Turkish Okey, known in Turkey as düz okey (straight Okey), is the classic form of the tile game that millions play in tea houses across Turkey and throughout the Middle East. It uses the same 106 tiles as every Okey game: draw a tile, discard a tile, and race to arrange your hand into runs of one colour and sets of one number. The first player to complete a whole hand wins the round.
What makes Turkish Okey different is that nothing goes on the table until you win. There is no opening, no partial melding and no adding to other players' melds, so your hand stays completely hidden until the moment you reveal all of it at once. Each player also has their own discard pile: you throw to the next player and draw only from the tile thrown to you. The whole game becomes one of reading discards and guessing what your neighbours are building. You can even go out with seven pairs, and finishing by discarding the okey tile doubles your win.
On Dananeer you can play Turkish Okey online free on iPhone, Android or in your browser at play.dananeer.io. Invite friends to a private room and chat by live voice and video at the table, join a public game against players from across the Arab world and Turkey, or play Okey offline against bots to sharpen your skills. There is no real-money gambling on Dananeer.
Turkish Okey tiles: the indicator, the okey and false jokers
Turkish Okey is played with 106 tiles: 104 numbered tiles in four colours, thirteen ranks per colour, with two identical copies of every tile, plus two false jokers (sahte okey).
After the deal a tile is turned face up as the indicator (gösterge). The okey for the round is the tile one rank above the indicator in the same colour. For example, if the indicator is a red 7, both red 8 tiles are the okey.
- The two okey tiles are flexible: each can act as a wildcard for any tile, or be played as its own printed number and colour.
- The two false jokers are always wildcards.
- So every round has four tiles that can act as wildcards, but a single run or set may contain only one wildcard.
Setup and deal
There are no partnerships in Turkish Okey; every player scores for themself, and play goes clockwise around the table.
- Shuffle all 106 tiles and turn up the indicator to set the okey.
- Deal 15 tiles to the first player (the one after the dealer) and 14 tiles to everyone else.
- The remaining tiles form the central face-down draw pile.
- Each player has their own discard pile, empty at the start.
- The first player already holds 15 tiles, so they begin by discarding, or by going out if their hand is already complete.
Objective of Turkish Okey
Be the first to complete your hand. On your turn you reveal 14 tiles arranged into valid runs and sets (or seven pairs) and discard your 15th tile in the same turn. The winner collects chips from every other player, and after 5 rounds the player who has collected the most wins the match.
How to play a turn
A turn is simple: draw one tile, go out if you can, and discard one tile to the next player.
- Draw one tile: either the top tile of the central draw pile, or the top tile of your own discard pile (the tile the previous player threw to you).
- If you now hold a complete 14-tile hand plus one spare, you may go out.
- Otherwise, discard one tile face up onto the next player's discard pile. That tile is theirs to take on their turn.
- You can only ever take from your own pile, and only its top tile.
- A tile nobody takes is buried by the next discard, so each tile is a one-time offer to one player.
Runs, sets and pairs
When you go out, your 14 tiles must split into valid groups. There are three shapes.
- Run: 3 to 13 tiles of one colour in consecutive order. The highest tile can end a run and the lowest can start one, but a run can never wrap around from the top back to the bottom.
- Set: 3 or 4 tiles of the same number, each in a different colour, with at least two real (non-wildcard) tiles.
- Pair: two identical tiles, same colour and same number. Pairs only count as part of a full seven-pairs hand.
- Every group may contain at most one wildcard. An okey played as its own printed tile does not count as a wildcard.
Going out: no opening, one reveal
There is no opening threshold in Turkish Okey. You cannot lay down part of your hand, and you cannot add tiles to anyone else. When you are ready, you win in one move.
- Standard finish: show 14 tiles as runs and/or sets, then discard your last tile.
- Seven pairs (çift): show 7 pairs, 14 tiles in all, then discard your last tile. This doubles your win.
- Finishing on the okey: if the tile you discard to win is the okey, your win doubles.
- If your reveal is not a valid hand, nothing happens and you simply play a normal turn.
Turkish Okey scoring
Turkish Okey uses fixed chips, not tile points. The base is 1 chip per losing player: each loser pays the winner, and tiles left in losers' hands do not matter.
| How the winner finished | Multiplier | Each loser pays (4 players) | Winner collects (4 players) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Normal finish | ×1 | 1 | 3 |
| Discarded the okey to win | ×2 | 2 | 6 |
| Seven pairs | ×2 | 2 | 6 |
| Seven pairs and discarded the okey | ×4 | 4 | 12 |
Winning the match
A standard match is 5 rounds, and quick tables play a single round. The winner of each round plays first in the next one. Chips are added up across all rounds, and the player who has collected the most at the end wins the match; players tied at the top share the win.
How Turkish Okey differs from Kurdish Okey
| Kurdish Okey | Turkish Okey | |
|---|---|---|
| Teams | Two partnerships at 4 players | Everyone plays alone |
| Discard pile | One shared pile | One pile per player |
| Melding | Open with 81 points, then meld and add to melds | Nothing on the table until you win |
| Special modes | Konkan and elimination | None |
| Seven pairs | Not a winning hand | Wins at double |
| Scoring | Penalty points for tiles left | Fixed chips with ×2 and ×4 bonuses |
| Rounds | 5 plus a Determine round | 5 |
Strategy tips
- Watch which of your discards the next player takes and which they ignore: it tells you what they are building, so stop feeding them the tiles they want.
- Keep your eye on the tile thrown to you. If it completes a group, take it, because it will be buried the moment the next tile lands.
- Hold on to the okey until the end if you can. Using it as your final discard doubles the win.
- Collect pairs early: with two copies of every tile, a seven-pairs hand comes together more often than you expect, and it pays double.
- Remember the one-wildcard limit. Two wildcards cannot sit in the same group, so spread them across different runs and sets.
Frequently asked questions
How many tiles are in Turkish Okey?
Turkish Okey uses 106 tiles: four colours of thirteen numbers with two copies each (104 tiles), plus two false jokers.
How do you find the okey tile?
Look at the face-up indicator. The okey is the tile one number higher in the same colour; if the indicator is a red 7, both red 8s are the okey.
What is the false joker (sahte okey) for?
The two false jokers are always wildcards and can replace any tile. The okey tiles can act as wildcards too, or be played as their own number.
Can you win Okey with seven pairs?
Yes. In Turkish Okey you can go out with seven identical pairs instead of runs and sets, and it doubles your winnings.
What happens if you finish on the okey?
If the tile you discard to win is the okey, your win doubles. Combined with a seven-pairs finish it is worth four times the base.
Is Turkish Okey played in teams?
No. Turkish Okey is a free-for-all for 2 to 4 players, and every player scores for themself.
Can I play Turkish Okey offline?
Yes. On Dananeer you can play Okey offline against bots, or online with friends in a private room with voice and video chat.
