# Riot Games: Brandon Beck and Marc Merrill

- Show: [How I Built This](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this)
- Published: 2020-12-14
- Length: 1h 31m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2020-12-14-riot-games-brandon-beck-and-marc-merrill

## Summary

Brandon Beck and Marc Merrill, co-founders of Riot Games, explain how they pivoted from a failed MMO prototype to creating League of Legends, pioneering the free-to-play model with microtransactions. They detail the struggle to secure funding from skeptical investors and publishers who favored traditional boxed retail, leading them to self-publish and build their own infrastructure. The founders describe critical failures, including a $1 million backend technology collapse and a last-minute payment system failure, which forced them to launch without an in-game store and partner with THQ for physical boxes to gain credibility.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2020-12-14-riot-games-brandon-beck-and-marc-merrill#t=0) Introduction: The Free-to-Play Pioneer
- [4:37](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2020-12-14-riot-games-brandon-beck-and-marc-merrill#t=277) College Origins and the UGL Idea
- [11:37](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2020-12-14-riot-games-brandon-beck-and-marc-merrill#t=697) The Failed MMO and Industry Context
- [18:27](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2020-12-14-riot-games-brandon-beck-and-marc-merrill#t=1107) Raising Capital and Defining the Vision
- [28:27](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2020-12-14-riot-games-brandon-beck-and-marc-merrill#t=1707) Building the Team and 'Onslaught' Prototype
- [36:55](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2020-12-14-riot-games-brandon-beck-and-marc-merrill#t=2215) Publisher Rejection and Leadership Turmoil
- [52:34](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2020-12-14-riot-games-brandon-beck-and-marc-merrill#t=3154) The Backend Technology Catastrophe
- [59:50](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2020-12-14-riot-games-brandon-beck-and-marc-merrill#t=3590) Launch Crisis: No Store and Physical Boxes
- [1:06:49](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2020-12-14-riot-games-brandon-beck-and-marc-merrill#t=4009) Post-Launch Growth and Esports
- [1:18:21](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2020-12-14-riot-games-brandon-beck-and-marc-merrill#t=4701) The Tencent Acquisition and Company Culture

## Topics

- [Crowdfunding & preorders](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/crowdfunding)
- [Direct-to-consumer & e-commerce](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/direct-to-consumer)
- [Pricing, margins & unit economics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/pricing-and-unit-economics)
- [Scaling production](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/scaling-production)
- [Validation & product-market fit](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/validation-and-product-market-fit)
- [Growth, exits & acquisitions](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/growth-exits-and-acquisitions)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies

## Mentioned

- Riot Games (company)
- League of Legends (product)
- Bethesda Softworks (company)
- Oblivion (product)
- Blizzard Entertainment (company)
- Warcraft 3 (product)
- Dota All-Stars (product)
- THQ (company)
- Tencent (company)
- Valorant (product)
- U.S. Bank (company)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [Jeri Ellsworth and the demise of CastAR](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2018-05-29-jeri-ellsworth-and-the-demise-of-castar) (The Amp Hour)
- [Rooting for the Home Team with Paul Freedman and Bryan Carmel](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/oxide-and-friends/2026-05-27-rooting-for-the-home-team-with-paul-freedman-and-bryan-carmel) (Oxide and Friends)
- [085: Scaling Your Product Up After Crowdfunding](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/product-startup/2021-07-21-085-scaling-your-product-up-after-crowdfunding) (Product Startup)
- [Vellicate Videogame Vocation](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2012-04-23-vellicate-videogame-vocation) (The Amp Hour)
- [62: Ten Years](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/thoroughly-considered/2020-10-03-62-ten-years) (Thoroughly Considered)

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