Learn to make games. Five minutes a day.
If tutorials never stuck, that was the format, not you. This one is built to click: a few minutes a day, real practice inside the engine.
- Engines
- 4
- Paths
- 8
- Courses
- 42
- Lessons
- 197
- Capstones
- 50
- Glossary terms
- 188
You tried the tutorials. They did not stick.
Millions of people buy Unity, Unreal, and Godot courses every year, but only 5% to 15% of learners finish an online course (Class Central, 2021). Most give up in the first week. That is the format failing, not you. Long YouTube tutorials drift, paid courses are heavy, and there's nothing in your pocket for the 10-minute pockets of time that actually compound.
The audience exists. The tooling for short, daily, in-engine practice doesn't.
Bite-sized lessons. In-engine practice. Real shipped projects.
JoyStick Academy is a mobile-first learning app modeled on Duolingo's habit loop, with daily streaks, weekly leagues, a gem economy, hearts, and capstone projects. The mobile lessons pair with engine plugins that bring practice into Unity, Unreal, Godot, and Roblox right next to the editor.
You learn on the phone for five minutes. You practice in the actual engine. The capstone gives you a portfolio piece.
Inside every engine
Four full learning tracks built on one gamification engine. 197 lessons, 42 courses, 50 capstones, and 188 curated glossary terms with tap-to-define popups inside every concept card. Engine plugins bring practice next to the editor: the Unity plugin is built and furthest along, with Unreal, Godot, and Roblox Studio plugins in development.
Unity
C#
Beginner + Intermediate paths
Beginner: 6 courses, 25 lessons. Intermediate: 5 courses, 25 lessons.
- Scene + GameObject + Component basics
- Scripting essentials, physics, UI
- 3D world building + scripted interactions
Engine plugin: built, pre-flightUnreal Engine
Blueprints & C++
Beginner + Intermediate paths
Beginner: 5 courses, 21 lessons. Intermediate: 5 courses, 25 lessons.
- Editor tour, Actors + Components
- Blueprints fluency before C++
- World building, physics, replication
Engine plugin: in developmentGodot
GDScript
Beginner + Intermediate paths
Beginner: 5 courses, 21 lessons. Intermediate: 5 courses, 25 lessons.
- Nodes + Scenes + Signals
- GDScript fluency, _process loop
- 2D and 3D scene workflows
Engine plugin: in developmentRoblox Studio
Luau
Beginner + Intermediate paths
Beginner: 6 courses, 30 lessons. Intermediate: 5 courses, 25 lessons.
- Studio + DataModel + Workspace
- Luau scripting, RemoteEvents, DataStores
- FilteringEnabled + replication boundaries
Engine plugin: in development
The real product. Working, right here.
Not screenshots. The actual Flutter app, its lesson step types, the in-lesson animations, and the interactive cards, all embedded live. Pick a tab and try it.
Concept cards with glossary popups
Short bursts of context with technical terms made tappable. Tap a highlighted word to see its definition without leaving the lesson. Used everywhere the app introduces new vocabulary.
What lives inside a Unity scene
Every object in a Unity scene is a . On its own a GameObject does nothing. Behavior comes from attaching s. The most fundamental Component is the , which holds the object's position, rotation, and scale. Tap a highlighted term to see its definition.
Quizzes with why-wrong explanations
Multiple choice with a specific explanation for every wrong option. Picking the right answer matters less than understanding why the other three are wrong.
What does Update() do in a Unity MonoBehaviour?
Fill in the blank
Pattern-match completion against the canonical tokens. The visitor wires up the syntax themselves and sees their thinking get validated line by line.
Move the player forward by 5 units per second.
private Update()
{
transform.Translate(Vector3.forward * 5f * );
}Available tokens
Tap a token to fill the active blank. Tap a filled blank to clear it.
Arrange the lines
Order lines into the canonical sequence. Great for engine lifecycles, state machines, or any ordered process that has to run in a specific way.
Click the methods in the order Unity calls them.
Tap a line to place it. Tap again to remove.
Spot the bug
A pattern-match step where the visitor taps the broken line. Hardest step type for newcomers but the one that builds the most debugging muscle.
Something in this script won't compile. Tap the broken line.
You already want to make games. Five minutes a day is the way in.
Quit a video course feeling like you weren't smart enough? That was the format, not you. Built for adult game devs and serious hobbyists who can't block 90 minutes for a YouTube tutorial but can absolutely do 5 minutes between meetings. The streak does the heavy lifting; the in-engine plugin lands the muscle memory.
