The social gaming behemoth Zynga is taking over another Turkish game creator, Istanbul-based Rollic, after its purchase of Turkish game developer Peak.
Zynga will buy 80% of Rollic for $168 million in cash, with the agreement anticipated to close on October 1st. Over the next three years, Zynga will purchase the remaining 20% in equal portions, with the valuation determined based on specific profitability goals achieved by Rollic.
Rollic is a “hyper-casual” game developer, which Zynga describes as one of the largest and fastest-growing categories in mobile gaming. Its studios produce simplistic free-to-play games that users can play instantly without any directions.
Rollic was established in 2018 by Burak Vardal, Deniz Basaran, and Mehmet Can Yavuz (pictured). Eight of its games have reached the top two spots on the US App Store’s free-to-download games chart. Its most recent releases, Go Knots 3D and Tangle Master 3D, were the two most downloaded games on the App Store in the second quarter of 2020.
Exciting games have drawn in over 5 million daily active players and 65 million monthly active players.
“We’re delighted to broaden our reach into the extremely casual gaming category by acquiring Rollic, one of the fastest-growing extremely casual game developers and publishers worldwide in 2020, led by a very inventive team,” stated Frank Gibeau, head of Zynga.
“With Rollic, we are significantly expanding our audience reach, scaling and diversifying our global advertising business, and adding to our game pipeline and developer network. Zynga and Rollic will grow together more rapidly.”
Burak Vardal, founder and head of Rollic, stated his team is honored to join the social gaming giant.
“Our expertise in extremely casual gaming is a perfect fit with Zynga’s expertise in product management, data science, advertising monetization and world-class publishing,” he said. “With Rollic’s strong existing and new extremely casual game lineup joining Zynga’s portfolio, we look forward to advancing our shared mission of connecting the world through games.”
This is Zynga’s second major casual gaming acquisition in 2020, and its second acquisition of a Turkish company. In June, the company acquired Peak Games, the developer of hit series like Toon Blast and Toy Blast, for $1.85 billion, after previously acquiring Peak Games’ card game studio in 2017.
The deal was finalized in July, and Peak’s founder and head Sidar Sahin continues to lead the business.
Zynga revealed its financial performance for the initial six months of the year today, showcasing a substantial surge in income. Their earnings climbed nearly 50% compared to the equivalent period last year. This follows a record-setting second quarter where their revenue leaped by almost 48% to reach $451.7 million.
You can register for the iGaming News Bulletin to remain informed about the most recent developments.