A game team shut down the world it had spent years trying to save. The people left behind had one question: what was worth keeping?

I'm Jonathan Slaven. In this episode of Or So It Seemed, I follow the end of a strange online game and the decision its remaining team made next.

It is a story about a failed project, a side quest, and recognizing when the tool that helps you do the work might be the work worth doing. Sources are on my website.

A game company built a world where you could milk butterflies. Players loved it, but not enough of them showed up to keep the business alive. The game died. Eight people stayed behind with enough money for one more shot.

What did they build next?

I'm Jonathan Slaven. In Or So It Seemed, I tell true stories about the business of technology and the decisions that take companies somewhere nobody planned.

The answer arrives Wednesday, November 11. Until then, what's your guess? Let's take a walk together.

There's more to the story behind the technology we use, the businesses that build it, and the people who make the decisions.

I'm Jonathan Slaven. I've spent my adult life in business and IT operations, and in Or So It Seemed, I'll be sharing true stories about the business of technology.

We'll look at the decisions that sent companies in unexpected directions, follow strange connections between seemingly unrelated inventions and businesses, and celebrate the underdogs who had their moment as king. We'll dig into the stories behind famous quotes, and uncover surprising facts that sound too strange to be true.

The first story arrives Wednesday, November 11. Let's take a walk together.