You can watch the video version of our exclusive interview about Voodoo’s vision for the Turkish gaming industry, the reasons behind their decision to reopen an office in Turkiye, and the success story of Wagoon Studios’ hit game Coffee Pack on Mobidictum’s YouTube channel.
Note: The interview is in Turkish with English subtitles.
Turkiye is an important market for Voodoo. Can you tell us about Voodoo’s operations in Turkiye?
Can: Turkiye’s gaming ecosystem is a very important player on a global scale. Istanbul and Ankara have a special place among cities that host leading gaming centers, such as Barcelona and Tel Aviv.
In Turkiye, there are both casual game companies that produce large-scale and comprehensive projects and boutique game studios that employ between 5-20 people. These companies produce very high-quality work.
For this reason, Voodoo always needs to be in Turkiye.
Also, the game market is a constantly changing and growing sector. We feel this change closely on the publisher side. We are currently in a period of higher CPIs (cost per install), and there is an increased need for games with higher LTV (lifetime value) that will be successful in the long term.
In this context, we see that the companies that best adapt to the changing market dynamics are located in Turkiye.
In the last 7-8 months, we have worked with 10 different Turkish game teams, and 6 of them have taken their games to the soft-launch stage. This success is definitely not a coincidence; it is based on proven, solid data.
Following these developments, we decided to re-establish an office in Turkiye, and the most important reason for opening this office was our desire to create a side-by-side, face-to-face environment with the teams we work with. This is very important to us, and we believe it contributes to success.
We also aim to strengthen our publishing team in Turkiye. We currently have a publishing manager team of two in Turkiye. In addition, we have a Launch Operations team that provides support during the launch phase of games. This team includes a product specialist, a level designer, and a game developer.
On the publishing side, our team that supports studios currently consists of 5 people and we expect this number to increase in the future.
Last but not least, we want to get together more often with the teams we work with. Our work is intense, exciting and sometimes stressful. In this process, we aim to come together with our teams and share this burden together.
We also want to create a more collaborative, productive and supportive community ecosystem by bringing the teams we work with together.
How did you and your co-founder Berk meet and when did you start making games?
Selim: Berk and I met at Atatürk High School, and we developed many games together because we are both very interested in software.
Our biggest dream was to establish a mobile game studio, which we accomplished four years ago when we founded Wagoon Studios.
For 4 years, we have been working together with Voodoo. Our business approach fit each other very well, and we have come a long way in this process.
What are the advantages of working with Turkish game studios compared to global companies?
Can: Every country and every team has its own dynamics, but Turkish game studios stand out in this regard.
One of the first features that makes them stand out is their flexibility. Turkish game studios position themselves successfully by adapting quickly to evolving market dynamics and responding effectively.
Another striking point is their willingness to develop innovative game ideas and bring them to life. By working with these studios, we have the opportunity to produce new games.
This thought is not only mine; we decided to return to Turkiye because we all agree with the same idea as the entire Voodoo team.
How long have you been working with Wagoon Studios?
Can: We have been working with Berk and Selim for about 4 years. Coffee Pack is the second game we published together.
We learned a lot together during this process. We constantly learned from the mistakes we made in past games and reflected on these experiences in new games. Also, we have deeply examined what we can change in previous games in the retrospective meetings we organize every three months.
They are an extremely pleasant team to work with. The game ideation meetings, in particular, produce high-quality work. So it’s no surprise to me that a game as worthy as Coffee Pack came out of it.
How did the prototype phase of Coffee Pack evolve?
Selim: The prototype phase is one of the most important stages of the game development process. The process we enjoy the most when working with Can is the prototype and idea generation phase.
During the idea development process, Berk and I evaluate and eliminate many ideas. The ideas that we feel comfortable with and absolutely trust are evaluated in detail with Can. Thanks to the information provided by Can and Voodoo, we closely examine which games are successful in the market and current trends.
After putting our ideas through this filter, we move on to the prototype phase.
We had previously released a game called Vending Match, which had very high KPIs and could have made it to the launch stage, but we couldn’t take it further for various reasons.
We learned some very important lessons while developing the Vending Match, the first of which was the difficulty balance of the levels. The second important point was the harmony between the theme and gameplay.
Based on these lessons, we combined a memorable, tangible and strong marketing idea with a gameplay mechanic with high KPIs, and the result is Coffee Pack.
Can: One of the most difficult areas to decide when working with teams is when to move forward on a game. As publishers, we have to consider other opportunity costs when working on a game. By focusing on one game, we risk losing time for another game that has potential.
