They Create Worlds

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The games we love reveal something true about who we are, and about the world that made them. They Create Worlds is a podcast about the people, technology, and forces that built the video game industry.

Through video game history, the show looks at how culture, business, and technology shaped what we play, tracing the choices and circumstances that led to the games so many people around the world enjoy.

Each episode digs into where games came from, who made them, and why they were made the way they were. Business decisions, technological shifts, and creative choices all shaped what ended up on screen, and the show covers all of it together, not just one piece in isolation.

Hosted by Alex Smith and Jeffrey Daum, They Create Worlds grew out of long conversations about the strange corners of the industry and the patterns that only show up when you look across companies, platforms, and decades. That conversational feel remains, built on careful research, clear structure and editing that makes even the deepest topics easy to listen to.

History turns out to be less settled than it looks. New documents surface, memories conflict, and the clean stories about why things happened the way they did rarely survive contact with the evidence. The show digs into all of that, following the creative and business forces that pushed and pulled on each other, and uncovering the human stories that lie beneath the games so many people around the world enjoy.

New episodes are released twice a month.

Episodes

Thursday Jan 15, 2026

Mastertronic

Thursday Jan 15, 2026

TCW Podcast Episode 250 - Mastertronic

From budget software publisher to the gateway for SEGA’s entry into Europe, we look at the rise and fall of Mastertronic. Initially shunned by high street retailers, the company found success supplying discount games to chains like Woolworths while importing and reselling titles from other publishers for the European market. A failed attempt to bring budget games to the United States pushed Mastertronic to look toward consoles after seeing the success of the Nintendo Entertainment System, but Nintendo rejected them due to their low-cost reputation. This led to a partnership with SEGA to launch the Master System in the United Kingdom, but a delayed release after Christmas triggered a financial crisis that forced Virgin to buy out the rest of the company. As Virgin Mastertronic, the firm gained a foothold in France and Germany while struggling with limited SEGA supply. The story ends when SEGA acquired the console side of the business and created SEGA Europe, closing the final chapter on Mastertronic.

TCW 017 - The British 8-bit Computer Market Hardware: https://podcast.theycreateworlds.com/e/the-british-8-bit-computer-market-hardware/

TCW 018 - The British 8-bit Computer Market Software: https://podcast.theycreateworlds.com/e/the-british-8-bit-computer-market-software/

TCW 241 - The First 10 Years of European Consoles: https://podcast.theycreateworlds.com/e/the-first-10-years-of-european-consoles/

Vagas Jackpot (VIC-20): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rKFzNnx_m-U

BMX Racers (C64): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZenav7tN08

Ghostbusters (ZX Spectrum): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qH18r74ZOto

Way of the Exploding Fist (C64): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6p51xOL0NdY

Alians (C64): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8D7Q2lfBA6g

New episodes are on the 1st and 15th of every month!

TCW Email: feedback@theycreateworlds.com

Twitter: @tcwpodcast

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/theycreateworlds