Success Quote by Trip Hawkins

Trip Hawkins is diagnosing a business that stopped behaving like software and started behaving like Hollywood. The comparison to theatrical film-making isn’t a metaphor for glamour; it’s a warning about economics. In theaters, you don’t just need a good movie - you need distribution, marketing muscle, and timing. Hawkins is arguing that console publishing evolved into the same high-stakes pipeline: expensive production, tightly controlled channels, and a brutal opening weekend mentality where visibility is bought, not earned.

The intent is partly explanatory, partly defensive. Hawkins helped define the blockbuster logic at Electronic Arts, and here he’s naming the forces that make “meritocracy” in console games feel like a myth. The subtext: the platform era (cartridges, retail shelf space, certification, co-op marketing, licensing) created bottlenecks that reward scale. If you’re small, you can’t finance the ads, the inventory, the retailer relationships, or the risk of a big miss. If you’re big, you’re still trapped by the same machine, because budgets inflate and expectations calcify.

His sharpest point lands at the end: “unless they are working with major game brands.” That’s the IP thesis in one clause. Brands aren’t just creative assets; they’re insurance policies that make retailers order, platforms promote, and audiences pre-commit. Hawkins is describing an industry that increasingly sells familiarity to manage risk - sequels, recognizable logos, cinematic launch campaigns - and in doing so narrows the space where new voices can realistically compete.