Mayhem In The Moshpit: An Interview With Stoner Games

By Staff | November 22, 2025

Stoner Games is an independent studio founded by long-time techie Jeff Brown. The studio's debut title, Mosh Pit Mayhem, is a button-mashing brawler that pays homage to the fast-paced, unfiltered fun of the PlayStation 2 gaming era, while featuring graphics reminiscent of the PS3/PS4. The core concept of the game centers around cross-promotion for bands, with the music being the focal point of the gameplay. The developer has secured over 50 bands from diverse heavy music genres, including thrash, hardcore, death metal, and even hip hop. The goal of the game is for players to enjoy the chaotic fun of fighting in a mosh pit while discovering new music.

What's the origin story behind the name Stoner Games? Does it reflect a specific creative philosophy, or is it more of a personal reference?

It’s definitely a personal preference. I have been licensed to grow for medical reasons since 2006, when my neck was broken. I won't touch dispensary weed anymore. I smoke from sun up to sun down. Primarily for pain, but also because I like smoking weed lol.

It definitely helps with the creativity! People are shocked to learn I smoke all day & still function, specifically as a coder/developer. A nice green bowl after coffee gets the creative juices flowing!

Being a one-person studio, what has been the biggest unexpected challenge—technical or otherwise—that you've faced since starting development on Mosh Pit Mayhem?

The hardest part for me was staying focused on the core gameplay & not getting overwhelmed at the long road ahead. It's also very easy to get distracted with a new play mechanic, or even a new game idea. I got side tracked a time or 2 on new game ideas, but quickly came back to Mosh Pit Mayhem. The entire game and all systems came together in 8 about months!

How do you manage the workload of being the sole developer for 3D modeling, programming, graphics, concept design, and e-commerce? What is your strategy for avoiding burnout?

I basically time slice my day. I say I'm going to work on 3d modeling for most of the day, when I get done with what I set out to do, or get frustrated, I change to working on something else like graphics or integrating the new 3d models. As far as burnout... smoking weed massively helps with that. I love playing video games too & have since I was around 5!!! So smoking and playing games helped me avoid total burnout!

As a solo developer, how do you handle the vital process of quality assurance and testing before launching on platforms like Steam and PS5?

I play the hell out of the game, and take notes when something breaks, or doesn't work right. It's tough though. I usually find the most bugs when I watch someone else play. Something about not having the game controller in my hand allows me to see more of what's going on. I'm not as focused on the main player. I get to see things that I would normally overlook.

What's the ultimate vision for Stoner Games? Do you plan to expand the team, or is the intention to keep it an independent one-person operation for the foreseeable future?

I have a homeboy whom I've known for 30+ years that has helped in getting the bands on board. He hasn't done any development, just contacting all the amazing bands. He's the bassist for a band named 187 out of Las Vegas. His name is Dan Froelich (pronounced fray lick). This game would not have happened if it weren't for Dan and his bands contacts.

I do plan on expanding the team as time and money allows... not to anything huge though. Just a small team of 3-5 people. I would love to have someone to do more of the graphics & 3d modeling, as that's new to me. I'm planning on coding till I die! It's just something I love and have loved since I was a kid with a Commodore 64 & some books on BASIC programming.

Securing 50 bands for an independent title is highly impressive. What was your pitch to the artists, and what do you think ultimately convinced them to sign on?

My pitch to the artists is revenue share on tracked sales for PC/Steam & a guaranteed payday for PS5 when we get there. I came up with a calculation that awards the most commonly played bands in the game on PS5. I also think the bands see the potential in the cross promotion more than a payday. If your in the same genre as another artist, odds are you'll gain listeners from other bands in your genre... which was the ultimate goal of the game... Cross Promotion!! Quite a few artists were also enamored seeing themselves run around on screen throwing down while their music played! Something about seeing yourself as a video game character is down right awesome!

Are the bands featured in the game all from a specific genre (e.g., metal, punk, hardcore), or is the roster a mix of different heavy music styles?

