Game Biz Institute is a New B2B Platform for the Game Industry by Xsolla
Initially developed through an editorial collaboration with 80 Level, the new platform features practical insights from developers, researchers, operators, and other experts working across the business of games.
Xsolla has officially launched Game Biz Institute, a new editorial platform designed to make the business side of the game industry more understandable and accessible.
Developed through an editorial collaboration with 80 Level, GBI brings together independent researchers, experienced game industry practitioners, studio operators, and Xsolla experts. You might have noticed we helped support the launch by editing and publishing a test series of content here on 80 Level itself.
The goal is for GBI articles to examine subjects including publishing, monetization, payments, direct-to-player distribution, user acquisition, regional growth, LiveOps, discoverability, and player retention.
The central idea behind the platform is that while game developers can study engines, production pipelines, narrative design, programming, and art at universities and specialized schools, there is no comparable curriculum for building a sustainable game business.
Studios often learn about publishing agreements, player acquisition, virtual economies, regional expansion, partnerships, and monetization through direct experience. By the time those lessons have been learned, however, the decisions carrying the greatest commercial consequences may have already been made.
"Game developers have never had more data and less clarity. The industry produces endless benchmarks, but benchmarks don't tell a studio what to do on Monday morning. GBI exists to close that gap. We asked the people who actually run these businesses, design these economies, and study these players to explain what works and why. Xsolla builds the infrastructure behind game commerce, so we see what succeeds across 1,500+ game teams. GBI is where that knowledge, combined with the expertise of the industry professionals around us, becomes something every developer can use."
- Chris Hewish, President of Xsolla, in the announcement press release
GBI is intended to bridge that gap by moving beyond broad benchmarks and asking experienced practitioners to explain what they have learned, why particular strategies succeeded or failed, and how other teams can apply those lessons.
The launch collection covers a broad selection of challenges currently affecting studios. Subjects include the difficulties of publishing indie games in a market receiving more than 21,000 new releases annually, the relationship between players and developers across free-to-play and Web3 economies, and the increasingly competitive battle for audience attention.
Initial contributors include MUD1 Co-Creator Richard Bartle, The ATTN Economy Founder Lexi Sydow, Skystone Games Senior Product Manager Andrew Naicker, ZiMAD Chief Business Development Officer Elizaveta Savenkova, Gaggle Studios Co-Founder and CEO Shawn Fischtein, and GAM3S.GG Head of Operations Eliza Crichton-Stuart.
Game Biz Institute will also serve as a home for original research. Planned and existing studies include an examination of direct-to-player distribution in PC gaming conducted with Newzoo, alongside research into the motivations, trust, and spending behavior of players across Asian markets.
The Game Biz Institute platform is available now, with additional articles and research scheduled to be published on a rolling basis throughout 2026.
