A New Era Has Started in the Turkish Gaming Ecosystem!

Bilişim Vadisi DIGIAGE is Preparing to Bring a New Breath to the Türkiye’s Gaming Ecosystem

The DIGIAGE 2.0 Forum event, organized in collaboration with the Digital Animation and Gaming Center DIGIAGE, APY Ventures, and Bilişim Vadisi GSYF, was held at Bilişim Vadisi. This forum, which focused on the potential and future directions of the Turkish gaming sector, brought together game developers, investors, entrepreneurs, and public stakeholders.

The DIGIAGE 2.0 Forum, which took place on August 16, 2024, successfully represented Turkey’s gaming ecosystem on the international stage. The event introduced innovative early-stage investment strategies and discussed Türkiye’s potential and future steps within the gaming industry. The introduction of an acceleration program, aimed at offering a novel approach for the Turkish gaming ecosystem, was a key feature of the forum. This initiative facilitated collaboration among game developers, investors, entrepreneurs, and public stakeholders.

As the concluding event of the Erasmus+ project, the forum provided a critical platform for developing a policy document for the gaming ecosystem. The DIGIAGE 2.0 Forum aimed to support the international activities of Türkiyes’s gaming ecosystem, offering valuable networking opportunities to industry leaders and participants.

The First and Only Game Acceleration Program Exported from Turkey to the World

Erkam Tüzgen, General Manager of Bilişim Vadisi, underscored that DIGIAGE is an end-to-end support program. He stated, “DIGIAGE is the first and only game acceleration program exported from Turkey to the world. We launched this program initially in Türkiye and have since expanded it to Azerbaijan. We are also preparing to implement this program in the Balkans. While Türkiye has many entrepreneurship and acceleration programs, we have shifted from being primarily an importer to becoming an exporter of such programs with DIGIAGE. We will continue to lead the sector through our collaborations, workshops, and initiatives.”

The Volume Reached by the Turkish Gaming Sector is 1.4 Billion Dollars

Muhammet Bilal Macit, General Manager of R&D Incentives at the Ministry of Industry and Technology, highlighted the significance of the gaming sector. He remarked, “The most crucial factor for technological growth in Türkiye, including the gaming sector, is financing. Our entrepreneurs face challenges related to commercialization, internationalization, and acquiring necessary know-how. Currently, 650 companies and 12 R&D design centers within our technoparks are engaged in gaming. The commercialization figures from these entities amount to $1.4 billion, with sales totaling 750 billion TL and incentives reaching 40 billion TL. It is gratifying to see the sector’s growth, internationalization, and commercialization, driven by the support provided.”

Our Main Motivation is to Be Global

Emre Yıldız, Director of DIGIAGE, stated, “With our comprehensive support, we have gained the capability to establish camps in other countries and train hundreds of young individuals. We have conducted eight camps to date, receiving 18,000 applications and physically hosting 2,500 people in the Information Valley. From these, we have formed 260 teams. DIGIAGE camps have led to the creation of 100 game companies, 25 of which are located in the Information Valley. Our primary motivation is to achieve global reach.” Yıldız also addressed challenges in game training, emphasizing that DIGIAGE camps facilitate more accessible training. He highlighted the disparity in technology access and expressed a commitment to providing DIGIAGE’s technological infrastructure to individuals with limited or no access to technology.

Following the introduction of the Erasmus+ Policy Document, the program continued with a series of panels. Moderated by Emre Yıldız, APY Ventures Fund Manager Mustafa Keçeli detailed the objectives of the DIGIAGE Game Fund. Discussions included DIGIAGE’s investments and the new direction for the Turkish game sector. The latter part of the program featured the Internationalization of the Turkish IT Sector and the Stars of Informatics Program. Ali Burak Boztaş, Trade Expert of the Ministry of Trade, presented the incentive programs provided by the ministry, and the final session focused on the Last Route in the Turkish Game Ecosystem.

Eleven game developers who received training and mentoring support through the DIGIAGE program had the opportunity to present their projects at the forum. This provided them with a platform to connect with major industry players and explore investment and collaboration opportunities.

DIGIAGE has reached over 18,000 game developers through eight game development camps. These camps have led to the formation of more than 200 teams, with 25 of these teams advancing to the corporate phase.