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Earlier this year, Jamaicans.com featured Derryk MacGregor, Jordan Thompson Pamba and Chad Wilson, the team behind Kingston-based indie game developer BChaotic, following the launch of their first commercial video game, Bubblexity, on Steam. Their story made us curious about what else was happening in Jamaica’s game development community.

We reached out to the Jamaica Game Developer Society (JGDS) and found a small but ambitious community of Jamaican developers releasing games on some of the world’s biggest gaming platforms. Many are drawing directly on Jamaican culture, folklore and everyday experiences to create something distinctive for global audiences.

Founded in 2013, the JGDS supports Jamaica’s emerging game development sector through education, networking, showcases and connections with the wider interactive design community.

For spokesperson and organiser Glen Henry, the games now emerging demonstrate what can happen when creators draw confidently on their own experiences.

“Jamaican game developers have the talent, skill and the passion to make truly special interactive experiences,” Henry told Jamaicans.com. “Drawing from our unique background and perspectives, we have proven that we can express ourselves by putting something fresh and exciting out into the world.”

He believes there is “a clear appetite for stories unapologetically for us and by us.” But for the industry to grow, Henry says it needs greater support at home.

“What’s needed now is more home-grown support as we collectively develop sustainable pathways for this creative sector.”

Here are four new and recently released games showing what Jamaica’s emerging game development community is bringing to the global industry.

Jamaican Ludi: Brings a Favourite Pastime Online

Almost everyone knows Ludo. Ludi, however, is the Jamaican version generations have played at kitchen tables, on verandahs and in yards, complete with its own rules, terminology and, inevitably, arguments.

Hemiogenic Interactive, working with Willow Tree Studios Collective, is taking that experience online with Jamaican Ludi, a 3D multiplayer interpretation of the game scheduled to enter Steam Early Access on September 25, 2026.

The project began when Tyreik Pennicooke built a Ludi prototype and Akeem Pennicooke of Hemiogenic Interactive saw the potential to develop it into a full 3D game.

What distinguishes Jamaican Ludi is the developers’ attempt to capture not simply what the board looks like, but how Jamaicans actually play the game.

Players roll physics-based dice, get “born” after rolling a six, cut rivals and send them “back a yard”, form roadblocks and must get their four pawns home on an exact finish. Captures are accompanied by cinematic finishers and Patois callouts, while players can even see their opponents’ virtual hands hovering over the board before they make a move.

The 3D boards draw inspiration from Jamaican parishes and other Caribbean islands, while online multiplayer allows two to four people to play in public rooms, private games and tournaments. Solo players can also compete against computer-controlled opponents.

The game will launch on Steam Early Access for US$6.99, with free, ad-supported versions for iOS and Android planned to follow. On PC, cosmetics are earned through gameplay rather than in-app purchases.

The developers also plan to use Early Access to explore something Jamaicans know well: not every yard plays Ludi exactly the same way. Feedback from players will help inform the addition of house-rule variations as development continues.

For Jamaicans in the diaspora, that creates an interesting possibility: the familiar experience of playing Ludi with family and friends no longer has to end when everyone lives in different countries.

Duppy Detective: Tashia Turns Folklore Into Gameplay

A missing cell phone, a market hidden beneath a sprawling cotton tree and a murder involving duppies provide the foundation for Duppy Detective: Tashia, released on Steam in June 2026.

Developed by Kingston-based one-man studio Spritewrench, the point-and-click mystery adventure follows Tashia as the search for her stolen phone leads her into Halfway Market, a supernatural marketplace populated by duppies.

What begins as a search for her property quickly becomes a murder investigation. Players explore the market, interrogate suspects and gather clues while encountering characters and creatures drawn from Jamaican and wider Caribbean folklore, including Anansi.

Rather than treating those references as background decoration, Duppy Detective makes them central to the world players must understand and navigate.

The approach appears to be finding an audience beyond Jamaica. Spritewrench said the game launched with approximately 12,000 Steam wishlists and described the response as encouraging evidence of an appetite for culturally grounded stories in spaces where they have not traditionally received much attention.

The game’s music also carries that cultural approach. Composer Chase Bethea has described creating what he calls a “Caribbean Noir” sound for the game, combining the atmosphere of the detective story with musical influences appropriate to its setting.

