GameDevFoundry

Running a Premortem: A Positive Ritual for Risk Awareness

A premortem is a proactive exercise used to identify potential risks before a project or milestone goes off track. Unlike a postmortem, which reflects on what went wrong after the fact, a premortem imagines that failure has already happened—and asks, “What caused it?”. This includes not just project failures, but business-level failures like lawsuits, funding collapse, or reputational damage that could threaten the studio itself.

Premortems create space for teams to voice concerns early, without fear of being seen as negative or alarmist. Done right, they become a creative, empowering ritual that promotes alignment, foresight, and shared ownership. It’s a key tool for identifying the “unknown unknowns” – risks you didn’t even know you should be worrying about.

1. Set the Stage

Begin by framing the activity clearly:

The goal is to collaboratively identify risks that could lead to project or business failure.
Emphasize this is a roleplaying exercise, not a prediction or complaint session.
Ask the team to imagine: “The project/initiative has failed. What happened?”
Set a positive, open tone. Reassure participants that surfacing concerns is a sign of care and professionalism—not criticism.

2. Silent Brainstorming (5+ Risks Per Person)

Give everyone 5–10 minutes to write down at least five potential issues.

This pushes participants beyond the obvious.
Encourage thinking beyond the immediate project scope – consider legal challenges, funding withdrawal, critical PR disasters, cyber incidents, or major contract breaches.
Also encourage inclusion of wild, unlikely, or funny ideas.
Prompt participants to consider risks that might feel outside their direct control or expertise – things that might require legal advice, insurance consultation, or specialized knowledge to even understand fully. This is where the “unknown unknowns” often hide.
Allow anonymous submissions if that helps people feel more comfortable.

Go around the group and share ideas one at a time.

Praise every contribution: “Good insight,” “Interesting angle,” “Clever catch.”
Normalize vulnerability and thank people for being thoughtful and honest.
After the first round, encourage more with playful questions:
- “What if our server host disappears?”
- “What would make our Steam reviews go nuclear?”

This is where the creativity and humor come in. Push gently to uncover hidden risks and assumptions.

4. Discuss Mitigations and Action Items

Review each issue and collaboratively discuss:

Can we reduce the likelihood?
Can we mitigate the consequences?
Are there early warning signs to watch for?
Is there a small action we can take now?
Who needs to be involved in addressing this risk (e.g., legal counsel, insurance broker, senior management, specific team lead)?

Capture these insights and assign follow-up tasks when needed. Documenting the identified risks and planned mitigations demonstrates due diligence for stakeholders and insurers.

5. Close with Positivity

Premortems can feel heavy—you’re literally talking about failure. So close the session on a positive note:

Thank the group for their thoughtfulness and honesty.
Celebrate the act of risk prevention and building studio resilience.
Reaffirm team strength and your shared goals.
Acknowledge that while some risks seem daunting, identifying them is the first step towards managing them.
Crack a joke, share a snack, or simply say: “We’ve got this.”

Leave everyone feeling supported, not burdened.

Why This Works

Premortems work because they:

Create psychological safety for raising concerns.
Normalize risk awareness as a team habit.
Spark creative thinking through roleplay.
Empower ownership of project outcomes and studio health.

By making premortems a regular part of your workflow, you build a culture that’s not just reactive—but resilient.

When to Run a Premortem

Premortems are most effective when timed just before major commitments or transitions. Consider scheduling one:

At the start of a new project or feature
Before major milestones (e.g., Alpha, Beta, Release Candidate/Launch)
Before signing significant contracts (e.g., publishing deals, funding agreements, major tech licenses)
Before major public announcements or showcases where IP becomes highly visible
After significant team changes or shifts in scope
Periodically (e.g., quarterly or semi-annually) to review overall business risks, not just project risks.

Making premortems a recurring ritual—not a one-off event—helps normalize proactive risk management.

Common Risk Categories (Idea Prompts)

If your team needs inspiration during the brainstorming phase, consider prompting with common areas of concern:

Technical – Build instability, toolchain issues, integration problems, platform dependency issues, security vulnerabilities.
Production – Missed deadlines, scope creep, unclear responsibilities, resource constraints, dependencies on external teams/partners.
Team – Burnout, miscommunication, unavailable team members, loss of key personnel, skill gaps, disputes.
Design – Unclear mechanics, untested assumptions, missing feedback loops, failure to meet player expectations, accessibility issues.
Marketing & Community – Trailer delays, store page underperformance, poor wishlist traction, negative reviews, unmet expectations, content gaps, PR crises, community mismanagement, influencer issues.
Legal & Contractual – IP infringement (incoming or outgoing), trademark conflicts, breach of contract (publisher, contractor, employee, licensor), licensing issues, disputes over ownership, poorly defined terms of service/EULA, failure to secure necessary rights (music, assets).
Cyber & Data Security – Data breaches (player/employee info), ransomware attacks, DDoS attacks, failure to comply with privacy regulations (GDPR, CCPA), social engineering attacks, insecure third-party integrations.
Financial & Business – Running out of funding, cash flow problems, inaccurate budget forecasting, unexpected operational costs (servers, software), tax liabilities, currency exchange risks, investor dissatisfaction, failure to meet funding milestones.
Regulatory & Compliance – Changes in platform policies (Steam, console, mobile), failure to meet age rating requirements (ESRB, PEGI), non-compliance with accessibility laws, changes in tax law or employment law.
External – Platform policy changes, competitor releases, industry shifts, geopolitical instability.

Encouraging a wide range of risk types helps teams surface less obvious failure points.

Facilitation Tips

If you’re leading a premortem for the first time, here are some tips to help guide the process effectively:

Set the tone early – Lighthearted, open, and safe.
Model vulnerability – Share your own concerns first.
Avoid solutions at first – Focus on generating ideas before analyzing.
Use humor when stuck – Playful exaggeration can unstick creative thinking.
Give everyone a voice – Encourage input from quieter team members or use anonymous methods.

Your role is to keep the energy constructive and curious, not judgmental or overly serious.

Optional Worksheet Format

To help teams apply this process easily, consider using a worksheet with these sections:

Session Goal: What milestone or project are we analysing?
Risk List: At least 5 ideas from each team member.
Mitigation Plan Table:

Risk	Likelihood (H/M/L)	Impact (H/M/L)	Mitigation Action	Requires Legal/Expert Consult? (Y/N)	Potential Insurance Relevance? (Y/N/Maybe)	Owner	Priority (H/M/L)	Status
Example: Server instability during launch	M	H	Build load-testing plan; investigate backup providers	N	Maybe (related to business interruption)	DevOps Lead	High	In Progress
Example: Accidental IP infringement claim	L	H	Conduct thorough trademark/IP search for key assets; consult IP lawyer	Y	Y (IP Defense / E&O)	Art Lead / CEO	High	Not Started
Example: Ransomware attack locks critical systems	M	H	Implement robust backup strategy; security awareness training; review firewall/endpoint security	N (unless specific forensic need)	Y (Cyber Liability)	IT / DevOps	High	Ongoing
Example: Publisher contract term dispute	M	H	Legal review of contract before signing; maintain clear communication records with publisher	Y (Initial Review & if dispute arises)	Maybe (E&O if service delivery issue)	CEO / Producer	High	Pre-emptive