Hey there!

I’m Natasha Handley, an indie game developer from Leeds, UK. In the last five years, I have designed, developed, and published seven games on Itch.io, have published on the Google Play store, and developed for mobile VR platforms including the Meta Quest 2 & 3.

I am a Unity generalist, and particularly enjoy working with shaders and complex systems. I am also skilled in 3D modelling (3DS Max, Blender, ZBrush), sound design (Audacity, FMOD), and game design.

Through my VR and mobile development, I have learnt skills and best practices for improving the performance of my games, and maintaining awareness for the capabilities of the hardware I am developing for.

Achievements

I graduated from Leeds Beckett University with a high first (90.65%) and was honoured to be awarded The Dean’s Prize for Excellence in Game Art and Design.

I was nominated for the Martin Brown Rising Star Award 2025.

I placed 40th out of 2,300 entries in Brackeys Game Jam 2025.2 with my game Blood Engine.

I placed 47th out of 1,423 entries in Brackeys Game Jam 2026.1 with my game The Vaults Below Durn: A Field Study which I’ve continued to develop for a Steam release.

Highlights!

Three doors. One safe path. Far below the town of Durn lies the Vaults, a sprawling dungeon no explorer has ever returned from. Now it stretches endlessly before you. Can you read the signs to find the safe path through?

Demo releasing on Steam:
20th May 2026

Check out the press release ->
The Vaults Below Durn | Press Kit

Neon Overflow!

Slice your path across the rooftops of Synth City in this neon-drenched, hack ‘n’ slash. Every strike charges your Heat, and when it maxes out, you enter Neon Overflow, a over-powered state of glorious neon chaos.

Check out the portfolio page ->
https://gongylus.co.uk/neon-overflow/

Evocation VR

My second year university solo project. I was entirely responsible for the design, coding, modelling, sound design and performance. The final submission for this project received a grade of 100% and it was demoed at Leeds Beckett’s end of year showcase.

Check out the portfolio page ->
https://gongylus.co.uk/evocation-vr-an-alchemy-horror-game/

Blood Engine

Blood Engine was designed and built in a week by myself for Brackeys Game Jam 2025.2. The theme was “Risk It For The Biscuit“.

It ranked 40th out of 2,300 entries (top 2%) and was at one point the 10th most played game in the jam.

Check out the portfolio page ->
https://gongylus.co.uk/blood-engine/