Duppy Detective: Tashia is available on Steam.

Gravity’s Edge: Brings Jamaican Flair to New Worlds

Gravity’s Edge, an action-adventure game from Kassle Games LLC, takes players into colourful extraterrestrial worlds where manipulating gravity is fundamental to getting around.

Players can run upside down, navigate unusual environments, battle aliens and uncover hidden areas either alone or in local co-op. Kassle Games describes those worlds as having “BIG Jamaican flair”, bringing elements of the developers’ cultural identity into a science-fiction setting rather than building a game around a traditional cultural story.

That distinction is important.

Jamaican representation in games does not have to mean every title is explicitly about Jamaica. Developers can also take their perspectives, humour, aesthetics and creative influences into genres that already command international audiences.

Released on May 6, 2026, Gravity’s Edge is available on Steam for PC.

Ourlands: Cosy Island Building Full of Chill Vibes

Independent developer Graham Reid, better known as GrahamOfLegend, takes a decidedly relaxed approach with Ourlands, a cosy island-building game released on Steam and the Epic Games Store in June 2026.

There are no enemies to defeat, cities to manage or objectives demanding players’ attention. Instead, players create small islands at their own pace, discovering items and arranging environments ranging from beachside campfires to quiet rocky landscapes.

The philosophy behind the game is summed up by Reid simply: “No goals, no management, just vibes.”

Players can also turn their creations into virtual postcards and share them with others, with Reid inviting the community to submit their creations for the possibility of being featured in the game.

While several of the games featured here draw directly on Jamaican culture, Ourlands shows another side of the country’s game development talent. Reid is creating for the international cosy gaming genre, demonstrating the range of games emerging from the local development community.

Building an industry worth supporting

Getting a game onto a global platform does not guarantee that players will find it.

For independent developers competing against thousands of releases, visibility matters. Wishlisting an upcoming game, buying or downloading a release, leaving a review, following the developer and sharing a title with other gamers can all help a small studio reach a larger audience.

For Jamaica’s emerging game development community, that home-grown audience may be particularly important.

As Henry argues, the talent and ideas already exist. The question is whether an ecosystem can develop around them that allows more Jamaican creators to turn those ideas into sustainable businesses.

The current crop of releases offers a glimpse of what that could look like: Jamaican developers using one of the world’s most powerful entertainment mediums to tell their own stories, reinterpret familiar traditions and create entirely new worlds for players everywhere.

And they are doing it on the same global platforms as everyone else.

For T’sana “Winty Quinty” Wint, motorsport has never simply been about speed. It is a passion that began in childhood, became an escape during one of the most difficult periods of her life and has now put her on a mission to help grow the sport she loves.

The Manchester native is currently the only woman actively competing in Jamaican rally motorsport, having worked her way from marshalling and navigating to getting behind the wheel herself. More recently, she has added another role to the list: event organiser.

It is a journey that can be traced all the way back to her childhood in Manchester.

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A Love of Cars From Childhood

Wint estimates that she was just three or four years old when her fascination with cars began. Her mother had bought her first car, a Ford Cortina, and whenever her family was working on it, a young T’sana wanted to be right there with them.

“I used to be right there in the middle of the bonnet with them,” she recalled. “I used to be right there getting myself greasy.”

Her first experience operating a car came from the passenger seat, where she learned how to change gears before eventually progressing to the driver’s seat as she got older.

Motorsport was also happening around her. Growing up in Manchester, Wint remembers watching rallying and hill climbs come through her community. Those childhood experiences planted the idea that one day she could be more than a spectator.

As her interest grew, Jamaican motorsport figures David Summerbell Jr. and Doug Gore became inspirations and later mentors. Wint wanted to become a professional racing driver but recognised that she did not have the financial resources or opportunities to immediately pursue that ambition.

Instead, she found other ways into the sport.

Working Her Way Into the Driver’s Seat

Wint’s journey into competitive motorsport did not begin behind the wheel. She spent time marshalling at events before moving into competition in 2022, first as a co-driver and navigator and eventually as a driver.

By 2025, she had made her mark behind the wheel, taking first place in the JA1 driver class in the Montego Bay Racing Association’s competition. JA1 is an entry-level two-wheel-drive class for cars with engine capacities up to 1,400 cc.

