games that take risks and stand out make the industry stronger and more exciting for everyone, and supporting those creators benefits both the people making the games and the players who enjoy them.
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