Cypher Games, a mobile gaming studio focused on innovation in casual and social gameplay, announced the closing of a $30 million Series A funding round led by The Raine Group and Play Ventures. The oversubscribed round included participation from MIT, E2VC, and Huuuge Founder Anton Gauffin’s Big Bets, alongside existing backers including Discord CEO Humam Sakhnini, King Founder Riccardo Zacconi, and Tripledot Co-Founder Akin Babayigit.
The financing follows Cypher’s $10 million seed round in September 2024. It will accelerate the U.S. launch of the company’s debut title, Match Squad, a hybrid match-3 and dice-based mobile game that blends two of the most popular mechanics in casual gaming. The company plans to use the fresh capital to scale operations, expand its team, and begin early development on its second game within the next two years.
Cypher Games, headquartered in Istanbul, has rapidly built a reputation as one of Turkey’s most promising creative studios. Match Squad introduces a novel “luck-battle” dynamic to traditional puzzle gameplay by merging skill-based progression with social and city-building elements. The company’s vision centers on redefining the emotional and social experience of casual mobile gaming, aiming to create more interactive and community-driven play.
The funding also underscores the growing investor interest in Turkey’s fast-evolving gaming ecosystem. Led by Co-Founder and CEO Anil Simsek, Cypher continues to attract top-tier design and engineering talent from the region while securing global partnerships with industry-leading investors and creative collaborators.
With early performance metrics already showing strong player engagement and best-in-class retention rates, Match Squad is poised to compete at the top of the global casual gaming charts upon its upcoming U.S. launch.
KEY QUOTES:
“We’re thrilled to close this Series A fundraising with the support of such a strong investor group. Our mission is to pursue innovation and deliver it with top-tier storytelling and premium production quality, at the fastest possible pace. This new funding provides the liquidity necessary to execute on that vision as we bring our game to market.”
“There are many great game companies and titles in the market that we admire and respect as game producers. But every year, players expect something new. They look for innovation and meaningful differences. Match Squad offers the perfect intersection of luck and skill in the core loop – something we believe is missing in today’s mobile games.”
“We are bringing the true social core of luck-battle games to match-3 by combining them with city-building metagames. We don’t aim to differentiate for the sake of being different. We operate in pursuit of the perfect feeling, bringing all players under one roof and expanding the potential player base. We won’t stop until we achieve it.”
Anil Simsek, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Cypher Games
“We’re pleased to deepen our partnership with Anil and the Cypher team as they continue to push the boundaries of the match-3 genre with their innovative integration of the dice mechanic. They have continued to attract the best talent in Turkey which is evident in the beautiful game design and best in class gameplay in Match Squad. We look forward to supporting the execution of the team’s innovative strategy as Cypher continues to shape the future of the casual gaming ecosystem.”
John Salter, Co-Founder and Partner, The Raine Group
“Cypher has one of the strongest art and design visions in the world. The team invests heavily in experience and emotional design, actively seeking out the best talent in Turkey. We were the first to back Cypher, a young, world-class team that has quickly evolved into a true global design and art powerhouse. With Match Squad, they are set to redefine the match-3 genre, and early metrics already show incredible player engagement along with the best-in-class early to mid-term retention.”
Harri Manninen, Founding Partner, Play Ventures
