Hi there, my name is Meric Atesalp (he/him) and I grew up in Istanbul, Turkey. I'm now based in Brooklyn, New York and my passion is making video and board games with rich storytelling and innovative elements. When I'm not working, I play new games, explore restaurants and bakeries, cook, and travel as much as I can.

I earned my undergraduate degree in Operations Research Engineering at Columbia University, with minors in Computer Science, Economics and Entrepreneurship. 

As Product lead on our largest title, Spongebob: Krusty Cook-Off, I managed LiveOps, seasonal events, Battle Pass and the feature roadmap of the game. One of my proudest achievements is the Slay the Spice event, a choose-your-own adventure seasonal mode inspired by the roguelike genre. It was so well received that we turned it into a permanent game mode! Our game won Players' Choice Award at Mobile Games Awards in 2021 and Users' Choice Award at Google Play Awards in 2020.

I evaluated more than 100 games a month to find the most retentive and profitable ones to publish. Helping small developers achieve their dreams has given me proficiency across all genres, monetization and retention-forward game design elements.

I managed up to 7 games at a time with budgets up to $1M/month on most social, search and programmatic networks.  

• IAP Personalization Playbook: an Overview of all Personalization Options (MGS Las Vegas, 2023)

• Analyzing User Motivations for Better Product Decisions (Gamesforum Seattle, 2022)

• The Future of Mobile Games Panel (Gamesforum Seattle, 2022)

I'm the founder of the Linkedin community LGBTQ+ Gaming Professionals. We discuss being queer in the gaming workspace, share hiring roles in the industry and talk about news and relevant events. We only grow stronger together, so if you feel like this group represents you, we’d love to have you join us!