Developed by Lefto Studio, founded by 25-year-old Ufuk Girit, and published by Istanbul-based publisher TARK Games, the success of BOMBANANA! further confirms the rising trend of Turkish PC games in the global market.
Over the past decade, Turkey has grown increasingly influential globally as one of the most vibrant mobile gaming hubs in the world. Now, a new generation of indie game developers is also beginning to make their mark in the PC gaming space.
The latest proof is BOMBANANA!, a three-player co-op party game developed by Turkish studio Lefto Studio and published by TARK Games, which surpassed one million sales within ten days of its release.
Even before its official release, BOMBANANA! had garnered significant attention. Prior to launch, the game surpassed 1 million Steam wishlists, and its demo attracted over 6 million players worldwide.
This title is the first game published by TARK Games. Founded in 2025 and headquartered in Istanbul, TARK Games is Turkey's first independent PC and console game publisher to receive venture capital investment (led by Ludus Ventures), with publishing operations targeting the global market.
From a Mobile Gaming Powerhouse to Emerging PC Game Soil
Turkey has already secured its place in the global gaming industry.
Over the past decade, Turkey has seen the emergence of numerous renowned mobile game companies, many successful M&A cases, and the cultivation of a large pool of developers, entrepreneurs, and production talent.
In recent years, this momentum has begun to extend from the mobile gaming sector to other platforms.
The success of games like Supermarket Simulator and Liar's Bar shows that Turkish indie developers can also attract massive player bases on PC. BOMBANANA! now joins their ranks, and from TARK Games' perspective, these titles herald a wider structural shift in the local gaming industry.
Ilker Ergen, co-founder of TARK Games, stated:
"Turkey's achievements in the mobile gaming sector are widely recognized and well-deserved. However, the talent, entrepreneurial culture, and game development expertise accumulated over the past decade are not limited to mobile. We are seeing R&D capabilities begin to flow into high-quality PC and console games."
"Supermarket Simulator, Liar's Bar, and now BOMBANANA! all signal a broader trend. Turkey has many small but highly capable teams with the potential to develop games for global audiences. We believe that in the coming years, Turkey is poised to become a significant source of indie PC and console games."
A 25-Year-Old Indie Developer Behind a Viral Hit
BOMBANANA! was developed by Lefto Studio, a studio founded solely by 25-year-old Ufuk Girit.
The game revolves around a simple mechanic centered on communication: three players take on the roles of See-No-Evil, Hear-No-Evil, and Speak-No-Evil monkeys, working together to defuse a bomb, but each only holds part of the necessary information.
Therefore, the entire cooperative experience revolves around communication, misunderstandings, and various unexpected situations among friends.
Ufuk Girit, founder of Lefto Studio, stated:
"From the start, we wanted to create a game that is easy to pick up but offers a completely different experience every time people play together. The fun in BOMBANANA! comes from the players themselves: how they communicate, how misunderstandings arise, and how they solve problems together."
"The response during the demo phase far exceeded our initial expectations. Millions of players experienced the game, shared it with friends, and provided feedback that helped us polish the final experience. Seeing this enthusiasm translate into strong post-launch results is truly rewarding for a small indie team."
A Global Publisher Serving Indie Studios
BOMBANANA! is the first title published by TARK Games, a company founded by Ilker Ergen and Ibrahim Yildirim in 2025.
Although headquartered in Istanbul, TARK Games has positioned itself as an international publisher from the outset, not just catering to Turkish studios. The company currently has 10 games in the pipeline for release, about half of which are developed by non-Turkish teams.
This product lineup also reflects the company's overall strategy: to find distinctive indie development teams globally and provide them with funding, publishing infrastructure, and international market resources to help them compete in the global PC and console gaming markets.
TARK Games provides developers with services including development funding, production support, player research, marketing, content creator collaborations, and global platform operations.
A core principle of its publishing model is that TARK Games does not acquire equity in the partner development studios.
Ibrahim Yildirim, co-founder of TARK Games, stated:
"When we founded TARK Games, we had a very clear principle: we wanted to share in the rewards of a game's success, rather than holding equity in the developer's company."
"Ownership and creative freedom are crucial for indie developers. We want studios and their futures to remain in the hands of their founders. Our role is to provide development teams with support in funding, production experience, marketing, data, and platform relationships, giving excellent games the best possible chance to reach global players."
"Our roots are in Turkey, but our publishing strategy has been global from the start. Currently, about half of the games in our publishing pipeline come from studios outside Turkey. Wherever they are located, we want TARK Games to be a partner that aspiring indie developers can trust."
For Girit, this collaborative approach was one of the reasons Lefto Studio chose TARK Games.
"As an indie developer, maintaining creative control and ownership of my studio is very important to me. We wanted to find a publisher that could help us expand our capabilities without compromising the team's original independence."
"TARK Games supported us with global marketing, platform partnerships, and publishing strategies, while allowing us to continue focusing on game development itself."
Turning Individual Success into a Replicable Model
TARK Games views BOMBANANA! as an initial validation of its publishing model, rather than an isolated success.
Other recently announced projects from the company include Monster Cuisine, developed by another Turkish team, Team Machiavelli.
From TARK Games' perspective, Turkey's developing PC gaming ecosystem is just a significant part of a larger opportunity. Globally, a new generation of small indie studios already possesses the ability to develop commercially viable titles but often lacks the resources and publishing infrastructure needed to bring their games to the global market.
Ilker Ergen stated:
"Our goal is not just to publish one hit game, nor to build a publisher around a single market. We aim to establish a replicable model that helps excellent indie teams reach global players."
"Turkey is particularly noteworthy because its mobile gaming ecosystem has already proven its strength, and now a new wave of PC and console talent is emerging. But we see the same opportunities in many other markets. Currently, half of our portfolio comes from teams outside Turkey, and this international makeup is a key foundation of our business model."
"Talented developers are found all over the world; what they often lack is a supporting ecosystem, including early funding, production support, market insights, publishing experience, and channels to reach global players. This is exactly the gap we aim to fill."
BOMBANANA! Coming to More Platforms
Following its Steam release, BOMBANANA! is actively preparing for launch on console platforms, with the mobile version scheduled for October.
After achieving initial success on PC, launching on multiple platforms will bring the game to more global players.
About BOMBANANA!
BOMBANANA! is a three-player online co-op party game developed by Lefto Studio and published by TARK Games.
Three players take on the roles of monkeys who cannot see, hear, or speak, respectively. Each holds different pieces of information and must collaborate to successfully defuse the bomb before the timer runs out.
The game launched on Steam on September 2, 2026, with mobile and console versions currently in preparation.
About Lefto Studio
Lefto Studio is an independent game development studio based in Turkey, founded by 25-year-old developer Ufuk Girit.
The studio focuses on creating games for global players that emphasize social interaction and high replay value.
About TARK Games
Founded in Istanbul in 2025 by Ilker Ergen and Ibrahim Yildirim, TARK Games is Turkey's first venture-backed (by Ludus Ventures) independent global publisher focused on PC and console games.
Currently, TARK Games has 10 games in the pipeline for release, about half of which are developed by studios outside of Turkey.
TARK Games provides indie developers with development funding, production support, player research, marketing, content creator collaborations, and global platform strategies.
The company adopts a developer-centric publishing model, taking no equity stakes in game development studios, allowing founders to retain ownership of their companies and maintain creative independence.