Six graduates from The Vega School at Emeris Cape Town have turned a student project into a professional game development studio and are preparing to launch their first game on the global gaming platform Steam later this year.
The graduates — Seth Gordon, Tristan Gold, Stuart Proctor, Michaela Esterhuizen, Jack Robinson and team lead Luke Barrows — founded Hyrax Studios in February.
The Cape Town-based company operates as an online game studio and is currently developing its debut title, Get Rammed.
The game began as a prototype created during an eight-hour off-campus game jam called "Super Friendship Arcade" in 2025. What started as a classroom challenge quickly evolved into a commercial project after receiving positive feedback during its debut at Playtopia last year.
The prototype’s successful debut at Playtopia last year signaled to the team that they had created something special.
Muhammad Sungay, a lecturer at The Vega School, expressed immense pride in seeing his former students successfully transition from academia to entrepreneurship.
“Seeing my former students bring their own game to Steam is incredibly rewarding.
“This achievement reflects years of hard work, creativity, and determination,” he said.
For Barrows, the project is a testament to the power of collaboration.
“Bringing Get Rammed to Steam is a proud milestone. This journey taught us the power of community, collaboration, and never giving up on what you truly care about,” he said.
“When you are truly passionate about what you create, that excitement becomes the unstoppable drive that carries you across the finish line,” said Barrows.
While there is no confirmed launch date for Get Rammed yet, the game is expected to launch toward the end of the year.
It will be released on Steam, the world's largest digital distribution platform for personal computer games, as a paid title.
Players will be able to purchase the game through the platform and, once purchased, will have permanent access to download and play it through their Steam library.
Pricing has not yet been confirmed.
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