TFS#263 - Adam Bohn Creator Of Adventure Quest Turned Down $84,000,000 To Sell His Game

Adam Bohn is the founder and CEO of Artix Entertainment and the creator of AdventureQuest, one of the longest-running online RPGs. A self-taught game developer, he has spent over two decades building beloved games, fostering a passionate player community, and growing an independent game studio known for titles like DragonFable, MechQuest, EpicDuel, and AdventureQuest Worlds.Connect with Adam Bohn!https://www.instagram.com/artixkriegerhttps://www.artix.com0:00 - Introduction1:33 - Meet Adam Bohn3:09 - Andy on Growing Up with AdventureQuest4:52 - How AdventureQuest Began5:54 - How Adam Learned to Code7:51 - Going to the Gym with His Crew8:41 - Creating 1,000 Games Before AQ10:15 - The Story Behind Land of Rising Evil11:10 - Land of Rising Evil into AQ11:32 - How Adam Named AdventureQuest12:03 - Adam's Goal for AQ's Growth13:09 - How Adam Started Making Money from His Game14:34 - Upgrading and Adding Features to AQ16:08 - How Captain Rhubarb Helped Fix the Game19:30 - AQ Worlds Infinity's $2.149M Kickstarter20:02 - Recruiting Talented Players from the Community20:30 - How AQ Has Delivered Weekly Content for 24 Years21:14 - How Buying Advertising Changed Everything23:43 - Artix Entertainment Reaches $500k/month in Ads 200726:41 - How He Scaled His Company27:25 - Creation of DragonFable29:07 - Adam on the Launch of DragonFable30:27 - Artix Entertainment Operated Out of Adam's House36:01 - Adam on Working Side Jobs While Making AQ38:15 - The Success of DragonFable38:46 - Why Creators Should Promote Their Work40:04 - His Journey Making Games44:13 - MechQuest Surpasses DragonFable's Launch44:42 - Adam on AQ Worlds' Rough Start Before Success49:14 - Artix Entertainment Receives an $84 Million Acquisition Offer51:57 - Artix's Real-Time Payment and Sales Tracking System Surprises Larger Companies52:59 - The Story Behind the EpicDuel Acquisition54:20 - How the Company Grew from Adam's House into Multiple Offices57:38 - Adam Looks Back on 2015's Toughest Moments59:07 - Adam on Bringing AQ into 3D1:00:08 - The Story Behind Artix's First Mobile Game, Battle Gems1:01:06 - How a Four-Day Business Seminar Reset His Mindset1:03:40 - Adam Decides to Turn the Company Around and Recommit to AQ 3D1:06:06 - Adam's Journey Launching the Kickstarter for AdventureQuest 3D1:12:25 - How Artix Entertainment Monetizes Its Games1:13:37 - Adam on the Growth of Artix's Development Team1:18:12 - Adam Talks About Artix Entertainment's 20th Anniversary Celebration1:19:41 - Adam Explains His Philosophy of Taking Massive Action1:23:14 - Adam's First Game, Dungeons and DoomKnights1:28:58 - Adam Talks About the Three Circles Philosophy1:29:42 - The Story Behind Dungeons and DoomKnights 8-Bit/NES and Lessons from the Project1:36:15 - Remaking AdventureQuest Worlds into AdventureQuest Worlds Infinity1:38:13 - Adam Talks About Launching the Kickstarter for AdventureQuest Worlds Infinity1:41:30 - AdventureQuest Worlds Infinity: From a $1 Kickstarter Tier to 214 Million Percent Funded1:42:45 - AdventureQuest Worlds Infinity's $500, $1,500, and $5,000 Custom Reward Tiers1:47:02 - Adam Talks About IoDA (Item of Digital Awesomeness)1:48:13 - Adam Talks About the Kickstarter Backer Rewards1:50:46 - Adam on Rebuilding the Original Development Team1:52:21 - Adam Shares Plans for Multi-Platform Game Releases1:53:35 - Artix Entertainment Looks Ahead to Its 25th Anniversary1:54:34 - Andy Recalls Playing MapleStory as a Child1:56:45 - Andy Asks Adam About GTA 6 and Where the Gaming Industry Is Heading1:58:18 - Adam Talks About the Kickstarter's $250 Statues1:59:51 - Adam Talks About the Alpha Testing of AdventureQuest Worlds Infinity2:01:38 - Adam Shares How He Found His COO2:04:50 - Adam Talks About the Company's Large Office and the Shift Toward Remote Work2:07:30 - Adam's Recent Life Discoveries2:14:34 - Adam's Personal Goals and Focus for the Next Six Months2:17:23 - Connect with Adam Bohn2:17:43 - Outro