Her competition car is a 1998 Hyundai Accent, which she describes as a beginner car, but she has her sights set on eventually moving into a Mitsubishi Evo VIII. The Evo VIII was a car of choice for David Summerbell Jr., one of the Jamaican motorsport figures Wint looked up to as a young fan and later came to regard as a mentor.

Although she has not competed in 2026, Wint has remained active in motorsport, shifting her focus towards event organisation.

Being the only woman on the rally scene during her time competing might seem intimidating, but Wint says her experience has been quite the opposite. She is also careful to point out that other Jamaican women competed before her.

“I’ve never felt pressured doing rally motorsport,” she said.

Instead, she describes Jamaica’s motorsport community as a family, where experienced racers offer advice, training and encouragement to those willing to learn.

“Once you’re willing to learn, once you’re willing to be a part of the sport, it’s all caring, comforting.”

Her advice to other women considering motorsport is equally straightforward: “If you’re thinking about it, do it now. Go ahead and go for it. Seize the opportunity and grab every opportunity that you get in life.”

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Bringing Motorsport Back Home

After years of competing at events across Jamaica, Wint began thinking about what had happened to the rallying and hill climbs she remembered from childhood in Manchester.

The idea gained momentum after she competed at a night sprint at Brighton River in St Elizabeth in May 2025, one of the most memorable events of her racing career.

She began asking organisers about staging something similar in Manchester but soon discovered the challenges involved in hosting motorsport on public roads.

Rather than abandon the idea, Wint started doing the groundwork herself.

She approached local authorities and the National Works Agency (NWA), researched the requirements and began developing a proposal that addressed safety for competitors, residents and spectators.

What followed was roughly five months of planning, consultations, engineering work and securing the necessary support to stage what became Hilltop Badness.

“I wanted to see something else add to our lineup of activities,” Wint explained. “It was a part of our history, a part of our heritage, and I don’t see why we can’t have it if we can maintain certain safety aspects.”

Eventually, the NWA agreed to give the event a chance.

Hilltop Badness made its debut in Manchester on May 3rd, 2026. Despite working with what Wint describes as a minimal budget, the event attracted support from residents, police, motorsport competitors and fans.

For Wint, it was about more than racing. She wanted the event to bring activity into the community, support youth development and generate economic opportunities within the parish.

And when she could not convince someone else to make it happen, she decided to do it herself. “I decided to take the bull by the horn,” she said.

A Mother’s Pride

Behind Wint’s racing identity is a much more personal story.

The name “Winty Quinty” belonged first to her mother, who would give people a little wink whenever she was saying goodbye. A friend began calling her “Winty Quinty”, and the nickname stuck.

Her mother died about a decade ago, a loss Wint says sent her into a deep depression. During that period, motorsport became one of the things that helped reconnect her with life.

“Racing was what brought me back,” she said. “Sitting and watching racing and stuff like that was when I felt alive.”

When she eventually transitioned into the racing seat herself, she thought about the fact that her mother would never get to see that side of her.

Adopting “Winty Quinty” as her racing identity became a way of carrying her mother with her.

“I wanted to have that bit somewhere in my thought at the time of racing,” she explained. “The upgraded me and the me coming out of depression as Winty Quinty, which is my mom’s name, and taking her along the route with me.”

She now plans to establish the Winty Quinty Racing Foundation in her mother’s honour, with hopes of using it to encourage and develop another generation of Jamaican motorsport talent.

Glam Goddess and Mom Outside the Circuit

Wint’s life away from the track could hardly be more different.

A therapist by profession, she operates Glits and Glamour Body Contouring and Detox Studio in Manchester, providing services including massages, facials and detox treatments. She is also the mother of a teenage son, balancing motherhood and running a business with her involvement in motorsport.

Her working week is built around creating a quiet, relaxing environment for clients. Her weekends can involve dust, engines, noise and adrenaline.

Yet she says racing is where she finds her own peace.

Once the helmet goes on, the pressures of business, home and everyday life disappear. Her attention has to be completely fixed on the road and getting from start to finish safely.

“You’re so focused on driving to not make mistakes. You’re so focused on getting it right. You’re so focused on getting to the line in one piece and in a good time. Everything else, you shut it out.”

