Zachary Kowalczyk

I'm Zac, an aspiring game designer and developer currently studying Game Design in Germany.

I love storytelling in games and all aspects of design, from character design to mechanics to levels.
I also dabble in music, but treat that more as a hobby.

I have a YouTube channel where I upload the music I make for all the game jams I'm involved in, including some tracks that never made it into the final games: https://youtube.com/@zacdevdude?si=cywwcfHk6XvcRj6E

I wrote the music for Wege zur Wahrheit, a short German point-and-click story game made for a 48-hour game jam.
Play it for free here: https://dimi-tree.itch.io/wege-zur-wahrheit

I was the writer and sound designer for Taco Tides, and also designed the enemies and final boss. This game was made over the course of three weeks as part of the 2023 Secret Santa Game Jam event. It is a short and sweet top-down shooter set on the high seas.
Play it for free here: https://howtobehayes.itch.io/taco-tides

I wrote the music and handled sound design and level design for Z-econd Chance, a small German top-down puzzle game made for the 3rd Manasoup Game Jam over 48 hours.
Play it for free here: https://howtobehayes.itch.io/z-econdchance

I wrote music and handled sound effects for Last Wurst Standing, a chaotic action-shooter about the last sausage in an increasingly vegetarian world, developed over ten days for GameDev.tv Game Jam 2024.
Play it for free here: https://thewhiteshadow.itch.io/last-wurst-standing

I wrote the music for Bonsai Buddies, a hectic game of tending to bonsai that hide a disturbing secret... I also provided my most disturbed voice for the bonsai themselves. Bonsai Buddies was developed over 72 hours for the Ludum Dare 56 game jam.
Play it for free here: https://howtobehayes.itch.io/bonsai-buddies

I made TukiNuki, a short game for the 2024 Secret Santa Game Jam. The game was developed by me alone, from code to sound to art assets, all over the course of 16 days.
Play it for free here: https://zackow264.itch.io/tukinuki

I was the programmer for Up For Us, an adorable short game made for the 2025 Global Game Jam in-person in Karlsruhe over 48 hours. As part of a three-person team, I was also heavily involved in design decisions and also edited most of the sound assets found in gameplay.
Play it for free here: https://zackow264.itch.io/up-for-us

I remade Z-econd Chance in GameMaker as a year-long on-and-off personal project, using all the original assets, but with additional sound design, coding, and UX design by me.
Play it for free here: https://zackow264.itch.io/z-econd-chance-remake