Company Profile - Hot House Games

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Early September saw start-up Hot House Games launch Too Far and Social Ladder, based on The Sidemen’s popular gameshows. The brainchild of Harry and Josie North (the children of a certain Richard North), the company is setting out to shake up the sector by developing games that spark conversation by leveraging the science of psychology. Rachael Simpson-Jones sat down with the sibling entrepreneurs to find out more.

Tell me about Hot House Games; where did the idea for the company come from, and what is the driving force behind it?

Harry North: One morning in 2014, at 3am, my mum burst into my room because she smelled smoke. We rushed downstairs to the kitchen to discover a wall of smoke - and our dogs, who dashed out unhurt. Our tumble dryer had caught fire. We woke everyone up and got outside but by the time the inferno had been put out, the house was badly damaged.

Josie North: We had to move into alternative accommodation, and to keep our spirits up, we played games. I was preparing to join my dad’s company Wow! Stuff, and that period really got me designing my own games. I ended up presenting my first game to Wow! Stuff a few years later. The team absolutely loved it, but thought it was too risqué for a kids’ toy company.

HN: A few years after that, we presented our game ideas to The Sidemen via their manager Jordan Schwarzenberger. We knew early on that our concepts were good and our factories could make the games, but we needed a partner capable of getting it in front of a large audience. I instantly thought of The Sidemen. They love playing games, have very high standards when it comes to influencer-led products and have over 240m followers. As multiplayer party games, Too Far and Social Ladder needed a group to really show them off. The Sidemen are the world’s biggest group of influencers and content creators. It’s a perfect match.

What was it like working with The Sidemen? And how did Too Far and Social Ladder come about?

HN: Growing up, I used to watch The Sidemen all the time, especially KSI. Finding out he loved something I had a hand in creating was surreal. When the group considers pitches, they only move ahead if four of the seven Sidemen vote yes. All seven voted yes to working with Hot House Games.

JN: We found that out via a voice note Jordan left for our dad. It was an exciting and proud moment. Harry and I had spent a long time watching The Sidemen’s channels to identify game formats we could successfully translate into card-based party games. Too Far and Social Ladder are a result of that work.

The Games category is crowded and competitive. What sets Hot House Games, and Too Far and Social Ladder, apart?

JN: Hot House games generate way more conversations than many others, drawing in the people around the players even if they aren’t directly involved. The audience loves to watch the games unfold and the players’ discussions get deeper and more hilarious.

HN: Too Far and Social Ladder are almost gameshows turned into card games. Banter and humour lie at their heart, and that’s the theme that will run through all our titles. They’re not heavy on rules – they only have four apiece – but they foster fascinating conversations between players and bystanders.

I studied psychology at university and one of my course mates, Jack, actually helped me out with Too Far. He showed me a study about ‘moral tastebuds’ by a psychologist called Jonathan Haidt, which theorised that people’s feelings on different situations vary because of biological and cultural influences. What one person might find revolting, another might find completely acceptable. The confessions in the game are based upon these moral tastebuds, which makes them genuinely fascinating to play. If you look at the comments on the videos of The Sidemen playing Too Far, you’ll see just how varied people’s reactions can be.

JN: The Sidemen genuinely love the games. Harry and I went to watch the Too Far launch filming. In between takes, when the cameras weren’t rolling, the guys were still laughing and joking about the game and having a great time playing it. This isn’t label slapping – The Sidemen are 100% invested in these games and in Hot House.

How are the games being supported in the marketplace?

HN: The Sidemen will be playing the games regularly on their channels, including Side+ and MoreSidemen. Behind the scenes, Hot House Games is also seeking groups of international influencers in Europe and the US, as well as new distributors that can expand our representation at retail. Our UK and Australian distributor, VR Distribution, is fantastic.

JN: Social media will be a big focus; these are very Gen Z games. We’ve also sent product to individual macro influencers to generate organic content across their channels too.

HN: The Sidemen launched Too Far on their channels first, in September, and Social Ladder was officially launched on their channel on 7th November.

JN: Feedback has been incredibly positive and we’re looking forward to seeing how things evolve in the run-up to Christmas, when families will be looking for games perfect for those big festive get-togethers.

What comes next for Hot House Games?

JN: We actually came up with around 20 concepts when we were developing our first games, so there’s plenty in the pipeline for 2025, including more card games, apps and online content too.

HN: We test everything extensively among friends and family, from the font and text size to the colours used and the shape of the cards. That process sparks a lot of new ideas, one of which I am particularly excited about for next year. Like Too Far and Social Ladder, it’s also got quite a psychological element to it… but I can’t say too much more!

Do you think you’ve been directly inspired by your dad when it comes to your entry into this industry, or do you think it’s more that you inherited his creative flair, and the Games industry is the best place to express it?

JN: We’ve grown up surrounded by toys and games, with each Christmas spent analysing competitor products or testing Wow! Stuff’s new toys.

HN: Dad used to come home from toy fairs with this giant sack of goodies, like Father Christmas, and he’d watch us play with everything while we gave feedback. Along with our other siblings Jen and Georgina, we would appear in all dad’s toy adverts. It’s in our blood. I didn’t necessarily want to go into Toys & Games, but the opportunity that’s arisen can’t be passed up and working with The Sidemen means I get to keep one foot in the world of media.

HN: Dad used to come home from toy fairs with this giant sack of goodies, like Father Christmas, and he’d watch us play with everything while we gave feedback. Along with our other siblings Jen and Georgina, we would appear in all dad’s toy adverts. It’s in our blood. I didn’t necessarily want to go into Toys & Games, but the opportunity that’s arisen can’t be passed up and working with The Sidemen means I get to keep one foot in the world of media.

JN: It’s great that we can carve our own path, but we’re lucky to receive mentoring from dad, who has so much knowledge and expertise.

HN: We can say anything to each other, whereas there are limits to what you can say to a colleague. We’re totally unafraid to speak up if we’re not sure about something, which means as soon as a challenge arises, we stop and discuss it immediately. Only the best ideas, that we’re most happy with, get progressed.