A week, roughly
Day 1 streak
5 minutes on the train. First lesson under your belt. Streak counter ticks to 1.
First mistake
You miss a quiz. Hearts grace catches you in the first 3 days. Tomorrow you remember the pattern.
Inside Unity
You open the engine plugin. Today's lesson opens beside your project. You build the thing instead of just reading about it.
Weekly recap
XP earned, lessons completed, league standing. You promoted from Bronze. Streak still alive.
First in line at launch.
Drop your email. You'll get one note when we launch on iOS and Android. No marketing spam; the only recurring email is an optional weekly progress digest you turn on yourself.
- Early access to the iOS and Android beta
- Lifetime founding-member pricing on Premium
- Optional weekly progress digest
Not Duolingo for code. Duolingo for game dev.
The mobile habit loop is a solved pattern. The mobile habit loop for game development, with practice inside the actual engine, doesn't exist yet.
And we're building it users-first: the near-term goal is a loyal, returning user base, not early revenue. We earn the habit, and let the revenue follow.
Game dev, not generic code
Mimo, Sololearn, Brilliant all teach generic programming. We teach Unity, Unreal, Godot, and Roblox with content authored against the real engine APIs, not toy languages.
In-engine practice via engine plugins
No other learn-to-code app brings practice into the editor. Our Unity plugin (built, in pre-flight) opens lessons beside your project, so muscle memory builds where games are actually built. Unreal, Godot, and Roblox Studio plugins are in development.
Capstone-driven, not lesson-driven
Every path ends with a shippable mini-game. 50 capstone briefs across the catalog, server-graded with PDF certificates. Output is a portfolio piece, not a streak count.
Habit loop for adults
Streaks, leagues, gems, and hearts power the daily return. Hearts grace for the first 3 days, vacation mode, streak revival, and adaptive goal suggestions keep adults coming back without the punitive feel.
| Feature | JoyStick Academy | Mimo | Sololearn | Brilliant |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mobile-first daily lessons | ||||
| Streaks + leagues + hearts | ||||
| Game development focus | ||||
| In-engine practice plugin | ||||
| Capstone projects with certificate | ||||
| Four major engines covered |
Competitor coverage based on each product's public feature pages as of 2026. Mimo focuses on web + Python + SQL; Sololearn on broad language coverage; Brilliant on math + CS concepts.
Vs the game-dev education category
The other framing: not “mobile learning apps” but “where people actually learn game dev today.” Long-form course libraries and YouTube tutorials own the category. We're not trying to beat them on depth; we're betting on cadence + practice surface.
| Feature | JoyStick Academy | GameDev.tv | Zenva | Udemy | YouTube |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mobile-first daily lessons | |||||
| 5-minute lessons (not 90 min) | |||||
| In-engine practice plugin | |||||
| Structured beginner→intermediate path | |||||
| Server-graded capstones with certificate | |||||
| Streaks + leagues + habit loop | |||||
| Free path you can actually learn on | |||||
| Four major engines under one roof |
GameDev.tv and Zenva ship paid structured course libraries with Unity + Unreal + Godot coverage. Udemy is a marketplace of one-off courses with varying quality. YouTube is free + dominant on top-of-funnel and has to be honestly named on any game-dev competitive landscape.
Why the obvious incumbents don't just do this
Two fair questions: why won't Duolingo add a game-dev track, and why won't the big course libraries (GameDev.tv, Zenva, Udemy) ship a mobile app? Game dev is too niche for a mass-market language app to prioritize, and the course libraries are built around the 90-minute video lesson, a format and a production pipeline that don't port to a 5-minute mobile cadence. Neither has a reason to build inside the engine. The opening isn't a feature gap a competitor patches in a sprint; it's a focus gap.
Users first. Revenue follows.
The near-term goal is a large, retained user base, not early monetization. We grow and keep users first, and let revenue follow the trust that retention builds. Subscriptions carry the long-term value; gem packs, opt-in rewarded ads, referrals, and the creator program shape the funnel around them and keep the free path genuinely viable, never pressuring the user or short-circuiting the free experience.
- 01Primary
Subscriptions
Recurring revenue. Monthly, annual with 7-day free trial, and one-time lifetime. Premium unlocks unlimited hearts, free streak freezes, 2× XP baseline, premium cosmetics, and replayable lessons.
- $2.99 / week
- $8.99 / month
- $59.99 / year (44% off)
- $129.99 lifetime
- 02Secondary
Gem packs
Consumable IAPs for heart refills, streak freezes, and hint unlocks. First gem pack carries a 50% bonus to lower the activation barrier.