Vending Match was a game that both myself, Selim, and Berk loved, and we could have spent another 3-4 months on it, but at some point, we decided that it wasn’t possible for it to become the big game we wanted it to be.
Sometimes, stopping the development of a game is a necessary step to pave the way for bigger and more successful games.
How did the idea phase of Coffee Pack develop?
Selim: The mechanics of Coffee Pack was a mechanic that already existed in the market and had its strengths. At this point, we thought about how we could make these mechanics different and monetize them in a better way.
We reshaped the existing mechanics around more level-based gameplay and order completion, and we integrated features and mechanics from Match-3 games to create a deeper and richer gameplay experience.
As a team of 2, how do you manage such a comprehensive launch process?
Selim: Since our development and execution side is quite strong, we think we had a very efficient process until the launch phase.
When we transitioned to the launch process, we created a comprehensive roadmap by making a detailed planning together with Voodoo. In this process, we clearly identified where we are strong and where we need help.
In the following process, we received support from Voodoo’s Launch Ops team as needed. With the inclusion of the Launch Ops team, our team number increased to about 10 people. Working together as a team, we made data-driven decisions at every stage of the process, and our game was built on solid foundations.
The experience of the Launch Ops team covered our weaknesses and created a solid infrastructure for our future projects. One of the important reasons why the process went so smoothly was the Launch Ops team’s strong communication skills.
How was the launch process for Voodoo?
Can: We are very happy with the development process and the results of Coffee Pack. Berk and Selim had a great harmony with our Launch Ops team and the process was very successful for us on the product side.
The growth side is also progressing as planned. We focused on a high CPI but marketable idea.
I think Voodoo’s growth team is one of the most competent teams in the industry. Hundreds of hyper-casual games, mid-core and casual projects, and even applications other than games that Voodoo has published so far are managed through a single centralized system.
Even though each team has its own lead, this centralized structure speeds up the flow of information, makes it easier to share learnings, and provides a great advantage in adapting an advertising strategy to different projects.
In the transition from hyper-casual to casual, a lot of attention is being paid to the product side, but the growth side needs to be handled with equal care. Effective prediction tools are needed to manage the user acquisition processes of longer-lasting games.
We currently have a very successful prediction tool that works with 90-95% accuracy. This tool provides great flexibility with accurate targeting and helps us achieve the results we planned, like in the case of Coffee Pack.
Finally, Voodoo’s user acquisition strategies are shaped from the same perspective as game companies. Voodoo is a self-sustaining company with no backers, relying on its own revenues. Therefore, our approach to a game is based on how long it can last and how much profit it can generate.
What are Voodoo’s plans with Coffee Pack?
Can: Coffee Pack is still at the very beginning, but we have a clear vision and projection going forward.
At Voodoo, we are handing over games that we are very confident into dedicated teams that we call Live Teams. Live Teams are made up of developers, artists, analysts, and other game development experts who can take a game from start to finish. These teams range in size from 5 to 20 people, depending on the project, and are made up of people with extensive experience in casual games.
We work with industry leaders who specialize in casual games to lead these teams. For Coffee Pack, we’re currently working with Yuval, who is a veteran who was previously the General Manager of a Solitaire game that generated 300-350 million dollars in revenue.
One of the reasons why we want to do this at the very basic level is that we think that developing a creative concept and better monetizing a creative concept at a level that lasts for years exercises different muscles.
Especially smaller and more creative teams like Selim can develop highly innovative games, while people like Yuval, who specializes in projects that have generated large revenues and are experienced in increasing in-app purchase monetization, play a critical role in taking the game to higher levels.
At Voodoo, our priority is to do what’s best for the game. We want to work with the best and most experienced teams in the industry.
What awaits the Wagoon Games during and after the transition?
Selim: We are very excited that Voodoo has brought Yuval on board to lead the game. It shows the confidence in the game and how bright its future is. We have full confidence in Yuval, the Live Ops team, and Voodoo; we have no worries about that.
We are now in a very smooth transition, and we are about to deliver the game.
We’ve learned a lot from Coffee Pack, and it’s a new beginning for Wagoon Studios. After a short break, we’re looking forward to applying the experience we gained from Coffee Pack to our new games.
What are Voodoo’s global and Turkiye plans for 2025?
Can: We went through a transformation process and we have now left behind this challenging period in which the dynamics of the sector changed significantly. There is no other area for us to transform; now it’s time to look forward.
We have the product know-how to develop longer-term and casual games. We have our user acquisition and growth strategies in place, and our next goal is to bring in the right talent and build strategic partnerships.
We will continue to grow and develop better games. The same strategy applies to the Turkish market.
