The Game Maker’s Toolkit Game Jam isn’t your average “let’s-make-a-game” weekend. It’s an internet-wide creative sprint where the global dev scene collectively pulls 96 hours of caffeine-fueled chaos, then drops nearly 10,000 playable experiments onto Itch.io.
This year, four of those experiments came from University of Advancing Technology (UAT) teams in Tempe, Arizona. And they weren’t just filler in the world’s largest digital potluck—they placed.
Lake Snoop
By Boone Stewart
A snake clone with a twist: loops. Slick, clean, and strangely hypnotic. Windows-only.
Brick by Brick
By Baylee Balsimo Ketelhut, Dylan Mudersbach, Jensen Searle, David S., Jakob Davis, Trinket Quance
Weaponize your profile. Take over the world. Browser-ready.
Pool Loop
By Tommy Eyester, Ivan Sanchez, Lauren Hesselgesser, Erica Pead, Nate Andert, Necolai McIntosh
Physics-driven chaos meets minimalist charm. Loops. So many loops.
Pit Captain
By Sophie Schenck, Luc Thomajan, Lucas Foxworthy, Cooper, Zaki, Glenn Truitt
Story-forward strategy with personality to burn.
Brick by Brick– Top 6.5% for Narrative
Pool Loop– Top 10.2% for Creativity
Pit Captain– Top 27% for Narrative
Lake Snoop– Top 47% for Audio
Not bad for two days, minimal sleep, and a campus Wi-Fi connection. (Big shoutout to Derric Clark, Rawad Habib, Teagan Findler for judging—and Tyler Walling for keeping the software gods appeased.)
Because game jams are the closest thing to the industry without actually shipping a commercial title. You learn to sprint, to collaborate under pressure, to kill your darlings when the scope monster comes knocking. It’s the live-fire drill for future indie stars, AAA devs, and experimental art-game innovators alike.
UAT’s game students don’t just watch tutorials—they deploy, iterate, and push code into the wild, and that’s exactly what makes a portfolio stand out in a sea of “concept” projects.
Q: Do you have to be a game programming student to join?
Nope. UAT teams often mix in game artists, designers, and even robotics or cybersecurity students.
Q: How long is the jam?
96 hours of pure scope-management chaos.
Q: Can prospective students get involved?
You can’t compete as an official team member until you’re enrolled, but you can visit the campus, meet the PHX IGDA student chapter, and maybe see jam games in action.
If you’ve ever wanted to code, design, or art-direct a game that strangers across the globe actually play, UAT’s Game Programming, Game Design, and Game Art & Animation degrees are built for it.
📍 Tempe, AZ — Real labs. Real teams. Real deadlines.
🎮 Start your game dev journey at UAT