In response to the rapid growth of gaming culture, McDonald’s Türkiye unveiled a literally game-changing device aimed at meeting their consumers where they already are—with a controller in their hands and a meal splayed out in front of them.
McDonald’s Türkiye, which operates nearly 320 restaurants across the country, announced a Pro Gamer Menu in early April, complete with a Big Mac, fries, onion rings, Coke and the new “Archie” device, which enables customers to enjoy their meals and gameplay simultaneously.
In an April 3 press release, the Turkish operator described the campaign as a solution to one of gaming culture’s fundamental challenges: being automatically kicked out of online games during meal breaks due to inactivity.
That’s where Archie comes in with a flexible design inspired by the brand’s iconic Golden Arches. The device from marketing agency TBWA\Istanbul brings a controller’s analog sticks together, allowing in-game characters to keep moving while the player breaks to eat.
“Being away from the screen during online gameplay—especially in high-intensity moments—can directly disrupt the flow of the game,” Özdeş Dönen Artak, CMO of McDonald’s Türkiye, said of the campaign in a press release. “That is why many players turn to different workarounds. We transformed this behavior into a gamer insight and made Archie part of the McDonald’s experience by offering it as a gift to customers who order the Pro Gamer Menu.”
The promotion is the latest effort in a yearslong, industry-wide initiative by restaurant brands across the globe to connect with the ever-growing segment of video game-playing consumers.
Turkey’s gaming industry is continuing to display significant year-over-year growth, according to an analysis of the Türkiye Game Market Report 2025 from Gaming in Türkiye. The market value increased by about 25 percent in 2025 alone, surpassing the $1 billion threshold last year, with nearly 50 million active players.
The trend of youth increasingly spending time gaming is not limited to Turkey. According to 2025 research from the American Psychological Association, 85 percent of U.S. teens report playing video games, with 61 percent of boys and 22 percent of girls being daily gamers. Nearly three-fourths of teen video game users say they play to spend time with others, and almost half report meeting a friend online because of gaming.
As gaming continues to captivate consumers of all ages, QSR brands may follow McDonald’s Türkiye and other operators by offering promotions tailored to the growing group of gaming guests.
