Can a Malaysian indie game studio go head-to-head with the world’s biggest gaming companies? Metronomik founder Wan Hazmer believes Malaysia has the talent but turning that talent into a global business is the real challenge.

From building No Straight Roads to creating a studio capable of producing international hits, Hazmer shares the realities of running a game company like the cost of development, finding global audiences, attracting creative talent, and why owning original IP matters in the gaming industry.

We discuss:


Why building a game studio is harder than making a game.


How Metronomik competes in a crowded global gaming market.


The challenges of funding and monetising original game IPs in Malaysia.


Why Malaysia has the talent and resources to become a gaming hub.


What it takes to build a sustainable indie studio.

Can a Malaysian indie game studio go head-to-head with the world’s biggest gaming companies? Metronomik founder Wan Hazmer believes Malaysia has the talent but turning that talent into a global business is the real challenge.From building No Straight Roads to creating a studio capable of producing international hits, Hazmer shares the realities of running a game company like the cost of development, finding global audiences, attracting creative talent, and why owning original IP matters in the gaming industry.We discuss:<ul><li>Why building a game studio is harder than making a game.</li><li>How Metronomik competes in a crowded global gaming market.</li><li>The challenges of funding and monetising original game IPs in Malaysia.</li><li>Why Malaysia has the talent and resources to become a gaming hub.</li><li>What it takes to build a sustainable indie studio.</li></ul>

The flagship entrepreneurship show on BFM, featuring personal business stories from early stage start-ups, all the way to billionaire octogenarians in Malaysia and abroad. Notable guests include Martin Cooper (father of the mobile phone), Julian Assange (founder of WikiLeaks), Ralph Henry Baer (father of video games), Tony Buzan (Mindmap Guru), Isaac Tigrett (Hard Rock Cafe founder), Robert Kiyosaki (Financial Guru), Nick Vujicic (motivational speaker) and more. Tap into this valuable resource of shared experiences for the SME industry, which also touches on news, issues and trends affecting the business community and beyond.

Open For Business

Discover fresh concepts, tackle obstacles, and unleash growth - Open For Business is the dynamic show where BFM engages with entrepreneurs, business leaders, and industry trailblazers, igniting inspiration, sparking success, and exploring new business models.

Can Metronomik Become Malaysia’s Square Enix?

In 2018, Hendra Wardi won the MDEC IP Creators Challenge with a highly original concept: a comedy about two teenage skeletons working in a zombie grocery store surrounded by classic Southeast Asian ghosts. It took eight years of persistence to bring that idea to life. In March 2026, Kisah Bawah Tanah finally premiered on Astro Prima, making history as Malaysia's first adult animated series. With a feature film in early discussion, the unmistakably Malaysian show is now expanding its reach into Indonesia and Thailand.



The IP found its creative home at Hendra's Bawah Tanah Sdn Bhd, but it required the operational muscle of Edmund Chan's Animasia Studio to become a reality. Animasia brings 21 years of industry experience, having evolved from selling children's books to licensing homegrown animation to Disney Channel Asia and producing content for heavyweights like A24 Films and Amazon. Together, the two founders navigated a highly challenging landscape marked by severe funding gaps, a small domestic market, and significant talent scarcity to finally get the show on the air.



Hendra and Edmund join us to discuss the financial and creative realities of building a Malaysian animation IP from scratch. They outline the sheer endurance required to survive an eight-year development cycle and unpack the business mechanics behind their regional expansion strategy. They also address the massive disruption of artificial intelligence within the creative sector and how Animasia's new AI hybrid production joint venture, RawrAsia Studio, aims to adapt to the future of the global animation industry.

In 2018, Hendra Wardi won the MDEC IP Creators Challenge with a highly original concept: a comedy about two teenage skeletons working in a zombie grocery store surrounded by classic Southeast Asian ghosts. It took eight years of persistence to bring that idea to life. In March 2026, Kisah Bawah Tanah finally premiered on Astro Prima, making history as Malaysia's first adult animated series. With a feature film in early discussion, the unmistakably Malaysian show is now expanding its reach into Indonesia and Thailand.The IP found its creative home at Hendra's Bawah Tanah Sdn Bhd, but it required the operational muscle of Edmund Chan's Animasia Studio to become a reality. Animasia brings 21 years of industry experience, having evolved from selling children's books to licensing homegrown animation to Disney Channel Asia and producing content for heavyweights like A24 Films and Amazon. Together, the two founders navigated a highly challenging landscape marked by severe funding gaps, a small domestic market, and significant talent scarcity to finally get the show on the air.Hendra and Edmund join us to discuss the financial and creative realities of building a Malaysian animation IP from scratch. They outline the sheer endurance required to survive an eight-year development cycle and unpack the business mechanics behind their regional expansion strategy. They also address the massive disruption of artificial intelligence within the creative sector and how Animasia's new AI hybrid production joint venture, RawrAsia Studio, aims to adapt to the future of the global animation industry.

They Raised the Dead to Build Malaysia's Biggest Animation IP

What began in 2012 as an enterprise PC broker has evolved into one of Southeast Asia’s largest re-commerce operators, processing over half a million pre-owned devices annually across Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, and the Philippines.



