Studio Blue Jay’s Origin Story
Jay Lam presenting ‘Ghost Jukebox’ at the 2024 Cambridge Science Festival.
In August 2023, Jay Lam wrapped up another successful summer at MassDiGI as a 2D Game Artist and Marketing Liaison, and started preparing his Master’s thesis project for his final year at Clark University.
Reflecting on his personal experiences with romance and relationships, Jay, a gay man and sci-fi lover, noticed a lack of games that explored long-term romance, especially ones featuring gay men as protagonists. This inspired him to create a game with those aspects, which he developed as part of his thesis.
‘Starbound Wanderers’ Main Menu by Nico Delos Reyes and Jay Lam.
‘Project: Runaway Gay Space Sci-Fi Fantasy Romance Gone Wrong!’, later renamed ‘Starbound Wanderers’ was Jay’s thesis project as a Producer and 2D Artist. He assembled and led a team of graduate and undergraduate students, as well as recent alumni, to help develop the game as a part of his MFA thesis course. Studio Blue Jay was the team’s name!
‘Starbound Wanderers’ was a game about a gay couple — Kaveh and Zhengyang, divided by social class conflict, ran away into outer space to be together, only to crash onto an isolated planet. They must maintain their long-term relationship, while surviving off the land, and fighting bounty hunters and alien fauna who chase after them.
Miss Maness.
In January 2024, Miss Maness joined the project as Lead Audio and Music Composer for ‘Starbound Wanderers’, later becoming Audio Director, Lead Music Composer, and Sound Designer for ‘Ghost Jukebox’, and a Co-Founder of Studio Blue Jay.
She graduated from Berklee College of Music in May 2023, and is currently studying for her Master’s in Computer Science. She wanted to be a part of providing more LGBTQ+ stories, and always wished there were more characters like herself and her friends!
Cameron Connolly.
Around the same time, Cameron Connolly, who graduated from Fitchburg State University back in December 2022, was searching for game studio experiences to rekindle his passion for working on a game together with a team.
He joined as Lead Writer and Game Designer for ‘Starbound Wanderers’, later becoming Narrative Director, Lead Writer, and Game Designer for ‘Ghost Jukebox’, and a Co-Founder of Studio Blue Jay.
Jay Lam’s Master’s Graduation Cap.
Jay decided to continue the studio after graduating with a Master of Fine Arts in Interactive Media / Game Development in May 2024.
He was motivated by his peers to keep creating fun games with diverse content (including LGBTQ+, BIPOC, fem-aligned, and neurodivergent).
A few folks from the old team stuck around. He tackled on the roles of Co-Founder and Marketing Director, alongside as Producer and 2D Artist, for Studio Blue Jay.
‘Ghost Jukebox’ Gameplay Concept Art by Fée Brandt.
‘Ghost Jukebox’ spawned from several nights of pitching new game ideas for Studio Blue Jay’s first official debut game as an indie studio over the Summer of 2024. Paige Webster came up with the game concept, Riley McMahon imagined the initial story, and a test build was put together by Miles Burden, Blake Shea, and Cori J. Toala — five former members of Studio Blue Jay.
This was how our cozy rhythm game came to be! ‘Ghost Jukebox’ is about a ghost with no memory of who they were, stuck in purgatory, helping lost souls move onto the afterlife with the power of music therapy.
What made the game unique from other rhythm games were: music notes in the rhythm game based on different emotions capable of influencing the story into various branching paths, and a point-and-click mode to take a break and relax with a soothing environment and chill tunes.
Isabelle Colantuonio.
Isabelle Colantuonio joined Studio Blue Jay in June 2024 as Art Director and Lead Environment Artist for ‘Ghost Jukebox’, and as a Co-Founder of Studio Blue Jay.
Jay met Isabelle at Boston Indies: Lightning Talks in August 2023, when she was an undergraduate student at Lesley University. They kept in-contact through Discord, and kept running into each other at local Boston game developer events! Studio Blue Jay gave her the opportunity to experience working in an indie studio.
She supports Studio Blue Jay’s mission for diversity, equity, accessibility, and inclusion — as a diverse individual herself, and plans to get her Master’s in Education at Tufts University to teach.
Cy Nelson’s Avatar.
Cy Nelson — a fellow Clark University alumni, was recruited into Studio Blue Jay towards the end of June 2024 as an UI/UX Artist and Animator for ‘Ghost Jukebox’.
They also run their own studio as Project Psyclone Productions. Their talented work as a Video Editor with knowledge as an Audio Designer, helped create our second trailer. Their enthusiasm ties our team together!
Rose Briggs.
Rose Briggs is a Computer Science student at Smith College who caught wind of Studio Blue Jay from a mutual friend. She saw the description of ‘Ghost Jukebox’ and thought it looked super cool!
She joined as a Programmer in November 2024, and got promoted to Lead Programmer in January 2024. Rose and Bastión refined many of our game’s systems and our code.
Bastión Toledo-Altamirano’s Avatar.
Bastión Toledo-Altamirano reached out to Jay during September 2024, seeking opportunities in game development to expand diversity and representation!
They officially joined Studio Blue Jay in January 2025, after graduating from Northeastern University in December 2024.
Their next adventure is studying for their master’s at Worcester Polytechnic Institute to become a professor. Bastión is our current Lead Game Designer and Programmer.
‘Ghost Jukebox’ Header.
With ‘Ghost Jukebox’, Studio Blue Jay hopes to create memorable experiences with atmospheric visuals and music in a stress-free environment.
We want to remove the stigma away from therapy and chats about mental health, and get to experience memorable stories.
From loss, grief, denial, fear, anger, bargaining, love, closure, acceptance, and many more emotions in the shoes of lost souls from the beyond.
Studio Blue Jay logo.
Studio Blue Jay is a team made up of diverse individuals who want to create fun games that include diverse audiences!
We are passionate people committed to fostering representation and equity in the gaming industry, working on projects that break barriers and offer new perspectives for players.