BRING IT TO LIFE: A HALLOWEEN BUILDATHON & GAME LAB π
about this event
BRING IT TO LIFE: A HALLOWEEN BUILDATHON & GAME LAB π
Saturday, October 24, 2026 3:00β9:00 PM CT Chicago, Illinois Exact location shared with approved attendees. Presented by Human Bloom Collective
What if you didn't just attend a Halloween event β you built part of it?
BRING IT TO LIFE is a Halloween Buildathon & Game Lab where builders, designers, founders, creatives, technologists, and curious humans come together to create playful new experiences β and then actually experience what they've made. Teams will use the AI building tools of their choice to create Halloween-inspired games, interactive experiences, strange experiments, digital worlds, playful products, and things we haven't thought of yet. Then the laptops close. The room transforms into the Game Lab. First, we build. Then, we play. Together.
HOW IT WORKS Come with an idea or discover one when you arrive. Form or join a team, choose your tools, and build. When the build period ends, teams will share quick demos before we shift into the live Halloween Game Lab β where we play, test, explore, and experience what everyone created. No endless presentations. No building something that disappears into a folder afterward. You make it. We experience it.
WHAT COULD YOU BUILD? A haunted party game. A supernatural matchmaking experience. A spooky social deduction game. An interactive mystery. A Halloween alter ego generator. A strange little world. A digital sΓ©ance. A monster-making machine. A game no one has invented yet. The challenge is intentionally open. Build something people will want to experience together.
PRIZES π Cards Against Humanity is providing games as prizes for BRING IT TO LIFE, bringing a distinctly Chicago dose of playfulness to the Game Lab. More prizes, partners, and Halloween surprises to come.
FOOD, DRINKS & THE EXPERIENCE This is designed as an evening of building, playing, meeting interesting people, and having fun together β not six hours of staring at a laptop. Athletic Brewing is joining us as our Official Non-Alcoholic Beer Sponsor. Expect refreshments, Halloween atmosphere, playful energy, and plenty of opportunities to meet people outside your usual circles.
WHO SHOULD COME? Builders and developers. Designers and product people. Founders and entrepreneurs. Gamemakers and storytellers. Artists and creators. AI-curious humans. People who have never participated in a buildathon before. You do not need to be a professional developer. You do need to be willing to make something, contribute to a team, experiment, and play.
WHAT TO BRING Bring your laptop and charger if you plan to build. Bring whatever AI building tools you love using β or come ready to discover new ones. Most importantly: Bring curiosity.
ABOUT HUMAN BLOOM COLLECTIVE Human Bloom Collective creates experiments, gatherings, and funding mechanisms exploring how technology, creativity, and community can help people flourish. BRING IT TO LIFE is part of our growing series of participatory buildathons and game labs built around a simple idea: Technology gets more interesting when we make things together β and then actually live with what we create.
EVENT DETAILS π Saturday, October 24, 2026 π 3:00β9:00 PM CT π Chicago, Illinois π 21+ π» Bring a laptop if you'd like to build ποΈ Registration is subject to approval
Build something strange. Build something playful. Build something that deserves to come alive.
when
BRING IT TO LIFE: A HALLOWEEN BUILDATHON & GAME LAB π
Halloween Buildathon followed by the live Halloween Game Lab, with quick team demos in between.
β Chicago, Illinois (exact location shared with approved attendees)tickets
| tickets | price | Fee | Status | description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| General Admission | Free | TBA | Available | Free registration; subject to approval. 21+ event. |
prizes
| # | PRIZE | price |
|---|---|---|
| Prize | Games provided by Cards Against Humanity | TBA |