• Elan Lee is a game designer, Primetime Emmy, Peabody Award, and IndieCade Trailblazer Award winner.
• He believes the most important part of a game is the core gameplay loop and that games are tools for people to have fun with each other.
• He and his team developed Poetry for Neanderthals, which uses single syllable words to translate sentences.
• They used the Kitty Test Pilots program to test prototypes and provide feedback.
• Exploding Kittens was described as Russian roulette with a deck of cards.
• The Kickstarter campaign raised almost $9 million.
• Elan believes in creating a core gameplay loop and building the surrounding components to emphasize it.
• He recommends playing Poetry for Neanderthals, SET, and Settlers of Catan.
• Exploding Kittens started out as a 100% direct-to-consumer business, but now retail accounts for 60%.
• Elan met his mentor, Jordan Weisman, at Microsoft and they started a clothing company.
• Elan warns against stretch goals that involve manufacturing and fulfillment.
• Exploding Kittens was a huge success on Kickstarter and Amazon.
• Elan and his team have put systems in place to remain in control of the company.
• Elan is passionate about creating tools to bring joy to people’s lives and partnering with people who have a genuine love for their audience.
• Tim Ferriss believes it is important to be aware of the seduction of the algorithm.
Published February 4, 2023
Visit The Tim Ferriss Show to find the original interview Elan Lee, Co-Creator of Exploding Kittens