- $0.99 / $4.99 / $9.99 / $19.99
- +50% on first pack
- 03
Rewarded ads
Opt-in, capped per day, hidden for premium. Three triggers: heart refill, +5 gems, free Bronze chest. Keeps a free path that pays without becoming a free-to-play attention sink.
- +1 heart per ad
- +5 gems (5/day)
- Free chest (1/day)
- 04
In-app referrals
Friction-free invite loop. Both sides get 100 gems on signup. Milestone Premium grants at 1, 3, 5, 10, and 25 referrals tighten the loop without spam.
- 100 gems both sides
- Anti-abuse fingerprinting
- 05Curated
Creator affiliate
Selected game dev YouTubers and creators get a unique link. 30% commission on a referred user's first billing period, then 10% on later renewals within a year of signup. First-touch attribution via device fingerprint.
- 30% first period, then 10% on renewals
- Up to a year from signup
What comes next.
Public launch is the keystone. The app is built; we hold the store launch for plugin parity because in-engine practice across all four engines is the wedge we want live on day one. After that: premium depth and reach, capstones you build inside the engine, and the flagship, building complete games from scratch. Then a new frontier: modding the games you already play.
- In flightNowRight now
- Lesson experience overhaul: outcome cards, in-line glossary, why-wrong explanations, and mid-lesson rewards, now live across every lesson.
- Animated infographics, starting with the foundational courses.
- Live plugin-to-phone loop: finishing a step in the engine credits XP and gems on your phone right away.
- Q3 2026Engine parity
- Unreal Engine in-editor plugin.
- Godot Engine in-editor plugin.
- Roblox Studio in-editor plugin.
- Q4 2026Public launch
- iOS and Android public store launch, with all four engine plugins live at launch.
- Q1 2027Premium depth & reach
- AI tutor chat: ask questions about the lesson you're on.
- Skill Map: a constellation of game-dev skills that fills in as you learn, flags your weak spots, and tops out only when you prove a skill by building with it.
- Lesson-level solutions and comments threads open.
- Localization.
- Q2 2027Deeper capstones
- Capstone Studio: build your path capstone inside the engine, guided step by step, with the plugin verifying each milestone live. You watch each piece turn green the moment it works, then submit a capstone you already know is sound. It runs on the same in-engine verification that powers Project-Based Paths.
- Q3 2027Build real games
- Project-Based Paths: a new Projects track where you build a complete game inside the engine, guided step by step and checked live by the plugin. No quizzes, just do, verify, advance.
- The pilot is Survival Island in Unity: resource gathering, crafting, survival stats, combat, and building, all coded by you. You finish with a real game you can play, publish, and remix.
- Q4 2027Show your work
- WebGL portfolio: pass a path capstone or finish a project, then publish your actual game as a playable in-browser build behind a shareable link. Real proof you built something, for a friend, a Discord, or a resume.
- 2028Modding paths
- A new track for modding the games you already play, not just building from scratch. Same five-minutes-a-day format, pointed at the mods millions of players actually run.
- First up, GTA 5 FiveM: the GTA 5 multiplayer platform, now part of Rockstar Games.
- Then Minecraft modding: one of the biggest modding communities in gaming.
Subject to change. We update this page when the plan moves.
Built by one founder, from Morocco.
JoyStick Academy is a solo build. Every line of code, every lesson, every engine plugin commit ships from the same desk. Capital efficient by design.
Walid Mahfoud
Founder · Game Developer
A data engineer who shipped a complete product solo. The mobile app, the 4-engine catalog, the backend, the admin tooling, and the marketing site you're reading right now: five distinct surfaces, all one person's output, built methodically since late 2025.
By day, a Data Engineer at SanlamAllianz, one of Africa's largest insurers, building distributed pipelines and production data platforms. The credentials behind that: a Master's in Big Data and AI, a degree in Mathematics, Data Science, and Computer Science, and professional certifications across Azure, Microsoft Fabric, Databricks, Terraform, and CompTIA.JoyStick Academy applies that same data-and-infrastructure discipline to an education product. The day job funds the build today; once the raise closes, JoyStick Academy is the full-time job.
Game dev is the long-running parallel track: engines, level design, and the loops underneath how shipped games actually feel. Solo through the build to stay lean and capital-efficient; the first hires after a raise are growth and content. Investors and partners get a direct line, no layers.
Beyond the build, Walid leads in the Global Shapers community, a World Economic Forum network: Curator of the Mohammedia hub and previously its VP of HR.
The mobile habit loop, applied to game development.
