What does it take to build “the world’s favorite site for free online casual games”? Alongside co-founder Jessica Rovello, Kenny Rosenblatt has spent 23 years finding out. The pair began with a small Flash game studio. They turned Arkadium into a cross-platform powerhouse whose snack-size puzzles and brain -teasers rack up 150 million game starts every month.
Players jump in with a single click, no downloads, no paywall, and a syndication network that includes USA Today and The Washington Post puts Arkadium’s titles in front of fans worldwide. Now, powered by new developer programs and rapid traffic growth, Kenny is doubling down on his mission to make Arkadium the best gaming site in the world. In this interview, he shares the strategy behind that goal.
Q 1. Kenny, fewer than 10 % of game studios survive two decades, yet Arkadium has just turned 23. What’s the secret?
Relentless cash-flow discipline. From day one my mantra was “spend less than you earn.” That profit buffer allows us to pursue bold ideas without risking everything. . The other secret is radical transparency: every employee sees the revenue,burn rate, even cash on hand. When people understand the stakes, they innovate like owners.
Q 2. Arkadium’s catalog skews toward quick-hit casual games. Why double down on that segment when the market is awash in mobile apps?
Because the browser is still the most friction-free way to play, a person on lunch break doesn’t want a 400-MB download; they want free online games that launch in one click, run on any device, and respect their time. Casual mechanics, word, puzzle, card, and arcade games deliver that instant dopamine hit and bring people back daily. If we succeed at solving that core need, everything else —retention, ad yield, brand affinity—will follow.
Q 3. Your distribution network is vast for a browser studio. How did you build it, and how does it support the goal of becoming the “World’s Favorite Game Site”?
Great content gets you in the door, but distribution drives the results. Early on, we partnered with top media outlets hungry for engagement widgets. Fast-forward to 2025: Arkadium games appear on over 300 publisher platforms, driving about 150 million game starts every month. That reach does two things:
It funnels new players back to Arkadium.com, and it signals credibility to advertisers and developers alike, both critical for claiming the “best” title.
Q 4. In 2024, you launched Arkadium for Developers with a 75 % revenue share and a $1 million Publishing Fund. What gap are you filling?
Indie studios make brilliant casual games but struggle with monetization and visibility. We already have both, so we opened our pipeline. Developers plug into our SDK, keep the lion’s share of revenue, and instantly surface to an 18-million-player audience. The Publishing Fund lets us co-finance the most promising prototypes. Ultimately, we want Arkadium.com to feel like the Steam of free casual games on the open web.
Q 5. Arkadium earns money from ads, micro-transactions, subscriptions, licenses, work-for-hire, and now publishing. Why so many levers?
Because any single lever can snap, if an ad-tech vendor changes policy or a platform blocks third-party cookies, we’re still standing. Our rule of thumb is that no revenue stream should exceed 20 % of the top line. Staying profitable through shocks is non-negotiable if you’re playing a long game.
Q 6. How do you keep innovation alive without jeopardizing those steady “singles and doubles” that keep the lights on?
We follow McKinsey’s Three-Horizons model: 70 % of staff polish evergreen titles, 20 % build the next wave and 10% chase moonshots. Crucially, every project must ship a testable build within three months. If retention KPIs lag after a couple of iterations, we shelve the initiative and redeploy talent. You can learn from a miss—but if you don’t move on, you stop learning.
Q 7. Looking ahead, what does Arkadium need to nail to truly be the best gaming site in the world for free online casual games?
- Easy, instant play with load times under two seconds—even on spotty Wi-Fi.
- Personalized content discovery that highlights your next quick engagement, not overwhelming you with irrelevant options.
- Trusted player experience: non-intrusive ads, wallet-friendly micro-transactions, and robust security protocols
If we deliver those consistently, millions will choose Arkadium over doom-scrolling, at which point “ The World’s Favorite Game Site” won’t be a slogan, it’ll be a statement of fact.
Category: General