Grand Games

Based in Istanbul, Grand Games is a mobile gaming company established in early 2024 by co-founders Mustafa Fırtına, Mehmet Çalım, and Bekir Batuhan Çelebi. The founders bring extensive experience from leadership roles at prominent gaming firms like Good Job Games and Moon Active, where they were involved in developing successful titles such as Zen Match and Wonder Blast.

The company focuses on developing original, social, and competitive mobile games, aiming to differentiate itself from clones of existing popular games. Grand Games utilizes artificial intelligence to create up to 30% of each game's codebase and employs platforms like Midjourney for art concepts, which accelerates the development, testing, and iteration cycle. This strategy allows them to focus on creating high-quality productions with engaging elements of luck and social competition.

Grand Games operates in the global mobile gaming market and generates revenue through in-app purchases. In less than a year, the company launched two popular titles, "Magic Sort" and "Car Match," which together surpassed $4 million in monthly gross in-app revenue within just three months of release. The company's business model is structured around small, autonomous teams that have significant ownership and accountability for their respective games.

The startup secured $3 million in a pre-seed funding round in mid-2024, followed by a significant $30 million Series A round in January 2025. The Series A was led by Balderton Capital with participation from existing investors Bek Ventures, Laton Ventures, and angel investor Mert Gür. These funds are intended to fuel rapid growth, facilitate expansion into global markets, including the United States, and support the launch of a new flagship game planned for 2025. The company also plans to increase its team size from 14 to over 40. Keywords: mobile gaming, Istanbul gaming startup, social games, casual games, in-app purchases, AI in gaming, game development, Magic Sort, Car Match, Mustafa Fırtına, Mehmet Çalım, Bekir Batuhan Çelebi, Balderton Capital, Bek Ventures, Laton Ventures, genre-defining games, mobile entertainment, puzzle games, fast-growing startup, Turkish gaming industry