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Google App Hub Istanbul 🇹🇷 Mobile Gaming, Cool People & FUN!
Key insights
6 takeaways- 01The Turkish mobile gaming sector is pivoting from hypercasual models toward sustainable hybrid-casual and merge-based game designs.
- 02The Turkish market is positioning itself as a global leader in genre refinement by combining high technical proficiency with a disciplined focus on development targets.
- 03Developers are shifting focus from aggressive, short-term user acquisition to long-term player retention as the primary driver of profitability.
- 04The industry has reached a consensus that the era of easy, day-one return on ad spend (ROAS) has ended, requiring a fundamental change in product design.
- 05While AI is being adopted for cost-reduction and process automation, there is strong industry resistance against using it to produce low-effort, mediocre titles.
- 06A product-first philosophy is now prioritized, mandating that developers foster deep user engagement before integrating monetization features like ads or in-app purchases.
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Transcript
industry doesn't need your mediocre AI game.
Turkish mobile gaming industry was a genre, subgenre. What's would it be and why?
It would be somewhere around hybrid casual puzzles.
[music]
I think it would definitely be merge games.
What do you think about Turkish mobile game people doing, being way better than everyone else?
They're really good at enhancing what a genre gives us.
Turkish developers are doing better than anyone else is at the field of locking in themselves to their targets and no matter what, they find a way to get to that target, hit to that target.
I think we work really good at that as a single source. When we work single, like mono developers, we do some great things.
Turkish mobile gaming industry was a genre, subgenre. What's would it be and why?
It would be somewhere around hybrid casual puzzles.
to me and a bit of sorting as well.
I think it would definitely be merge games. We have the talent, we have the incentives, we have great engineers, product people and when everything comes together, then we have companies that are worth billion dollars.
Some people prioritize UA. Some people say, "No, product is a way beyond UAs. Without that, it's terrible. Retention first." And some are obsessed with monetization. So, the question would be which one is harder or which one to prioritize?
Getting players are hard budget-wise. So, right now it costs quite a lot higher to acquire one user. We need to move towards a bit more hybrid models.
And today we discussed a lot about this, how we should be really focusing on long-term retention. The real secret is, I think, really understanding your user acquisition dynamics and combining them with different monetization strategies.
Getting players with ROAS negative, but the biggest question is are those users ROAS positive? In order to get there, you need to keep the users, retain them, entertain them. I would rate this way. The order of importance would be retention, UA, and monetization.
Looking back this 5 years ago hypercasual time, day one ROAS positive, it's not true anymore, is it what you said?
Easy wins are gone. We still need to be obsessed with the quality and long-term vision. Um maybe for more hybrid or hybrid casual kind of genres, still there might be a bit of room for shorter windows, but the ones who will really nail this will be the ones who are focusing on the long term.
Which keyword, which buzzword, we should officially ban and get rid of it, and why?
Prompt game development. Whenever there is a new model announced by a big AI company, I see in
LinkedIn most of the time that people start typing, "Hey, I built a new game, triple A scale game, with just one prompt." Well, I guess industry doesn't need your mediocre AI game. I guess people need to use AI if in game production in more genuine way to create new experiences for people. Obviously, automation cases are fine and well needed as long as they cut costs.
Everyone is right now focused on UA. We should crack this game with playables, ad networks, rewarded. And some are already going fully product first because retention is number one. Where are we heading? Which one is harder? Where is the biggest opportunity?
Getting players with ROAS negative. Um if you have money, you can get players. That's fine. But, the the biggest question is
are those users ROAS positive? In order to get there, you need to keep the users, retain them, entertain them. They need to engage with your app first before they engage with your ads. I would say keeping them engaged is the first milestone that you have to achieve. And then, in the long run, obviously, once they are spending their time, you would have the chances to show them ads, IAP offers, subscription offers, UA, and monetization. And the reason I put UA in the second is you can survive this world without an active paid UA.
So, what is number one highlight, takeaway, fun, chilling? What is number one?
Well, 100 people, everybody is focused, and everybody is hustling. So, who wouldn't be one here?
Uh I think it was nice to hear about uh how in this industry will evolve in the future, and uh AI's impacts on that. I think it was nice to hear presentations about that.
Summary
The Turkish mobile gaming sector is currently undergoing a strategic shift, moving away from the hypercasual models of the past five years toward more sustainable, long-term hybrid-casual and merge-based experiences. Industry experts identify the Turkish market as a global leader in genre refinement, characterized by a unique ability to maintain laser-focus on development targets and execute with high technical proficiency. This evolution is driven by a collective recognition that the era of easy, day-one return on ad spend (ROAS) is over, necessitating a fundamental change in how developers approach user acquisition and product design.
The consensus among industry professionals is that long-term retention must take precedence over aggressive user acquisition and monetization. While acquiring users remains a significant financial hurdle, the primary challenge is ensuring those users become ROAS positive through sustained engagement and entertainment. Consequently, the industry is prioritizing a product-first philosophy, where developers must foster deep user engagement before attempting to integrate advertisements or in-app purchases. This shift reflects a broader maturation of the market, where quality and long-term vision are now considered the primary drivers of success.
Technological integration, particularly regarding artificial intelligence, remains a contentious but necessary topic. While automation is welcomed for cost-reduction purposes, there is a strong pushback against the trend of using AI to generate mediocre, low-effort titles. Instead, the industry advocates for a more genuine application of AI to create novel player experiences. Ultimately, the Turkish mobile gaming landscape is defined by a high-hustle culture and a commitment to evolving alongside changing market dynamics, with a clear focus on balancing sophisticated user acquisition strategies with robust, retention-focused product development.
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