A university startup

Wagen Games was a startup that we created while studying at university. The project was focused on providing dedicated game server services for Counter-Strike, allowing players to compete against each other in a controlled and fair environment.

What started as an idea between students quickly became a real startup. We worked on this project for several years, obtained a funding round, and developed a functional product with real users and real infrastructure.

The idea

The idea behind Wagen Games was to build a platform where players could compete against each other on dedicated servers, without relying on public matchmaking systems. The platform allowed users to interact through a single application, manage their accounts, and participate in competitive matches using virtual currency and in-game items.

The objective was to create a complete and controlled virtual ecosystem, where the experience was fair, stable, and technically solid.

From the idea to a real MVP

We reached the point of building a usable MVP, not just a prototype.

The platform allowed users to log in, join matches, play on dedicated servers, and interact with the system in real time. It was a working product, deployed on real servers, used by real players.

Getting there required a lot of iteration, problem solving, and learning. Many decisions had to be taken without having previous experience, and many parts of the system evolved while users were already using it.

My role as CTO

I was the CTO of Wagen Games, responsible for all technical aspects of the project, but also involved in many other areas that are essential in a startup.

On the technical side, I worked on frontend development, infrastructure, deployment, and architectural decisions. I was also responsible for keeping the system running and adapting it as the product evolved.

Beyond the technical work, I was deeply involved in the day-to-day operation of the startup. This included interviewing and onboarding new people, preparing budgets to evaluate whether we could afford infrastructure costs and server providers, and communicating with different companies to negotiate services and solutions.

I also worked on documentation for funding applications, preparing technical explanations of the product, and participating in meetings with investors. In these meetings, I had to explain the project, its technical value, and why it made sense from both a product and business perspective.

This role required constant attention, flexibility, and responsibility. Decisions were not only about code quality, but also about costs, priorities, and long-term sustainability.

Why the project ended

After several years working on Wagen Games, I was offered the opportunity to go to the University of Houston to participate in a research program.

At that point, it became clear that I would not be able to fully commit to both the startup and the research opportunity at the same time. Given the level of responsibility and involvement required to properly run the company, I decided to prioritize the research opportunity and move to Houston.

This decision was the main reason why Wagen Games was closed. It was not due to a lack of interest or technical issues, but a conscious choice to focus on a new stage of my professional development.

Learning what a startup really is

Wagen Games was a demanding project, both technically and personally.

It taught me that a startup is much more than writing code. There are many parallel concerns that need to be handled at the same time: people, finances, infrastructure, communication, and uncertainty. Balancing all of this while still building a product was one of the biggest challenges.

There were moments of high workload and pressure, but also moments where things worked and the effort felt very rewarding.

Why this project matters to me

Wagen Games was one of the most intense learning experiences I have had.

It helped me understand how real products are built and maintained, how technical decisions affect costs and scalability, and how important communication and organization are in a startup environment.

More importantly, it showed me that engineering does not live in isolation. Code is only one part of the work required to move a project forward, and this experience gave me a very realistic view of what it means to build something from scratch.