Billionaire video game creator learns wealth does not equal happiness

September 01, 2015

WRITER

It's the dream of any startup founder. You make something people love, become wildly rich and then sell your company for billions. That's what every startup in Silicon Valley is trying to do. But after you do that, what comes next?

Markus Persson, who created the video game Minecraft, is revealing things aren't always as they seem. He sold Minecraft to Microsoft for $2.5 billion a year ago. He's now finding that the meaning of life has nothing to do with all the things that he thought it would.

Listen to Glenn's commentary below.

Below is a rush transcript of this segment, it might contain errors.

GLENN: It's the dream of any start-up founder. You make something that people just love, and you wind up wildly, wildly rich. And you sell the company for billions. That's what every start-up in Silicon Valley is trying to do. But after you do that, what comes next?

The guy who was the founder and the creator of Minecraft is revealing that things aren't always as they seem. He sold Minecraft to Microsoft for 2.5 billion years ago -- a year -- a year ago. Sorry, $2.5 billion a year ago.

PAT: There you go. That's a lot.

STU: Wow. Jeez.

PAT: That's a lot. But, I mean, that game is an unbelievable cultural phenomenon.

STU: Everywhere.

JEFFY: Yes, it is.

STU: Every kid in America I think owns it. Is that true?

PAT: Every kid. I think so. Pretty much every kid in America. And if they're not playing it, they want to.

STU: Yeah, and what is it? You're just building things with blocks, essentially.

PAT: I guess. I guess.

GLENN: It's basically virtual Legos. It's virtual Legos.

JEFFY: Yeah.

STU: Okay.

GLENN: But then you can chase people around in the land that you've created. You know, it's all kinds of different things. But it's a virtual world.

STU: Can you run over hookers? I just want to make sure that that's part of the game --

GLENN: No, you can't run over hookers.

STU: Aw, jeez.

GLENN: So he was living the high life. It looked like he was having a blast. $2.5 billion. What would you do with $2.5 billion, Pat?

PAT: I'd probably -- I'd donate most of it to charity.

GLENN: Shut up.

STU: All lives matter. That's where I would -- Nazarene Fund.

PAT: Yeah. I would get a house.

GLENN: That's the first thing he did.

PAT: I mean, I have a house. But I would get a bigger house.

GLENN: He bought a 70 million-dollar house.

PAT: I don't know if I would get a 70 million-dollar house.

GLENN: You should see this house.

PAT: I bet it's nice.

GLENN: It is. It's on the hills of Beverly Hills, and it is unbelievable. I'll post the link to the real estate video that they --

PAT: Does it say the square footage?

GLENN: No. But it has a movie theater in it. It has an infinity pool. It came all furnished. It is unbelievable. Sixteen-car garage that actually has elevators.

PAT: Nice. Jeez.

GLENN: In the place where there's a wall of -- in the candy room. Okay. There's a place where it's a bar and a wall of candy. And on one of the walls is behind glass, the garage. And it -- the picture of it shows a Veyron on a turntable.

PAT: Oh, my gosh.

GLENN: So the garage is actually behind glass in the downstairs, and it's got a Veyron.

PAT: And then he has a Bugatti Veyron, which is a $2 million car.

GLENN: Yeah, it's unbelievable. Okay. So here is a guy who has everything. And he earned it.

PAT: And did he go from poor or middle class to just wild wealth like that?

GLENN: I don't know.

PAT: Is that the one step to wild wealth?

GLENN: Wild wealth. I mean, you could have $250 million and then suddenly have 2.5 billion and it's a totally different world.

PAT: Yeah.

GLENN: So here's the latest string of tweets from him. Now listen to this, this just came out August 29th. Over the weekend. The problem with getting everything -- the problem with getting everything is you run out of reasons to keep trying. And human interaction becomes impossible due to imbalance.

Later: Hanging out with a bunch of friends and partying with famous people. Able to do whatever I want, and I've never felt more isolated.

In Sweden, I'll sit around and wait for my friends with jobs and families to have time just to do stuff, just watching my reflection in the monitor.

Next tweet: When we sold the company, the biggest effort went to making sure the employees got taken care of, and now they all hate me.

Next tweet: Found a great girl. She's afraid of me and my lifestyle. She went with a normal person instead.

I would Musk and try to save the world, but that just exposes me to the same types of people that made me sell Minecraft again.

