Villains and Vision: Why We Backed Good Job Games

I playtest a lot of games. As a games investor, it comes with the territory. But my husband knew something was different when I kept reaching for MatchVillains—every night, every weekend, every free moment. 

I wasn’t just testing. I was hooked.

By the time we led the $23 million Seed investment in Good Job Games (creators of MatchVillains), both my colleague Shawn Carolan and I were deep in the endgame. I had played over 1,000 levels. It was, without a doubt, the most compelling mobile game either of us had ever played.

Built Under the Radar, Now Winning the Game

I was introduced to founders Ilker Ilicali and Nazim Akmandil through the legendary gaming advisor Akin Babayigit, now the founder of Arcadia Game Advisors. Described by other gaming founders as “super private but brilliant,” Ilker and Nazim were already well known in Turkish gaming circles. They bootstrapped Good Job Games for eight years, scaling it into one of the largest hypercasual studios in the world—reaching over two billion players.

But the writing was on the wall—hypercasual gaming was in decline. Good Job Games made a bold pivot. For five years, they dedicated themselves to mastering the craft of building match-3 games. If you’ve ever played one, you know the formula: swipe, match, clear the board, repeat. But beneath that simplicity lies a deceptively complex genre—one that drives long-term player retention and is dominated by billion-dollar hits like Royal Match and Candy Crush.

By their third release, Good Job Games had cracked the code. At the end of 2024, they launched MatchVillains—and it took off.

What Made MatchVillains a Hit? 

From my past experience investing in over a dozen game studios (TripleDot Studios, 1047 Games, Epic Games, Brain Jar Games, and more), I know that a gaming hit is part art, part science, relentless execution, and a bit of luck. MatchVillains builds on the match-3 formula but raises the stakes. They’ve built a modern, narrative-driven world of mischievous villains, masterfully-crafted puzzle mechanics, and modern live operations. A proprietary level design engine continually optimizes gameplay, fed by player data.

The result? In a genre defined by strong retention, MatchVillains outpaces other titles, claiming the highest player retention in the category. 

With a sticky product and fresh funding, the Good Job Games team is taking their biggest swing yet—scaling MatchVillains globally.

A Bold Vision for the Future

This is just the beginning. Though soft-spoken and humble, the team at Good Job Games is laser-focused on setting a new standard for the games craft. They see opportunities to disrupt other mobile categories with their highly innovative, artisan-quality approach. It’s an ambitious vision. But with years of execution, a deep commitment to building unforgettable player experiences, and a relentless drive, this team could just pull it off—with the team at Menlo proudly supporting them on that journey.