Gleam Games, developer of match3 title Everblast - Blast and Match, has received $1m in investment after an additional funding round, following a similarly sized investment last year.

The round was led by Netherlands-based investment firm IstCapital and supported by domestic firms Ludus Ventures, who had led the previous funding round, and Tera Portföy.

Gleam Games’ significant mobile expertise was cited as being a major factor of their decision to invest in the company, which was founded in 2018.

Turkiye remains a strong option

The fact that an outside investment firm saw fit to put their money into the Turkish market is especially notable, as Turkiye already has a strong domestic investment presence. As we previously noted in our coverage of WePlay Ventures and Yamy, this has increased year on year, with 2021 seeing 52 deals valued at $264.8m overall, while 2022 saw 23 deals valued at $362.1m, according to a report from Gaming in Turkiye.

The lower amount of deals but the rise in investment can be attributed to a drop in the number of startups being founded in the country, with the number dipping from 121 in 2021 to 63 in 2022, and 131 being closed last year. This would be in line with the overall weakness of the Turkish lira compared to the United states dollar, as founding startups becomes more difficult without strong initial investment.

However, the growing amount of value in the smaller amount of deals indicates we may be seeing a strong foundation established by existing startups. which still number around 606, especially given the example of Gleam Games receiving separate million dollar investments in just two years.

A report published last week found that 81% of Turkish adults play mobile games, with an almost even split between men and women. 72% of these consumers reported playing daily, compared to 22% who play a few times a week. Puzzle games proved to be the country’s most popular genre, with an approval rating of 54%.