Why We Created Star Stuff Edu

Hi, I’m Sylvia Aguiñaga— co-founder of Ánimo Games, game designer, educator, and creator of Star Stuff & our latest project, Star Stuff Edu. If you’re here, you probably care about making learning joyful, meaningful, and maybe even a little bit weird. Same.

I didn’t grow up thinking I could be a coder or even thinking I was that great of a gamer. I spent hours playing Nintendo games in my family’s bodega, usually passing the controller to my older brothers when things got too hard. That pattern stuck with me—I avoided anything I thought I might fail at. That fear followed me through college, where I often felt overwhelmed and burned out.

My turning point came not in a classroom, but halfway across the world in rural Japan. That’s where I taught myself to create art with code using Processing.js. No grades, no pressure—just curiosity. I created a little pocket of the world where it was safe to try, fail, and grow. That experience shaped the way I see learning today.

With Star Stuff, we built a game that makes solving puzzles with code feel fun. A programming puzzler where failure isn’t punished—it’s encouraged. Where coding feels more like solving a mystery with cute, friendly (for the most part) robots than memorizing syntax. Where you can play your way into thinking like a programmer.

As an educator, I’ve worn many hats—substitute teacher, curriculum developer, librarian, and nonprofit creative director. At every step, I’ve seen how much kids are capable of when they feel safe to take risks. I’ve also experienced first-hand how difficult it could be for educators to introduce a new tool or resource that involves a third-party platform, like Steam.

That’s where Star Stuff Edu comes in.

With Star Stuff Edu, we wanted to make it easier for educators and students to access the game. For now, this meant pairing it down to a puzzle-to-puzzle experience, making it 100% free, browser-based, and supported by ready-to-use materials. Oh! And it works beautifully on chromebooks, a giant feat! Whether you’re weaving it into a CS or Math class, using it as a station in a library or makerspace, or offering it as a self-paced challenge during downtime, Star Stuff Edu tries to meet you where you are.

At Ánimo Games we believe playful problem-solving can unlock deep learning & connection. Star Stuff Edu is designed to introduce foundational coding concepts like sequencing, loops, and conditionals, while nurturing curiosity, computational thinking, and collaboration.

We’re not just making fun puzzle games—we’re trying to reimagine what screen time can look like in a learning environment. Star Stuff Edu is the kind of experience I wished for as a kid who didn’t believe in herself. And now, it’s the kind of screen time I want for my own children—and for students and families everywhere.

If you’re an educator, I hope Star Stuff Edu helps you create a classroom where students feel safe to fail, experiment, and ask big, beautiful questions.

Try it out or grab free educator materials here: animogames.org/educators

Shine on!✨