Founder and CEO Julius Lim joins BFM’s Open for Business to unpack how CompAsia built a vertically integrated ecosystem that generated RM180 million in revenue and nearly RM20 million in profit after tax last year.



He details the operational shift from pure-play e-commerce to an aggressive 85-store physical retail footprint, explaining how brick-and-mortar touchpoints serve as both a customer acquisition channel and a direct device-sourcing engine.



Julius also breaks down the mechanics of their high-margin Renew and Go program, his approach to managing consumer credit risk, and why debt capacity is driving their planned RM400 million to RM500 million Main Market IPO by 2027.



We Discuss:


The Evolution from Enterprise PCs to Smartphones: Why the initial B2B computer brokerage model shifted in 2017 to capture higher-velocity, higher-value consumer smartphone demand.


Overcoming the Trust Deficit: Professionalising secondhand trade-ins through proprietary white-label diagnostic software, automated AI grading, and certified data wiping.


The Offline Retail Paradox: Why CompAsia aggressively expanded from 7 to 85 physical stores to solve sourcing bottlenecks and lower customer acquisition costs.


The Renew and Go Profit Engine: Structuring a 36-month installment and 12-month upgrade cycle to target underbanked consumers without credit cards.


The 2027 Main Market IPO Rationale: Why going public is essential to unlocking the debt and equity capital required to fund inventory and scale the program to 1 million subscribers.

What began in 2012 as an enterprise PC broker has evolved into one of Southeast Asia’s largest re-commerce operators, processing over half a million pre-owned devices annually across Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, and the Philippines.Founder and CEO Julius Lim joins BFM’s Open for Business to unpack how CompAsia built a vertically integrated ecosystem that generated RM180 million in revenue and nearly RM20 million in profit after tax last year.He details the operational shift from pure-play e-commerce to an aggressive 85-store physical retail footprint, explaining how brick-and-mortar touchpoints serve as both a customer acquisition channel and a direct device-sourcing engine.Julius also breaks down the mechanics of their high-margin Renew and Go program, his approach to managing consumer credit risk, and why debt capacity is driving their planned RM400 million to RM500 million Main Market IPO by 2027.We Discuss:<ul><li>The Evolution from Enterprise PCs to Smartphones: Why the initial B2B computer brokerage model shifted in 2017 to capture higher-velocity, higher-value consumer smartphone demand.</li><li>Overcoming the Trust Deficit: Professionalising secondhand trade-ins through proprietary white-label diagnostic software, automated AI grading, and certified data wiping.</li><li>The Offline Retail Paradox: Why CompAsia aggressively expanded from 7 to 85 physical stores to solve sourcing bottlenecks and lower customer acquisition costs.</li><li>The Renew and Go Profit Engine: Structuring a 36-month installment and 12-month upgrade cycle to target underbanked consumers without credit cards.</li><li>The 2027 Main Market IPO Rationale: Why going public is essential to unlocking the debt and equity capital required to fund inventory and scale the program to 1 million subscribers.</li></ul>

Ditching E-Commerce? Pre-IPO CompAsia’s 85-Store Bet

What began with a single stand-up comedy show at Zouk KL’s Velvet Underground in 2009 has expanded into a regional live entertainment force, selling over 500,000 tickets, hosting 350 global talents, and touring across 30 cities.



Co-Founder and CEO Rizal Kamal joins BFM’s Open for Business to unpack LOL Asia’s 17-year journey, the brutal economics of the live events trade, and why he’s pushing past the transactional promoter trap to build a scalable, asset-owning intellectual property (IP) engine.



He breaks down how the company is capitalizing on shifting post-pandemic consumer behaviors, where traditional clubbing and alcohol consumption are in decline, and audiences demand high-value, sober live experiences like their new wellness concept, Thrive Play. 



Rizal also details his asset-light regional expansion across Australia and Southeast Asia, how AI acts as a "genius partner" for rapid event prototyping, and why he is working with a 60-association coalition to abolish Malaysia's British era entertainment tax.

What began with a single stand-up comedy show at Zouk KL’s Velvet Underground in 2009 has expanded into a regional live entertainment force, selling over 500,000 tickets, hosting 350 global talents, and touring across 30 cities.Co-Founder and CEO Rizal Kamal joins BFM’s Open for Business to unpack LOL Asia’s 17-year journey, the brutal economics of the live events trade, and why he’s pushing past the transactional promoter trap to build a scalable, asset-owning intellectual property (IP) engine.He breaks down how the company is capitalizing on shifting post-pandemic consumer behaviors, where traditional clubbing and alcohol consumption are in decline, and audiences demand high-value, sober live experiences like their new wellness concept, Thrive Play.&nbsp;Rizal also details his asset-light regional expansion across Australia and Southeast Asia, how AI acts as a "genius partner" for rapid event prototyping, and why he is working with a 60-association coalition to abolish Malaysia's British era entertainment tax.

Can Metronomik Become Malaysia’s Square Enix?

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