Kadir Cem Yilmaz

Okeyto

Game Designer

A roguelike deck-building game inspired by the classic Turkish board game 101 Okey, combining traditional tile-laying mechanics with incredible synergies.

What I worked on:

• Designed the core gameplay loop, including the scoring system and in-game economy.
• Created special items and boss mechanics that alter the rules at the end of each difficulty level.
• Handled all the game design documentation.

Master's Thesis: Game News & Regional Sales

Author & Academic Researcher (Supervisor: Barbara Drapikowska, Ph.D.)

Title: Analyzing the Effect of Local Game News Sites on Regional Sales in Turkey and Poland

This master's thesis examines the functional role of gaming journalism and PR visibility in regional indie game sales across 8 case studies (Stygian, The Thaumaturge, Supermarket Simulator, Darkwood, New Cycle, Carrion, Liar's Bar, The Invincible) using Steam review data and the Boxleiter Method.

Key Contributions & Research:

• Applied event-study time-window analysis and Boxleiter Method on cross-border markets (Turkey & Poland).
• Evaluated early media coverage vs long-term sales impact and player perception.
• Analyzed localization factors and critical discourse in indie game marketing.

Oyun Tasarım Günlüğü

Creator, Host and Researcher

A Turkish podcast series exploring game design theories, indie game literature, and practical game marketing.

"Oyun Tasarım Günlüğü" acts as my personal and academic game design journal. The series aims to enrich the Turkish game development literature by bridging academic studies with industry realities. The podcast explores a wide range of topics; from the foundational play theories of Huizinga and Caillois, to the evolving academic definitions of "indie" games, and practical, low-budget marketing and PR strategies for independent developers.

What I worked on:

• Conceptualized, hosted, and produced the entire podcast series.
• Conducted comprehensive academic research and literature reviews (analyzing theorists like Juul, Vanderhoef, Lipkin).

Can an EOX cheer me up?

B2B Game Designer

A B2B event-based team game designed for TKE elevator company to promote cross-functional collaboration.

Designed during my time at Root, this project features interactive mini-games. It gamifies the core company theme of elevator movement, requiring players to physically jump (to go up floors) and crouch (to go down floors) while solving puzzles. The game emphasizes strategic timing, effective communication, and working across different roles to achieve a unified goal: selling EOX.

What I worked on:

• Designed a series of physical and mental team-building games.
• Gamified the core theme of elevator movement using jumping and crouching mechanics.
• Created mechanics that require cross-departmental collaboration and strategic timing to succeed.
• Developed engaging event concepts to boost internal company harmony and teamwork.

Research in Game Studies & New Media

Researcher

During my studies, I wrote various articles focused on video games, both as part of my academic assignments and based on my personal interest. These articles explore a wide range of topics, from the influence of the media to game mechanics, and from portrayals of violence to commercial impacts.

What I worked on:

• The process begins with strategic topic selection and conducting rigorous research by gathering academic-grade sources.
• Following this, I synthesize the gathered findings to draft well-structured, comprehensive articles in both English and Turkish.

Folk’s Quest

Game Designer and Unity Developer

A 2D rouge-like deck building card game.

“The Folk” is a city and also a kingdom. There is a sea beside Folk city called “Asvar” Folk’s citizens are afraid of water and their religion says that they shouldn't touch the big waters. One day A man called “The Explorer” comes to Folk and says to everyone that “There is a land across the Asvar”. The story begins.

What I worked on:

• Led design and development, establishing core gameplay.
• Designing cards, relics, potions and all other stuff
• Wrote narrative and dialogue.
• Prototyping in Unity Engine