Melissa Phillips (She/Her)

Are we overthinking Art?

I can sing an entire verse and chorus of The Cheeky Song in 2025… (you’re probably overthinking your Art).

My love language is WhatsApping you Instagram reels that I NEED you to look at and comment on… 👀❤️

There are literally dozens of us!

Watching a group of Industry men I don’t trust find each other and start a ‘project’ together feels new every time - but if I had a pound for every time it’s happened they’d be coming to me to invest…

"𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚 𝙞𝙨𝙣'𝙩 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙤 𝙛𝙞𝙭 𝙤𝙧 𝙖𝙫𝙤𝙞𝙙 - 𝙞𝙩'𝙨 𝙖 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙬𝙚 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝."

Hear from our Blueprint alum, @nathkalantar.bsky.social, about the part of the course that resonated the most and what it taught her 👇

Discover what 𝗕𝗹𝘂𝗲𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗻𝘁 has to offer here: www.gamesleadership.com/blueprint

Sure, I bet it’s JUST LIKE Game Dev… Senior Registered Nurse sounds like something I’m totally qualified to just walk in and do. 👀

My favourite are the “family size” - they’ve clearly underestimated me 😂

“Serves 2”
Me: Like fuck does it.

What so games studios can just SUSTAIN? BE SUSTAINABLE? Do other studios know about this?

Starting soon! 👀❤️

A graphic containing the details of the upcoming Games Leadership Lunchtime Chat event taking place on Wednesday 30th July, 1-2pm BST via Discord. Text is overlayed on a blurred photo of a woman smiling on a video call.

We're introducing a new event series to our calendar!

𝗟𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗵𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝘁𝘀 💬☕

The first of these is next week:
🗓️ Wednesday 30th July, 13:00 - 14:00 BST.
📍 Online in our Games Leadership® Discord server

👉 If you haven't joined us there yet, hop on in: discord.com/invite/Xyd5m...

We had plans for a super fun day today but then little pom girl got sick, so it’s just been a day of lying in the dog basket with her. Totally worth it of course ❤️

Having THE BEST time at Develop Conference

Not loving my past me’s wardrobe choices - I’ve brought enough pants for everyone but forgot about Brighton and the wind battles so constantly cold and entangled in things. 😂😭

Looking forward to catching up with everyone this evening! ❤️

A graphic containing 5 pillars with the headings Vision, Money, Team, Legal, and You (The Leader). A bold title reads The Games Leadership Foundation Five, featuring their logo, with colourful text underneath that reads Five Things You'll Definitely Deal With in Year One.

Towards the end of May, Director @melphillips.bsky.social delivered a talk at 𝗡𝗼𝗿𝘄𝗶𝗰𝗵 𝗚𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝗙𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗮𝗹 on '𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘌𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘠𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘍𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘠𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘙𝘶𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘚𝘵𝘶𝘥𝘪𝘰'. 🎮

We debuted an original framework, aimed at providing guidance for early start-up studios:

🏛️ 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗚𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽® 𝗙𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗙𝗶𝘃𝗲 🏛️

Wow! The heat today has been draining! Completely lost track of time and now am ready to lie down in front of the fan. 🫠

It was an accident. He didn’t see it coming.

So sad.

She also can’t spell the right “Your” - never mind - hop in, we’re getting milkshakes.

You’re rich Aunt called.

She said you’re too good for him and should come over to hers for drinks and chat.

☀️❤️

Suddenly a father of 4 and I’ve never felt so responsible for something… 😭😭😭

Excited to be part of #EVA25 with Spielfabrique today!

I’m running a session on 𝘉𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘓𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘚𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘍𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳 (a topic that feels especially needed right now).

Burnout isn’t a badge of honour, and it’s not something we should normalise.

