Istanbul (CNN) -- "Hurry up," one of my rivals curtly warns me, as I clumsily try to decide which tile to add to my deck.
Ali doesn't seem to
realize that part of my dawdling is because I'm learning to play the
Turkish game Okey for the very first time. Coached by my colleague, CNN
producer Gul Tuysuz, I reach for a number. Then, in an effort to create
some goodwill, I buy a glass of Turkish tea and send it over to Ali's
side of the table.
"Thanks," he writes. But I still proceed to lose the game.
Instead of playing Okey
the traditional way, shuffling plastic numbered ties on a green-felt
table in a smoky cafe, Gul and I are exploring the game digitally.
This online version of
Okey lets you win digital dollars and play with your friends via
Facebook. It is definitely designed for a Turkish audience: Among the
gifts you can send people are Turkish coffee, a nargila water pipe,and
even a belly dancer. There is also a function called "flört" that lets
you flirt with other players.
It is a fairly simple
formula that the game's online designers say has been wildly successful.
Since Turkish start-up company Peak Games released Okey less than two
years ago, the game has attracted more than 19 million users, with an
average of more than 3 million players a month.
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