For Wint, that focus is part of what makes motorsport so addictive.

“I do it for the fun. I do it for feeling empowered. And I do it for feeling like I’m me.”

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What’s Next for Winty Quinty?

Wint has not competed in 2026, but she has remained firmly involved in motorsport, turning her attention towards creating opportunities for other racers and building on the success of Hilltop Badness.

The next staging, Hilltop Badness: Clash of the Titans, is set for 11 October at Melrose Hill in Manchester. Positioned as a race meet ahead of the Christmas holiday season, the event will once again bring motorsport to an area where racing events were once a familiar part of the community.

The success of the inaugural Hilltop Badness in May has helped drum up greater interest, with racers in Jamaica and overseas expressing an interest in participating in future events. Ahead of Clash of the Titans, Wint is also collaborating with Stunner Media on a series featuring some of the drivers expected to participate.

The October event is part of a bigger vision. Wint says communities elsewhere in Jamaica have already approached her about bringing events similar to Hilltop Badness to their parishes. She now sees event organisation as another way to grow the sport, create opportunities for younger racers and help develop Jamaica’s next generation of motorsport talent.

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Les forces de l’ordre sont parties à l’assaut des bastions des gangs dans les hauteurs de Gressier. Le week-end écoulé les unités spécialisées de la Police, appuyées par la task force, ont lancé des opérations contre les repaires des gangs dans la zone de Morne à Chandelle, qui relie Carrefour à Gressier. L’ex député M. Antonio Vericain, explique que les membres des unités spécialisées avaient bénéficié d’un support aérien. Un hélicoptère avait pu survoler les zones sous contrôle de malfrats.

Les habitants de Gressier saluent ces opérations et appellent à leur intensification. De nombreux citoyens redoutent que les autorités policières ne concentrent leur action au centre ville de Gressier ce qui reviendrait à livrer les sections communales aux gangs. Les habitants réclament la libération de la totalité de la commune afin de favoriser une reprise des activités économiques notamment agricole.

Deux stratégies distinctes 

Les gangs qui occupent les hauteurs de Gressier n’auraient pas des attaches avec les malfrats du centre ville. L’ex député Vericain soutient que les informations, communiquées par les habitants, laissent croire que ces criminels disposent de repaires à Carrefour. Ils avaient depuis plusieurs années pris le contrôle de la route de Morne à Chandelle en installant des postes de péages.

Contrairement aux membres du gang 103 zombies qui détruit tout sur leur passage au centre ville les criminels dans les mornes affichent leur volonté de cohabiter avec les habitants. En plus des postes de péages pour rançonner les automobilistes, ils pressent les habitants à tuer leur bétail pour les nourrir et ils imposent des contributions aux marchandes. 

Ainsi les bandits utilisent les citoyens comme boucliers humains afin de se prémunir d’une vaste offensive des forces de l’ordre. C’est pratiquent le revers de la médaille pour les habitants des sections rurales reculées. Autrefois paisibles ces zones sont devenues des bastions des malfrats alors que le centre ville est récupéré au fur et à mesure par les unités spécialisées.

Renforcement du dispositif sécuritaire 

Les renforts importants ont été acheminés la semaine écoulée à Gressier. Des dizaines de membres d’unités spécialisées avec des blindés et un engin lourd pour démolir les constructions ont été déployés. Après plus d’une année d’attente ce matériel essentiel est enfin disponible. Les forces de l’ordre ont lancé des opérations de démolition visant à libérer toutes les artères. Cette action est indispensable afin d’envisager la récupération et la consolidation des espaces.

Le dispositif sécuritaire est assez significatif à Gressier. L’objectif des autorités locales est le déblocage de la route nationale numéro 2. Les gangs, qui imposaient leur loi au centre ville, reculent de plus en plus. Les autorités locales préconisent une reprise complète du centre ville ce qui favorisera le retour des déplacés. À Gressier la péninsule sud est totalement coupée de la région métropolitaine de Port-au-Prince. Les commerçants doivent emprunter des routes agricoles en mauvais état, notamment celle de Morne à Chandelle, pour rejoindre Carrefour.

LLM / radio Métropole Haïti 

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