The story begins as a seemingly ordinary event in Israel's gaming industry. In 2019, two Playtika veterans, Gilad Almog and Eyal Netzer, along with Elad Drory, founded SuperPlay, a mobile game development company. Within six months of its establishment, SuperPlay released Dice Dreams, a mobile game in the growing coin-collection genre, which quickly became a success.
Shortly afterward, the company also launched the board game Domino Dreams, which gained similar popularity. As is common in the industry, both games are free to download on app stores, with users required to pay only at the advanced stages of the game — when quitting becomes difficult — yielding substantial revenue for the developer.
One of those hooked on these games was D. (assumed name), a close friend of Eyal Almog, the brother of founder Gilad Almog. "I'm very close to Eyal; I practically grew up in his house, and Gilad is like an older brother to me," D. told Ynet’s sister outlet Calcalist.
"When he started the company, Eyal told me that Gilad really likes me and that if I asked him, he'd give me a small share in the company. So, I went to Gilad and said, 'You want to be a millionaire on your own? To get rich without me? Throw me a bone.' Gilad refused, but I kept bringing it up with him."
"A few months later," D. recounted, "Gilad came to a soccer tournament in a good mood, so I asked him to do something nice for me again. Then he said, 'If you get a tattoo of our game on your butt, you'll get 0.1% of the company.' I immediately said I’d do it, and the guys around us started egging him on, saying, 'He’ll do it,' but Gilad didn’t believe it and said, 'He won’t; he’s a loser.'
“In the heat of the moment, he got excited and said, 'If you get the SuperPlay logo tattooed on the other cheek, I’ll double it.' I didn’t hesitate and said I’d do it,” he recounted.
"My brother and I are partners in a padel business — a game combining tennis and soccer," Gilad Almog shared his version of the event. "One day, we were sitting outside smoking a cigarette, and D. came up to me and said, 'Bro, Dice Dreams is an amazing game. If I get a SuperPlay tattoo, will you give me a stake in the company?'
“I half-jokingly replied, 'If you get a tattoo, you’ll get 0.1% of the company, out of my share.' Then D. asked, 'And if I get the game’s logo on the other cheek, will you double it?' It was all said jokingly, and I answered yes."
"I went home," D. continued, "and told my wife the story. She said, 'You're an idiot. You’ve got dumber tattoos than this, so of course you’ll do it.' To her, it was obvious I’d do it and for me it was already a done deal.
“At 1 a.m., I texted Gilad, saying I was going to get the tattoos, and he wrote back, 'You won’t do it; you’re a loser.' So, first thing in the morning, I went to a tattoo parlor in Tel Aviv and told them I wanted both logos on my butt and that I wanted it done immediately. And they did it."
"As soon as it was done, I called Gilad and told him to come down to the street. I dropped my pants and underwear and showed him. At first, he held his head in disbelief then he grabbed my butt to check if it was real. Then he said, 'I can't believe you're this crazy. You have no idea what I just gave you.' And I replied, 'You don’t get it. From now on, I’m your good luck charm, your mascot.'"
Apparently, D. was correct. SuperPlay's games gained significant popularity and reached a peak of 1.7 million daily active users on average by August this year. Revenues soared accordingly, with estimates suggesting they exceeded $200 million over the past 12 months.
The company’s valuation, backed early on by funds like NFX, Key 1, 83North, Vgames Venture Partners and O.G Venture Partners, also skyrocketed, at one point reaching an estimated $200 million.
"After a year or two, the company’s valuation hit hundreds of millions of dollars," D. recounted, "and I was already dreaming. Then, not long ago, Gilad suddenly called me at 11 p.m., all excited and celebrating, with crazy news: Playtika's buying SuperPlay for $700 million. I didn’t believe him and spent 15 minutes saying, 'I don’t believe you. Stop lying. I don’t believe you.' I was on cloud nine. I didn’t sleep for three days — I was on an absolute high."
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When D. finally came down from the high, he immediately received $400,000 for the tattoos on his buttocks. If the deal progresses according to Playtika’s outlined milestones, D. stands to pocket about $1.2 million.
D. added he wouldn’t stop at two tattoos on his backside if he could help it. "I’m so happy to be the company’s mascot and bring them good luck. If other companies wish to do the same, I’d be thrilled to get more tattoos," he said. "A few years later D. actually offered me to tattoo more of our games on his body," Gilad added, "but I told him it was enough."