In our interview with Jernej Česen, COO and General Manager at Outfit7, we first started with Inside Outfit7’s Cell Strategy, on how Vampirio emerged as a breakout hit, where he walked us through how small, independent “cells” are shaping new ideas within the company.
From there, the conversation went on with curiosity about what happens once those ideas are ready to go live. That led into the next key topic, why Outfit7 created a completely separate publishing layer in the form of Outfit7 Neo, and how it is helping the company explore new genres beyond its core identity.
The Talking Tom identity and the need for separation
“Outfit 7 is completely and directly just linked to Talking Tom and Friends,” Česen started. That connection became a problem when releasing games outside that universe. He explained how players entering a completely different experience would still be pulled back into the Talking Tom ecosystem.
“As soon as I installed Mythic Legends, what was the second game that was recommended to me? It was like playing more games from the Outfit 7, and the first one was Talking Tom, and then it was Talking Angela.”
He noted that for players seeking a hardcore auto-chess or survival experience, being served a colorful pet simulator felt like “shooting ourselves in both games before even starting.”
Jernej continued: “For more complex genres, this doesn’t work. That was the reason that we need to have a separate company where we are releasing non-Talking Tom and Friends apps.” That separation became Outfit7 Neo.
Neo was built as a dedicated space for games targeting different audiences, with different monetization models and market approaches, where the contracts and the partners with which you are working are different.
Two companies, two distinct paths for global growth
However, Neo did not come out of nowhere. Česen explained that the idea had earlier roots. “At that time, it actually began with HyperDot Studio. This was the predecessor of Neo,” he said.
The initiative also had a broader business angle. “This was a corporate approach combined with a business approach,” he explained. At the time, there were multiple ways to approach this. “It begins with IPOs, but during that period, it was really popular to go with the SPAC,” Česen shared.
While those financial ambitions did not materialize due to geopolitical challenges and market conditions, the structure itself proved useful. “Geopolitical situation and all the clashes that were happening, everything was collapsing at the same time. Even though we went really far into the process, it didn’t happen. Still, we ended with something that had a cause,” he said.
That outcome brought together two key drivers. “The first one was the user base perception of the market. The second one is the financial one,” he explained. Even though the financial route did not succeed, the vehicle that served for the first cause remained valuable.
“So that’s why we have Outfit7 Limited, and we have Outfit7 Neo. Two companies, two separate accounts, different approaches to the market,” Česen concluded.
With Neo now in place, Outfit7 has created a clear separation between its core Talking Tom ecosystem and its future ambitions, allowing new games to grow in the right environment while also opening the door to new partnerships.
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