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Turkey is a nation driven by the continuing success of digital and free-to-play games, despite controversy over one of the West’s biggest digital hits.
According to research outlet SuperData, Turkey comprises 14 per cent of the Eastern Europe digital games market, with an estimated digital games revenue of $434 million (278m) in 2014. This makes it the second-biggest country for games in the region behind Russia, which makes up half of the local industry.
Turkish gamers play games for longer than their neighbours, sticking with a single game for around three months on average. They are similarly happy to continue spending money on their games, paying for up to 184 days – 30 per cent longer than the Eastern European average.
While Turkish gamers pay less per month, the extra time spent investing in titles means that in total around an extra $20 is spent per player per game. Free-to-play MMOs are particular prosperous in Turkey, faring better in the country compared to Russia in terms of revenue.
While both nations are dominated by male players, Russia is actually more female-friendly; women make up 42 per cent of the Russian market, compared to just 36 per cent in Turkey.
Despite Turkey’s passion for digital gaming, not all titles have fared so well. The presence of industry juggernaut Minecraft has faltered in the region after it was threatened with a ban. This followed an investigation by the government’s family and social policies minister Aysenur Islam into the game’s suitability for children, which concluded that the block-building game was fundamentally based on violence.
Population: 77,695,904
Capital City: Ankara
Currency: Lira
GDP (Per Capita): $10,482
KEY RETAILERS
Teknosa, Darty, Bimeks, Carrefour, D and R, Sony Centre, Media Markt
TOP DEVELOPERS
Sobee Studios, MagiClick Games, Peak Games, TaleWorlds, Ark Game Studios, 2Gen, Kukla Interactive, Insofer, Pixofun, Dyun Studyosu
PUBLISHERS IN THE REGION
Sony, Ubisoft