Here's a guy who has absolutely everything and has created something great, who sounds a little suicidal, quite honestly. He's now finding that the meaning of life has nothing to do with all the things that he thought it would.

There was a New Zealand art director that -- his name is Linds Redding. He was one of the great guys of ads. I mean, he really created apparently a lot of stuff. And everybody was trying to get him -- ask him about ads and how things go.

He wrote towards the end -- he just had esophagus cancer. And it was inoperable. And he just passed away. But he wrote something before he died.

It turns out, I didn't actually like my old nearly as much as I thought I did.

This is what he wrote after he was diagnosed.

I know this now because occasionally I catch up with my old colleagues and work mates. They fall over each other to enthusiastic show me the latest project they're working on. They ask me my opinion. Proudly show off their technical prowess. I find myself glazing over, but politely listen as they brag about who has had the least sleep and the most takeaway food.

I haven't seen my wife since January. I can't feel my legs anymore. I think I have scurvy, but another three weeks, and we'll be done. It's got to be done, and then the client is going on holiday. What do you think?

What do I think? I think you're all mad. I think you're all deranged. So disengaged from reality, it's not even funny. It's a commercial. Nobody really gives a crap. This has come as quite a shock to me, I can tell you.

I think I've come to the conclusion that my whole life has been a bit of a con, a scam, an elaborate hoax. Countless late nights and weekends, holidays, birthdays, school recitals, anniversary dinners, were willingly sacrificed at the altar of some intangible, but indefinitely worthy higher cause.

If that were true, maybe it would be worth it in the long-run. But that's the con. Convincing myself -- convincing myself there was nowhere I'd rather be was just a copying mechanism. I can see that now. It wasn't important. It wasn't of any consequence at all. How could it be? We're just shifting product, our product, and the client's. Just meeting the quota. Feeding the beast.

The beast. Was it worth it? Of course not. It turns out, it was all just advertising.

The top five things that people regret when they die: I wish I let myself be happier.

Most people don't realize, until the end, that happiness is a choice. This is what we're trying to get across to you with all lives matter and never again is now. It's a choice. You can be angry. You can -- you can scream for vengeance. Or you can choose peace. You can choose love. You can choose happiness. You can choose unity. But it is our choice in the end. Choose light or darkness, life or death.

Number four, I wish I would have stayed in touch with my friends. In people's dying weeks, they usually try to track down old friends. They become so caught up in their own lives, we've all been so busy, that we lose track of people.

Number three, I wish I had the courage to express my feelings. Most people don't realize until the end of their life that they've been cowards their whole lives. They just wanted to keep peace with others. We're all told this in society. Don't bring up religion. Don't bring up politics. Don't bring up anything. Just make peace. Just don't argue.

And so most of us shut our mouths and don't make an impact. Most of us shut our mouths and we don't speak our true feelings. People at hospice say, every male patient they nurse always says, I wish I wouldn't have worked so hard.

'Rage against the dying of the light': Charlie Kirk lived that mandate

PHILL MAGAKOE / Contributor | Getty Images

Kirk’s tragic death challenges us to rise above fear and anger, to rebuild bridges where others build walls, and to fight for the America he believed in.

I’ve only felt this weight once before. It was 2001, just as my radio show was about to begin. The World Trade Center fell, and I was called to speak immediately. I spent the day and night by my bedside, praying for words that could meet the moment.

Yesterday, I found myself in the same position. September 11, 2025. The assassination of Charlie Kirk. A friend. A warrior for truth.

Out of this tragedy, the tyrant dies, but the martyr’s influence begins.

Moments like this make words feel inadequate. Yet sometimes, words from another time speak directly to our own. In 1947, Dylan Thomas, watching his father slip toward death, penned lines that now resonate far beyond his own grief:

Do not go gentle into that good night. / Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Thomas was pleading for his father to resist the impending darkness of death. But those words have become a mandate for all of us: Do not surrender. Do not bow to shadows. Even when the battle feels unwinnable.

Charlie Kirk lived that mandate. He knew the cost of speaking unpopular truths. He knew the fury of those who sought to silence him. And yet he pressed on. In his life, he embodied a defiance rooted not in anger, but in principle.

Picking up his torch

Washington, Jefferson, Adams — our history was started by men who raged against an empire, knowing the gallows might await. Lincoln raged against slavery. Martin Luther King Jr. raged against segregation. Every generation faces a call to resist surrender.