There's a little bit of everything. Everything is broken down by Genre. We have Thrash, Hardcore, Deathcore, Rap Metal, Rock, Metal, Slam, Punk, Death Metal, Nu-Metal, Reggae-Core & lastly some Hip Hop. I found that pretty much every genre works in the game as long as it's got a pretty fast tempo. The Hip Hop artists showcase this better than anything. It just shows how much fun the base idea is! Beat the shit out of people while listening to new music lol!

How does the integration of the music work within the gameplay loop? Are the bands' actual songs playing during the mosh pit rounds?

Yep, the bands and their music are the focal point of the game. There are 3 rounds. Each round is a different song by the artists you picked to see in the game. Every round the pit gets more & more crowded, until round 3. On round 3 the band jumps off the stage into the pit to fight one by one, ending with the singer. There's never been anything like it in gaming! It's definitely one of those ideas where you say... wow that's cool I've never seen that before!

Can you share an example of a favorite band or artist you've managed to sign, and how their specific vibe or stage presence is reflected in the game's final boss fight?

One of my favorite bands in the game right now is Hotbox, out of Los Angeles, California. They are in the Rap Metal genre. I love their raw Fuck You attitude & their stage presence. They pretty much define what Mosh Pit Mayhem is. A raw, loud, unfiltered middle finger in your face!

There really isn't a "final boss". The game is structured like Smash Brothers for Nintendo Switch, you gotta fight everyone! It's just a button mashing brawler with no real end. You can defeat all the bands, but there really isn't an end. I messed with the idea of having a final boss or band... but then it made it weird that I was adding more bands after defeating the "Boss" band.

Will the full roster of 50 bands be available on both the Steam and upcoming PS5 versions at launch, or are there different regional/licensing challenges?

The game launched with 18 bands. On the first of every month there will be 2-3 artists added until we hit 50 bands to keep the game fresh! I'll also be adding more venues regularly to keep the game growing. There are currently 13 levels/venues in which to see the bands & fight in. When the game launches on PS5 it will include all the bands in the game up to that point. So the PS5 version will launch with around 25 bands most likely.

Are there plans for future band expansions to keep the game's energy and content fresh after the initial 50 bands are secured?

Yep! After the 50 bands limit is hit. I'll solely do DLC packs at roughly $10-$15 per pack. These DLC packs will be more well known artists & more than 3 songs. I want the DLC to feel like a new experience. 

You describe the gameplay as a PS2-era button smasher with PS4-era graphics. Which classic PS2 titles served as the primary inspiration for the combat and feel?

The PS2 was my favorite era in gaming. Everything was fresh and new and no one had seen anything like the games that came out for it. Totally unfiltered! There wasn't really a specific game per say. Just the fast paced, button mashing fun that PS2 era of games brought to the table. The game is retro, but not pixelated 8-bit retro. It's more an homage to that era of gaming. I've heard people say it reminds them of certain games. Primarily some of the early games made by Rockstar, which is a huge compliment to me! I've heard people say it's like State of Emergency and the fighting scenes in the early GTA games. If it was modeled after anything it would be the Super Smash Brothers franchise. Tons of fighters & levels... and it's juts a button mashing good time.

The combat culminates in fighting the band on stage after three songs. What is the difficulty curve like, and how do you ensure the band fight feels like a significant, earned challenge?

Each band member has more health & strength than the crowd in the pit. They are much harder to defeat, especially in the beginning when you don't have any power ups. With power ups in your arsenal... you can easily take down almost everyone. Especially some of the special moves coupled with the combo meter. You can become almost unstoppable!

What elements make the game feel "retro" without relying on pixelated 8-bit art? Is it the animations, the physics, or the overall level design philosophy?

The whole aesthetic of the game is geared to run on older hardware. I deliberately optimized the 3d models to be less dense with polygons so that older hardware can hang. The assets have been decimated & the textures shrunk so they have that PS3/PS4 era look. This gives the GPU (graphics card) some breathing room but also makes the game look a bit older. It was also designed to run on the Steam Deck natively. The Steam Deck is basically a handheld gaming device like a Nintendo Switch.

