The latest episode of Under Pressure, hosted by Alex Tomic, takes listeners deep inside the world of Nolimit City with co-founder Jonas Tegman.
Recorded fittingly in a hyperbaric chamber, the podcast explores not only the company’s rise to prominence, but also the personal toll and transformation that came with building one of iGaming’s most daring studios.
During the talk, Jonas Tegman reflects candidly on Nolimit‘s early struggles, admitting:
“We were ****ed. We didn’t do anything good actually, we just did what everyone else did. Most of the time the games sucked.”
Those years of trial and error pushed the team to rethink their approach in 2019. The result was a radical shift in direction – creating unapologetically edgy, streamer-friendly titles with massive volatility, bold themes, and the introduction of big win replays. The release of Punk Rocker in 2020 marked the turning point.
“Humor, death and murder,” as Tegman put it, became Nolimit’s new creative DNA – an approach that resonated strongly with younger audiences and streamers who wanted something beyond “cute gems and Egypt.”
Jonas also highlighted the pivotal role of Bigwinboard in Nolimit City’s evolution:
“Back in 2019-20 we made another decision: we’re going to be biggest at Bigwinboard and not care about anything else. It’s a community. We became transparent, showing the math behind our games. That created a bond between Bigwinboard, Nolimit, and me personally. It was our window to telling the world who we were.”
This openness not only helped Nolimit carve out a loyal player base, but also influenced the wider industry, with other studios following suit in embracing transparency and streamer-driven content.
In 2022, Nolimit City was acquired by Evolution for more than €300 million. While that deal cemented the studio’s legacy, Tegman admitted that success came at a personal cost:
“When you get money, you realize that it’s not that important. It doesn’t solve anything. I hit the wall. Physical stress syndromes started to pop up. You push and push until your body tells you to stop.”
Despite the challenges, he remains at Nolimit City, determined to preserve its culture and creativity within the Evolution ecosystem.
Tegman closed the podcast with a message for future founders in iGaming:
“You need knowledge, a good idea, and the right people. Stick to your plan, fight, and you will succeed. Money is not the hardest thing to find in this industry – people and execution are what matter.”
The Under Pressure episode with Jonas Tegman is a rare glimpse behind the curtain of iGaming entrepreneurship – its risks, its breakthroughs, and the human cost of chasing success.
Watch the full episode below.
