I think it’s finally time to start writing this devlog.
This weekend, I submitted the Steam store page for Dead End Disposal for review, got the Fortified Studios website online, and worked on finishing up a lot of the game’s core gameplay features. These are all things I’ve been working toward, and having them come together is making the whole thing feel real.
If this is your first time hearing about Dead End Disposal, it’s a first-person factory automation game about turning the remains of the zombie apocalypse into a business. You process corpses, recover materials, build production lines, and fulfill contracts. It’s a strange premise, and I’m excited to keep building it.
But the thing that’s given me the biggest boost lately is setting a release goal: March 2027. I’m also planning to have a demo ready for Steam Next Fest in February 2027. That gives me two clear milestones to work toward, and I’m excited about what that means for both the game and the studio.
Learning to finish
I’ve been developing games on the side for probably ten years. In that time, I’ve started projects, learned a lot, and never taken one all the way to completion.
I’m a perfectionist. There’s always something I want to improve, another feature I could add, or a system I could rebuild a little better. The reality is that no piece of software, and no game, is ever perfect. At some point, I have to decide what belongs in the game, finish it, and let people play it.
That’s a big part of why these deadlines matter to me. They give me a hard goal to hit and a reason to guard against scope creep. Every new idea has to fit into the time I actually have. I want to give Dead End Disposal the care it deserves and get it into players’ hands.
Building something of my own
I’ve been developing software for more than 22 years, and I’ve had the opportunity to ship some really cool apps that millions of people have used. That work has been rewarding, and I’m grateful for everything it’s taught me.
Now I’m ready to bring those lessons into building my own studio.
I’m not doing this to become rich. I hope I can earn enough to keep Fortified Studios going for years to come, because I want to keep making games. I love playing them, I love developing them, and I want this to be something I can sustain.
It still feels like magic
Games are the reason I got into computer science in the first place. One of my earliest gaming memories is playing through the original The Legend of Zelda. Back then, games felt like magic to me.
After all these years, even after learning how they work and pulling back the curtain, they still do.
Knowing how a game is made gives me even more appreciation for it. So many artistic and technical disciplines have to come together to create one cohesive experience for someone. Code, art, sound, music, design: all of those pieces become a place to explore, a problem to solve, or a memory that stays with you for decades.
To me, that’s magical. I want to give some of that magic back to the gaming community that made me want to do this in the first place.
I’ll leave it here for now. Thanks for being here at the beginning. I’m looking forward to sharing more as Dead End Disposal takes shape.