It is our turn. Charlie’s violent death feels like a knockout punch. Yet if his life meant anything, it means this: Silence in the face of darkness is not an option.

He did not go gently. He spoke. He challenged. He stood. And now, the mantle falls to us. To me. To you. To every American.

We cannot drift into the shadows. We cannot sit quietly while freedom fades. This is our moment to rage — not with hatred, not with vengeance, but with courage. Rage against lies, against apathy, against the despair that tells us to do nothing. Because there is always something you can do.

Even small acts — defiance, faith, kindness — are light in the darkness. Reaching out to those who mourn. Speaking truth in a world drowning in deceit. These are the flames that hold back the night. Charlie carried that torch. He laid it down yesterday. It is ours to pick up.

The light may dim, but it always does before dawn. Commit today: I will not sleep as freedom fades. I will not retreat as darkness encroaches. I will not be silent as evil forces claim dominion. I have no king but Christ. And I know whom I serve, as did Charlie.

Two turning points, decades apart

On Wednesday, the world changed again. Two tragedies, separated by decades, bound by the same question: Who are we? Is this worth saving? What kind of people will we choose to be?

Imagine a world where more of us choose to be peacemakers. Not passive, not silent, but builders of bridges where others erect walls. Respect and listening transform even the bitterest of foes. Charlie Kirk embodied this principle.

He did not strike the weak; he challenged the powerful. He reached across divides of politics, culture, and faith. He changed hearts. He sparked healing. And healing is what our nation needs.

At the center of all this is one truth: Every person is a child of God, deserving of dignity. Change will not happen in Washington or on social media. It begins at home, where loneliness and isolation threaten our souls. Family is the antidote. Imperfect, yes — but still the strongest source of stability and meaning.

Mark Wilson / Staff | Getty Images

Forgiveness, fidelity, faithfulness, and honor are not dusty words. They are the foundation of civilization. Strong families produce strong citizens. And today, Charlie’s family mourns. They must become our family too. We must stand as guardians of his legacy, shining examples of the courage he lived by.

A time for courage

I knew Charlie. I know how he would want us to respond: Multiply his courage. Out of this tragedy, the tyrant dies, but the martyr’s influence begins. Out of darkness, great and glorious things will sprout — but we must be worthy of them.

Charlie Kirk lived defiantly. He stood in truth. He changed the world. And now, his torch is in our hands. Rage, not in violence, but in unwavering pursuit of truth and goodness. Rage against the dying of the light.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

Glenn Beck resurrects the 9-12 Project to support Charlie Kirk's family

Glenn Beck is once again calling on his loyal listeners and viewers to come together and channel the same unity and purpose that defined the historic 9-12 Project. That movement, born in the wake of national challenges, brought millions together to revive core values of faith, hope, and charity.

Glenn created the original 9-12 Project in early 2009 to bring Americans back to where they were in the wake of the 9/11 attacks. In those moments, we weren't Democrats and Republicans, conservative or liberal, Red States or Blue States, we were united as one, as America. The original 9-12 Project aimed to root America back in the founding principles of this country that united us during those darkest of days.

This new initiative draws directly from that legacy, focusing on supporting the family of Charlie Kirk in these dark days following his tragic murder.

The revival of the 9-12 Project aims to secure the long-term well-being of Charlie Kirk's wife and children. All donations will go straight to meeting their immediate and future needs. If the family deems the funds surplus to their requirements, Charlie's wife has the option to redirect them toward the vital work of Turning Point USA.

This campaign is more than just financial support—it's a profound gesture of appreciation for Kirk's tireless dedication to the cause of liberty. It embodies the unbreakable bond of our community, proving that when we stand united, we can make a real difference.
Glenn Beck invites you to join this effort. Show your solidarity by donating today and honoring Charlie Kirk and his family in this meaningful way.

You can learn more about the 9-12 Project and donate HERE

The critical difference: Rights from the Creator, not the state

Bloomberg / Contributor | Getty Images

When politicians claim that rights flow from the state, they pave the way for tyranny.

Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) recently delivered a lecture that should alarm every American. During a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing, he argued that believing rights come from a Creator rather than government is the same belief held by Iran’s theocratic regime.

Kaine claimed that the principles underpinning Iran’s dictatorship — the same regime that persecutes Sunnis, Jews, Christians, and other minorities — are also the principles enshrined in our Declaration of Independence.

