South Korean DoubleU Games buys Turkish Paxie Games

ISTANBUL

South Korea’s DoubleU Games has announced that it has entered into an agreement to acquire Turkish gaming studio Paxie Games, developer of Merge Studio: Fashion Makeover.

 DoubleU Games will acquire a 60 percent stake for $27 million at closing, with the remaining 40 percent to be acquired over a span of three years, subject to achieving certain financial targets, resulting in full ownership by the end of third year, the Korean company said in a statement.

The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2025.

“We recognize Paxie Games' competitive edge lies in users’ extended playtime with intuitive gameplay, instant rewards and seamless integration between meta and core game mechanics,” said Jay Choi, chief financial officer of DoubleU Games.

“By leveraging DoubleU Games’ established marketing network in the U.S., we plan to drive substantial growth and expand our reach,” commented Direnç Çelik, CEO of Paxie Games.

Founded in 2021 Paxie Games is headquartered in Istanbul. As of November, its flagship title, Merge Studio: Fashion Makeover, has achieved over 25 million in cumulative downloads.

The Turkish game industry is characterized by high concentration of small and medium sized gaming studios, and has become a globally renowned hub for both new and established mobile gaming studios, the statement noted.

Recent active M&A activities in the Turkish gaming market underscore Türkiye’s significant role in the global mobile gaming market, it said.

Zynga acquired Turkish game developer Peak Games for $1.8 billion in 2020.