A new name has quietly entered Turkey’s fast-growing mobile games scene — and it’s one worth watching.
Sorrel Games is a newly formed hybrid-casual mobile studio founded in Istanbul by two former Zynga veterans: Yiğit Solmaz and Berkin Atar.
The studio positions itself as a next-generation mobile games company, blending live-ops discipline, product depth, and polished casual design — a combination that has increasingly defined the strongest hybrid-casual performers globally.
A Founding Team Built for Scale
Sorrel Games’ leadership setup is deliberate and complementary.
Yiğit Solmaz (Co-Founder & CTO) brings over 15 years of engineering and live-ops experience, having built and scaled games across Facebook, the App Store, and Google Play. His background spans casual and puzzle genres, with a strong emphasis on performance, infrastructure, and long-term scalability. Prior to Sorrel, he also served as CTO at Cratoonz, contributing to the match-3 title Cat Heroes: Puzzle Adventure.
Berkin Atar (Co-Founder & CPO) comes from the product side, shaped by years inside Zynga’s live games ecosystem. His experience includes global card games such as Spades Plus, alongside work on new casual and PvP match-3 projects. Before Zynga, he held product and game analytics roles at Gamegos, contributing to Manor Cafe.
Together, the duo represents a familiar but powerful hybrid formula: engineering rigor paired with player-centric product thinking.
Why Istanbul, Why Now?
Istanbul has rapidly evolved into one of Europe’s most active mobile gaming hubs, producing globally successful studios and talent with deep expertise in casual, hybrid, and UA-driven design.
Sorrel Games’ formation reflects a broader trend:
Senior talent spinning out of large publishers
Smaller, focused teams optimized for fast iteration
A clear bias toward hybrid-casual economics over pure hypercasual scale
In today’s market, studios that can combine creative experimentation with monetization discipline are best positioned to break through.
Early Signals, Few Details — by Design
So far, Sorrel Games has kept its cards close. Beyond its official formation and branding, no product details have been announced publicly.
That restraint is notable.
Rather than leading with hype, the studio appears to be prioritizing foundation over exposure — a pattern often seen in teams that intend to iterate quietly before scaling aggressively.
What to Watch
While concrete details are still limited, a few things are already clear:
The founders know live games, not just launches
Hybrid-casual is the strategic focus, not an experiment
The studio is built for longevity, not quick flips
In a market where execution speed, creative volume, and live-ops depth increasingly determine winners, Sorrel Games enters with the right DNA from day one.
Expect more signals soon — and likely, products designed to scale far beyond Turkey’s borders.
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