What kind of environmental hazards or unique mechanics can players expect in the different mosh pit arenas you've designed?

I think people will find the environments funny! There are 2 types of pits. Circular pits, which is what most people think of when they think "Mosh Pit" & wall of death levels, which are more chaotic & much harder to survive until you have some powerups. Some of the environments have special characters you can fight. Like the White House Lawn, or Christmas Mall levels! 

Beyond a simple beat-'em-up, what are the progression systems? Can players unlock new moves, customize their character, or gain new gear?

There are currently a few powerups you can earn by leveling up to be eligible to purchase them with in game money. There are more moves coming in future updates. These powerups are fueled by adrenaline. You earn adrenaline a few ways. You can beat people down for some small adrenaline gains, but the biggest adrenaline gains are from completing circles around the pit, or skanking in the pit. You have to be careful when skanking. 1 hit while your skanking & your floored while everyone beats he living sh!t out of you while your down.

The transition to PS5 in January/February is soon. What kind of optimizations or enhancements are you implementing for the new console, such as haptic feedback or faster loading?

There will definitely be faster load times on the PS5. But yes, I plan on adding haptic feedback, & once we hit PS5, I plan on ultimately releasing a Multiplayer Mosh Mode where it's all for one and one for all. Last person standing wins! I'm also toying with some team aspects. 9v9 battle royals, or smaller 3 person teams.

Most of the work moving to PS5 is in changing the way certain things work due to security restraints placed on you by Sony. Primarily saving data to the systems hard drive. For instance, the skate shop allows you to make custom decks with the bands logos. Saving those images out is done entirely different on the PS5 than on PC or Steam Deck for security reasons.

You've handled the e-commerce systems yourself. What motivated you to build this in-house rather than using a standard third-party storefront?

The biggest thing to motivate me was the fact that Steam does not track referred sales & I have a background in affiliate sales systems. Steam tracks incoming traffic, but not through to sale... which was a big surprise! Its no harder to track a sale than it is to track traffic. I have 25+ years experience in Electronics & Web Development... mostly in software. From small mom and pop shops, to major corporations like Guitar Center Corp., Nevada Power & Medtronic. I've built about every type of system there is to build in my career.

In order to track sales for the bands, the only way to do it, was to create a system to do it myself. It was cake in comparison to making the game! This allows me to have branded checkout pages for each band... which looks really professional compared to 1 single checkout page that looks the same for every band!

https://stoner.games/purchase/mosh-pit-mayhem/hotbox

https://stoner.games/purchase/mosh-pit-mayhem/distant

https://stoner.games/purchase/mosh-pit-mayhem/the-convalescence

If you could go back to the start of the project, what is one piece of advice you would give your past self about managing a project of this scale alone?

I'd have to say I'd tell myself to have patience & do a little more planning. There were days I'd get so frustrated things weren't progressing like I had planned. I'd figure out a more optimized way of doing things & have to circle back & re-code a bunch of stuff to handle the optimizations. So patience & planning are definitely virtues in game development!

What is the most important message or feeling you want players to take away after finishing their first full run of Mosh Pit Mayhem?

I want people to have fun & enjoy the button mashing fun while finding new bands. Hopefully they put the new bands in their daily rotation on whatever streaming media platform they use. There's nothing better than finding a new band you love in the most unexpected places... like a video game!

Anyone you'd like to thank?

First and foremost I'd like to than Dan Froehlich & Pauly Macc. Without Dan & Pauly & their band 187 this game would have never happened. It was ultimately built for them as a way to get their name out there... but in a video game, and then everything changed one day after smoking a kind ass joint lol!

My family for putting up with me during the past 8 months & my nieces for loving the game... it's amazing that kids who don't even know what heavy metal is, can love a game for just being fun!

Info:

www.stoner.games
www.moshpitmayhem.com
www.higherbrau.com
Facebook: St0nerGames / Higherbrau
Instagram: St0nerGames
Twitter: St0nerGames