A few words from the story of
The Clean Network; ✅
I am writing these sentences for you more transparently and honestly than ever before. Please accept them as the words of a developer who sees you as family. 💚
Exactly 4 months ago, with the MVP (Minimum Viable Product) we released, everything started with this single sentence we wrote in a
TON Developer group: "
We created a game, does anyone want to test it?"
Initially, we were looking for a few people to test this game—built by a team of 6 in 48 hours—that resembled a city where people steal money from each other. Later, while having tea with Dr. Ryeery (a friend of 10 years, a gaming enthusiast, and an absolute fanatic of PUNK characters), we tested the game. Just like other KOLs (
@symmboy, etc.), he said he would support this game until the very last second. And eventually, those few people turned into 10, then 15, then 50 within a few days.
Afterward, amidst the corporate projects my company was running, I took a sudden and risky leap into my childhood dream of game development. By allocating a serious amount of capital from the company's treasury, we entered the Telegram GameFi world. My passion for game development started in middle school, coding Java in Game Maker on CRT monitors at school, alongside a friend with drawing skills doing 3D modeling. But the moment I realized this was a matter of team size and budget, I quit game development, and even playing games altogether. I took my place on the business side of things, facing the realities of life. 👾
So, what did I want? To create a story by piecing together parts of my own complex, risk-filled entrepreneurial life, and to back this story with my worldview. Just like
Pavel Durov did...
First and foremost, I created a family. Of course, there were those who betrayed us, and those who provided immense support. Yes, I am aware; at some points, The Clean Network felt like a mental asylum where the abandoned took refuge. A place for those who came from the streets and returned to the streets... 🍯
Our family members were incredibly diverse; from Mexico, Iran, America, Turkey, Brazil, Portugal, Indonesia... Without any discrimination of religion, language, race, gender, or sect, we all became brothers and sisters. We had fun, made music, danced, and sang songs together in the streets of this city. We tried to celebrate the special days of every country together.
But unfortunately, there were also those who stood with us just for small gains of
$5-$10. As well as those who wanted to offer us their shoulders even when everything was uncertain... ⏬
With the support of two investors from the Telegram world (it wouldn't be appropriate to share their names here), and by spending a few thousand dollars out of my own pocket (advertising budgets, promos, contest expenses, server and development costs), we built a massive vision.
What did we want? To change that cheap GameFi perception in the Telegram world, to add real value to the $TON Coin, and yes; to step outside of Telegram with the family we created and build a secondary NOT Coin phenomenon. 🙏
But unfortunately, nothing went as planned... Our expenses and the hype we created didn't last forever. At the same time, the airdrop crowd inside saw us merely as "bait" at certain points. The TON Foundation, due to their internal decisions, completely shifted their focus toward AI (Artificial Intelligence) projects.
Why am I leaving? To meet my personal and future needs in Turkey, to return to you much stronger, and to gather the necessary funds. Because we have no advertising budget left to spend, nor any in-game hype. Nor do we have the funds to sustain our lives without making a profit. 👑
So, will the lights of this city turn off? No! I will not turn off the lights of this city. I will just step away from this city for a certain period. I haven't been fully present here for the last month anyway, as I had too many things I needed to take care of.