Every move
is a feeling.
Heart & Havoc Studios makes narrative action games where what the player can do grows with who the character is becoming. Our first game, Before the Stars, is a 2D platformer about a small star and the twin he refuses to lose.
Before
the Stars
Gio is a small star who has just lost his twin, Lem, to a corrupted neutron star. To get him back he must rescue the stars it has drained, and each one he saves teaches him how to move.
Gio is not stronger at the end. He is more himself, and the controls prove it.
The game is a prequel to Amongst the Stars. Across five levels Gio collects lost stars, and by the finish he and Lem have merged into Gem, the silent hero of the next game.
Mechanics are introduced one per level, so the player grows at the same pace as the character. The villain grows too: the neutron star escalates through pulsar to magnetar stages as the journey deepens.
Jump
The first thing Gio learns, and the foundation every later move builds on.
Double Jump
A second push off nothing, the first sign that Gio can reach further than he thought.
Shoot
Limited to two uses. It refills when Gio lands or goes still, so every shot is a choice.
Still
The quiet move. Holding still restores Shoot, and it rewards patience over speed.
- Level 1
Beautiful Cosmos
Learns Jump
- Level 2
Gravity Highway
Learns Double Jump
- Level 3
Cosmic Lighthouse
Learns Shoot
- Level 4
Starquakes
Learns Still
- Level 5
Black Hole
Uses everything
Mechanics sandbox
All four moves, the Lem opening, the neutron star chase and boss burst, chain-reaction star absorption, checkpoint respawn, sound, and PS5 DualSense support.
Level 1: Beautiful Cosmos
The first real level is being designed now. Level design and environment art are the next hires.
Concept art
Environment and character concept art is being commissioned, starting with Beautiful Cosmos.
Five games.
One heart.
The games are connected on purpose. We start small and emotional, prove the craft, and build toward bigger productions as each title earns the next.
Before the Stars
A prequel about loss and growth, where every new mechanic is a step in Gio's story.
Amongst the Stars
Gem, a silent hero who speaks only through color, crosses eleven constellation trials toward three boss battles. Influences: Hollow Knight and Celeste.
Unannounced
Details to come.
Unannounced
Details to come.
Unannounced
Details to come.
Led by a
storyteller.
Heart & Havoc is founded by a published author, manga creator and film director who designs games the way he writes: from the character outward.
- FounderJeff Turner, Creative Director
- BackgroundFive published books, a manga series, live-action direction, product design
- TeamCreative direction in-house, gameplay engineering in place, specialist artists and level designers by commission
- CompanyHeart & Havoc Studios LLC, established with banking, domain and business accounts in place
We work the way small studios that ship do: a clear creative vision, a tight scope for each game, and specialists brought in for the work they do best.
Each game feeds the next. The stars Gio saves become Gem, and the mechanics we prove in a small platformer become the language of the larger games on the slate.
Let's talk.
We welcome conversations with publishers and funding partners about Before the Stars and the studio slate. Design documents and project materials are available on request.
Heart & Havoc Studios LLC
© 2026 Heart & Havoc Studios LLC