A category of learner doesn't have a product yet: adults who already know they want to build games, can only spare a few minutes a day, and want to practice inside the actual engine. JoyStick Academy is the first product built for them.
Why now
Mobile-first works for adults
Duolingo took the daily-streak mobile loop to public-company scale, and Mimo, Sololearn, and Brilliant all built real subscription businesses on the same pattern. The loop converts for serious skill acquisition, and it is no longer novel.
Game dev demand outgrew supply
Roblox creator economy, the indie boom, and the rise of game dev YouTube created a generation that wants to build games but can't find a mobile-first way in. Long video tutorials dominate. Completion sits in the single digits.
The barrier to building is falling
AI assistants and maturing creator-economy monetization are pulling more people toward making their own games, not just playing them. At the same time Unity LTS, Unreal 5, Godot 4, and Roblox Studio have all settled into stable targets, so we can teach craft that stays current instead of chasing API churn.
Market
A proven app-learning category
Duolingo is a public company doing hundreds of millions in annual revenue on the daily-streak loop, and Mimo, Sololearn, and Brilliant all run real subscription businesses. The willingness to pay for mobile skill-building is established, not speculative.
Large engine developer bases
Unity has one of the largest registered-developer bases in software, and Roblox runs one of the largest creator economies on the internet. The people who want to build inside these tools already number in the millions.
JoyStick Academy sits at the intersection
Aspiring game devs who want a mobile habit loop are served by neither the learn-to-code apps (no game engines) nor the engines themselves (no daily practice loop). That gap between two large, proven markets is the opening.
Product depth as proof of work
197+ lessons
Across 42 courses on 8 learning paths. Beginner and Intermediate tracks for each of the 4 supported engines.
50 capstones
Server-graded submissions with PDF certificates and public verification URLs. Path-level and course-level briefs.
188 glossary terms
Curated across all 4 engines with cross-engine semantic handling. In-app popups attach a glossary entry to every technical term in lesson prose.
Proof of execution
Pre-launch: no public users yet. What exists today is a fully built, production-deployed product. The first cohort arrives at public launch (see the roadmap above).
Surfaces built
5
The mobile app, the 4-engine catalog, the backend, the admin tooling, and this marketing site. The backend, catalog, admin, and site run in production today; the mobile app is fully built and pre-launch.
Commits
1,061+
Built steadily since the first commit in late 2025. A working product, not a pitch deck.
Infrastructure
Live
Backend, content catalog, admin tooling, and marketing site, all in production today on one Supabase project and one schema. The mobile app and Unity plugin run against that same live backend.
What competitors would have to rebuild
Nobody else ships inside the engine
Every other learn-to-code app is platform-agnostic. We ship inside Unity, Unreal, Godot, and Roblox Studio, a practice surface no broad-skill competitor has the focus to build, and an in-editor switching cost a platform-agnostic app can't match.
The authoring system behind the catalog
197 lessons + 188 glossary terms + 50 capstones, authored to a strict step-shape contract and verified across four engines. The durable asset isn't the raw count, it's the validator + admin tooling + content pipeline built to produce and maintain it. Replicating that is a year of focused work, not a copy-paste job.
End-to-end data ownership
Capstone submissions, certificate PDFs, league cohorts, moderation queue, step-feedback aggregation, all in one Supabase project with one schema we control. Competitors stitching together off-the-shelf platforms can't move at the same speed.
What has to go right
Retention is unproven pre-launch
The thesis is a retention loop, and there's no live retention data yet. The loop is built on the proven Duolingo pattern, tuned for adults (hearts grace, vacation mode, streak revival, no guilt-tripping). The first launch cohort is the validation gate.
Four-engine scope is wide
Four engines is a lot of surface for a small team. Unity is the depth showcase; engines two through four ride the same authoring pipeline, validator, and plugin architecture, so breadth reuses one system instead of rebuilding four.
Solo founder is key-person risk
One person is the bus factor today. The build proves end-to-end execution across mobile, backend, and in-engine; the founder goes full-time at the raise, and the first hires after that are growth and content, so the founder stops being the only throughput.
In-engine verification is new ground
Verifying a learner's work live inside the editor is novel and engine-specific. The Unity plugin is furthest along and is the proving ground; the verification layer is hardened there before the other engines adopt it.
What backing accelerates
The product is built; the backend, catalog, admin, and this site run in production, and the mobile app is fully built and pre-launch. This isn't a priced round; we're looking for strategic partners and early backers to fund the next chapter:
- Engine-plugin parity shipped sooner across Unreal, Godot, and Roblox.
