Hey, I’m Mikey.

For a long time, my job wasn’t making games. It was being close to the people who played them.

I spent years working as a community manager at both AA and AAA studios, helping support and grow communities for games like Evil Dead: The Game, World War Z, Lords of the Fallen, Teardown, and others. Most days were spent listening. Reading feedback, talking to players, and trying to make sure their voices actually reached the people building the game.

That experience stuck with me more than I expected.

Why I Wanted to Make a Game

Spending so much time with players taught me something important. Games are at their best when they are built with the people who love them, not just delivered to them at the end.

I watched feedback turn into real changes. Features added. Systems adjusted. Small fixes that made a big difference. Seeing that loop happen over and over is what made me want to try designing something myself.

I did try once before.

I ran a Kickstarter for Students Against Spooky Stuff a few years ago. It was doing well and was on track to fund. But around the same time, I took a game job that felt like the safe and responsible choice. I ended up cancelling the campaign mainly because it was a conflict of interest.

That is something I still think about. Not out of anger or frustration, just a quiet regret that I put my own idea on the shelf. BUT that changes now!

Building Students Against Spooky Stuff

Students Against Spooky Stuff is not about saving the world or fighting ancient evils. It is about urban legends, unlucky teenagers, and supernatural problems that turn out to be much smaller and stranger than expected. Sometimes really scary too.

Everything starts with the first story, The Slushie Specter of Stop N Sip.

A haunted gas station. A ghost with a very unfortunate death. Neon lights, foggy streets, and unfinished business that boils down to a free burrito.

Learning Game Development

I am building it solo.

I am coming from a marketing and community background, not a technical one. The first step of this project is going to be about learning. Learning 3D basics. Learning Unreal Engine. Learning how to turn ideas into something playable. I'm going to document it all and share the entire journey.

That also means the first version is going to be ugly. Very ugly.

Placeholder art, blocky spaces, things breaking constantly. That is okay. The goal is not to impress anyone right now. The goal is to understand how this game actually works.

If it feels right while it looks bad, that is a good sign.

Focusing on Feel First

I am keeping demo details vague for now because I want to focus on the feel before the features.

Students Against Spooky Stuff should feel a little awkward, a little tense, sometimes scary and occasionally funny in ways that catch you off guard. The haunted gas station is just a starting point. A place to learn, experiment, and make mistakes.

If you’ve read this far, you’re officially part of the club against spooky stuff. I’m excited to share this journey with you.

-Mikey