Here's to lifting some of the weight for Founders ❤️

𝐑𝐮𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚 𝐬𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐢𝐨 𝐢𝐬 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝐚 𝐣𝐨𝐛 — 𝐢𝐭’𝐬 𝐚 𝐥𝐨𝐭.
At #EVA25 Workshop 3, follow @melphillips.bsky.social
from @gamesleadership.bsky.social through “Becoming a Less Stressed Founder.”
🧠 Tools, space, reflection.
📅 11 June | 13:30 CEST

@creativeeurope.bsky.social‬, @kickstarter.com, @ofaj-dfjw.org

Curious about how 𝗕𝗹𝘂𝗲𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗻𝘁 could benefit you? 🤔

Hear from our very own April 2025 alum, 𝗡𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗹𝘆 𝗞𝗮𝗹𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗿, about her experience! 👇

𝗪𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲? Receive a handy breakdown of everything you need to know about 𝗕𝗹𝘂𝗲𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗻𝘁, straight to your inbox: mailchi.mp/gamesleaders...

Mel Phillips smiles at the camera. Next to her is the word 'Nominated' in bold lettering, with the Women's Business Awards 2025 logo in the top left corner.

A quote from Melissa Phillips: I am delighted to see recognition for the work we are doing at Games Leadership. Games Leadership exists because the way we lead in this Industry really matters. Right now, people are stretched, teams are under pressure, and many Leaders are navigating challenges they were never trained for. We need more honest, practical support that reflects what it’s actually like to lead in Games, and that's what I believe we are able to offer.

We're delighted to share that Director @melphillips.bsky.social has been nominated for the 𝗪𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻'𝘀 𝗕𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗖𝗹𝘂𝗯 𝗔𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱𝘀 in the 𝗪𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻 𝗶𝗻 𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗠 category, in recognition of her efforts with Games Leadership® and contributions to the Games Industry! 🎉

Here's what she has to say:

Having dinner and a load of pet treats just fell out of my bra… and I think that’s just who I am now. 🤷🏼‍♀️🙃

A graphic containing the model for The Games Leadership Difficult Conversations Framework. The main steps - Preparation, Presence and Follow Through - are highlighted in round bubbles, connected by arrows in a triangle formation with a brief explanation of each step underneath.

Last week, Director @melphillips.bsky.social attended @ukieofficial.bsky.social's 𝗛𝗥 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱, where she shared 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗚𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽® 𝗗𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘁 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗙𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 as part of her talk on '𝘊𝘰𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘞𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘊𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘦𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴: 𝘓𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘋𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘵 𝘊𝘰𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘔𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘔𝘰𝘴𝘵':

A graphic containing the Norwich Games Festival 2025 logo, placed over a photo of the busy venue from a previous event, featuring various demo tables and individuals playing games.

Feeling ready to take the leap to run your own studio, or curious about what exactly it involves?

Catch @melphillips.bsky.social delivering a talk at 𝗡𝗼𝗿𝘄𝗶𝗰𝗵 𝗚𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝗙𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗮𝗹 on 𝗧𝗵𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝟮𝟵𝘁𝗵 𝗠𝗮𝘆, where she'll cover '𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘌𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘠𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘍𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘠𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘙𝘶𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘚𝘵𝘶𝘥𝘪𝘰' 🎮

🎟️👇 Ticket link below!

It's been a strange week where the rollercoaster of highs and lows really was rolling...

Delighted to end the week sharing the news that I've been announced as a Finalist for 𝙇𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙧 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙔𝙚𝙖𝙧 in the 𝗕𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗵 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗔𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱𝘀 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱 for my work with @gamesleadership.bsky.social
❤️

YouTube video by Building Better Games The Cost of Power: Leadership, Burnout & Survival in Game Dev with Melissa Phillips #89

Recently, Director @melphillips.bsky.social sat down with 𝗕𝗲𝗻 𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗶𝗰𝗵 at 𝗕𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗕𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗚𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘀 to discuss:

❓ Does power always corrupt?
❓ How do you know when you're doing it 'right'?
❓ Is there a secret formula for success?

(We'll give you that one for free. The answer's no!)

Full video below 👇

On my way to @ukieofficial.bsky.social HR Connect 2025 today where I will be speaking about Difficult Conversations in the Games Industry (and also showing off my shocking farmer’s tan)!

Looking forward to seeing everyone! ❤️