- Content velocity to deepen all four engine tracks.
- Go-to-market for the iOS and Android launch.
Reach out for the full plan, or email walid.mahfoud@joystickstudios.ma directly.
30% of each referred subscriber's first billing period, then 10% on renewals for up to a year.
Built for game dev YouTubers, devloggers, streamers, and Discord community admins. Your audience already wants this. The first creator a viewer sees gets the credit.
- 01
Apply to the early creator program
Email a short pitch (audience, platforms, content focus). The first round of creators onboards at launch. Applications reviewed directly by us. Most decisions inside a week.
- 02
Get your link and asset kit
Unique slug at joystick-academy.com/c/your-slug, QR code for video CTAs, and a brand asset kit sent to you once you're accepted into the program.
- 03
Earn on renewals for up to a year
30% of a referred subscriber's first billing period, then 10% of each later renewal within a 12-month window from signup. Monthly plans renew, so they keep paying across the window; annual and lifetime plans bill once, so they pay the 30% and no recurring share. Paid monthly, no minimum threshold.
The app is pre-launch; public launch is planned for Q4 2026 (see the roadmap). Links, attribution, and payouts go live with the first creator cohort at launch; applying now puts you in that first round.
Program details
Vanity link + QR code
Memorable URL for video CTAs and stream overlays. QR for mobile-friendly conversion right from the screen.
Device fingerprint attribution
Most mobile affiliate programs lose credit at the app-store install. We use a salted device fingerprint to attribute signups across that handoff, so first touch reliably gets the credit.
Clear, recurring money terms
30% of a referred subscriber's first billing period, then 10% on each later renewal within a 12-month window from signup. Most programs pay a one-time bounty; yours keeps paying across that window. Paid monthly, no minimum, non-exclusive.
Brand asset kit on acceptance
Logo, hero images, key art, and platform-specific cuts (YouTube thumbnails, Twitch panels, Instagram tiles) sent to you once you're accepted into the program. Drop straight into your edit.
Direct line to us
Questions about the catalog, custom content, or your specific audience come straight to us. No tiered support, no ticketing.
Or email walid.mahfoud@joystickstudios.ma directly.
Game dev training built for completion, in the engines your students will actually use.
Capstone-certified across Unity, Unreal, Godot, and Roblox. Mobile-first daily lessons paired with in-engine plugin practice. Fits flipped classrooms and hybrid teaching without competing with your faculty.
Curriculum fit
Beginner + Intermediate per engine
Two structured paths each for Unity, Unreal, Godot, and Roblox. Students can specialize in their target engine without switching platforms.
Built for completion
Short daily lessons are designed to keep students coming back across a full term. Test-out checkpoints let students skip what they already know. Every lesson collects per-step feedback today; cohort-level views for instructors are on the pilot roadmap.
Term-fit by the numbers
A Beginner path runs 5 to 6 courses and 21 to 30 short lessons of 5 to 15 minutes each, plus course mini-projects (1.5 to 3 hours) and a path capstone (4 to 8 hours). Sequenced Beginner into Intermediate with weekly in-engine plugin practice, the two paths fill a standard 12 to 15 week term at a lesson a day.
Works around faculty
Use as supplementary practice or formative assessment alongside your syllabus. You decide how completions and capstone certificates count toward course grades. Capstone briefs and rubrics are open for review before you commit.
Capstone certification (50 briefs)
Path-level and course-level briefs
Big projects at the end of each path, smaller mini-projects at the end of individual courses.
Server-graded with feedback
Submissions reviewed against rubrics, with structured feedback and revision cycles.
PDF certificate per pass
Verifiable URL on each certificate. Students can share publicly, link on LinkedIn, or submit with applications.
Portfolio output, not transcript
Students walk away with a working game and proof, not just a row in a database.
Sample. Live certificates carry a unique verification URL.
Built for institutions
Privacy and student data
In-app data export and account deletion are implemented today, designed to support GDPR data-subject rights (Article 20 export, Article 17 deletion). Student-records handling follows a FERPA-aware posture, governed by our published privacy policy.
Instructor visibility
Every capstone pass produces a verifiable certificate your faculty can confirm by URL, so completion is auditable per student. Cohort dashboards, LMS integration, and SSO are planned with the first pilot partners; we scope them together during the pilot.
Start small, expand later
Begin with a single class or a small cohort, prove it out, then expand across the department. No long commitment to get going.
The app is fully built and in pre-launch testing. Pilot cohorts can start on early-access builds ahead of the Q4 2026 store launch; tell us your target term and we will confirm feasibility and lead time.