In America, rights belong to the individual. In Iran, rights serve the state.

That claim exposes either a profound misunderstanding or a reckless indifference to America’s founding. Rights do not come from government. They never did. They come from the Creator, as the Declaration of Independence proclaims without qualification. Jefferson didn’t hedge. Rights are unalienable — built into every human being.

This foundation stands worlds apart from Iran. Its leaders invoke God but grant rights only through clerical interpretation. Freedom of speech, property, religion, and even life itself depend on obedience to the ruling clerics. Step outside their dictates, and those so-called rights vanish.

This is not a trivial difference. It is the essence of liberty versus tyranny. In America, rights belong to the individual. The government’s role is to secure them, not define them. In Iran, rights serve the state. They empower rulers, not the people.

From Muhammad to Marx

The same confusion applies to Marxist regimes. The Soviet Union’s constitutions promised citizens rights — work, health care, education, freedom of speech — but always with fine print. If you spoke out against the party, those rights evaporated. If you practiced religion openly, you were charged with treason. Property and voting were allowed as long as they were filtered and controlled by the state — and could be revoked at any moment. Rights were conditional, granted through obedience.

Kaine seems to be advocating a similar approach — whether consciously or not. By claiming that natural rights are somehow comparable to sharia law, he ignores the critical distinction between inherent rights and conditional privileges. He dismisses the very principle that made America a beacon of freedom.

Jefferson and the founders understood this clearly. “We are endowed by our Creator with certain unalienable rights,” they wrote. No government, no cleric, no king can revoke them. They exist by virtue of humanity itself. The government exists to protect them, not ration them.

This is not a theological quibble. It is the entire basis of our government. Confuse the source of rights, and tyranny hides behind piety or ideology. The people are disempowered. Clerics, bureaucrats, or politicians become arbiters of what rights citizens may enjoy.

John Greim / Contributor | Getty Images

Gifts from God, not the state

Kaine’s statement reflects either a profound ignorance of this principle or an ideological bias that favors state power over individual liberty. Either way, Americans must recognize the danger. Understanding the origin of rights is not academic — it is the difference between freedom and submission, between the American experiment and theocratic or totalitarian rule.

Rights are not gifts from the state. They are gifts from God, secured by reason, protected by law, and defended by the people. Every American must understand this. Because when rights come from government instead of the Creator, freedom disappears.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

POLL: Is America’s next generation trading freedom for equity?

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A recent poll conducted by Justin Haskins, a long-time friend of the show, has uncovered alarming trends among young Americans aged 18-39, revealing a generation grappling with deep frustrations over economic hardships, housing affordability, and a perceived rigged system that favors the wealthy, corporations, and older generations. While nearly half of these likely voters approve of President Trump, seeing him as an anti-establishment figure, over 70% support nationalizing major industries, such as healthcare, energy, and big tech, to promote "equity." Shockingly, 53% want a democratic socialist to win the 2028 presidential election, including a third of Trump voters and conservatives in this age group. Many cite skyrocketing housing costs, unfair taxation on the middle class, and a sense of being "stuck" or in crisis as driving forces, with 62% believing the economy is tilted against them and 55% backing laws to confiscate "excess wealth" like second homes or luxury items to help first-time buyers.

This blend of Trump support and socialist leanings suggests a volatile mix: admiration for disruptors who challenge the status quo, coupled with a desire for radical redistribution to address personal struggles. Yet, it raises profound questions about the roots of this discontent—Is it a failure of education on history's lessons about socialism's failures? Media indoctrination? Or genuine systemic barriers? And what does it portend for the nation’s trajectory—greater division, a shift toward authoritarian policies, or an opportunity for renewal through timeless values like hard work and individual responsibility?

Glenn wants to know what YOU think: Where do Gen Z's socialist sympathies come from? What does it mean for the future of America? Make your voice heard in the poll below:

Do you believe the Gen Z support for socialism comes from perceived economic frustrations like unaffordable housing and a rigged system favoring the wealthy and corporations?

Do you believe the Gen Z support for socialism, including many Trump supporters, is due to a lack of education about the historical failures of socialist systems?

Do you think that these poll results indicate a growing generational divide that could lead to more political instability and authoritarian tendencies in America's future?

Do you think that this poll implies that America's long-term stability relies on older generations teaching Gen Z and younger to prioritize self-reliance, free-market ideals, and personal accountability?

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