Welcome to Duck Duck JAM!

Introduction

Welcome, game developers, to Duck Duck JAM, hosted by Aquaduck Studio! Whether you're a seasoned developer or new to game creation, we invite you to challenge yourself in this Browser-based game making competition. Our goal is to bring together creative minds to push the boundaries of playable-in-browser game development.

The theme for Duck Duck Jam is:

Crossing Time

"Crossing Time" is a theme that invites participants to explore the fascinating and complex concept of time manipulation, inspired by classic games and story arcs like The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past and Future Trunks from Dragon Ball Z. This theme encourages game developers to think creatively about how time can be woven into their characters, game mechanics and narratives.

Interpretations could be anything from aging quickly, going to the past, skipping into the future, pausing time, distorting pockets of time around you, or a completely new take on time that would even leave philosophers scratching their head. Developers are encouraged to bringing their own innovative twists to the concept of time manipulation. This theme offers a rich canvas for storytelling, puzzle-solving, and creative gameplay mechanics that will challenge and captivate players.

Examples of classic time crossing games include: The Legend of Zelda, A Link to the Past (1991), Prince of Persia, The Sands of Time (2003) and Braid (2008)

The winner of Duck Duck Jam will receive ~$200 equivalent in Bitcoin.

All participants will gain valuable experience, feedback from peers, and the opportunity to have your game featured in our YouTuber judges' videos.

- The Judges -

The Grillcast, Orion and Micah @TheGrillcast

Sir Onion Knight @SirOnionKnight

Xanderwood @XanderwoodGameDev

Aquaduck Studio

You, the Participants

Important Dates

Jam Start: May 18th, 4:00 PM CST
Submission Deadline: May 25th, 4:00 PM CST
Voting Period: May 25th, 4:00 PM CST to May 30th, 4:00 PM CST
Winners Announcement: May 30th, 4:00 PM CST

Entries will be evaluated based on 6 criteria:

Participants (20%)

Player Experience - Broadly covers all the things that go into making a game enjoyable like an intuitive gameplay, no bugs, a good interface, standard controls or a compelling story. How was the music, graphics and polish?
Innovation - How unique, new, improved or outside of the box is your game? Make something fresh. No point and clickers.
Theme - How well did the game fit and interpret the given theme of the jam?

Judges (80%)

Duck Factor - My personal rating for your game. I'm looking for an "it" factor that makes your game unforgettable. Maybe that means breathtaking art, storytelling that made you feel something or the juiciest juice you've ever juiced. I want to see a game that pops.
Grill Factor - The Grillcast's personal rating for your game. "I just wanna grill for God's sake"
X Factor - Xanderwood's personal rating for your game.
Onion Factor - Sir Onion Knight's personal rating for your game.

How to Participate

Sign Up: Register for Duck Duck Jam on this page.
Create: Work individually or as a team to develop your game. Remember, the game must be created within the jam period!
Submit: Upload your game to itch.io and submit it to our game jam page before the deadline.
Play and Vote: After submissions close, play, rate, and provide feedback on other entries.

Submission Guidelines

Your submission must be created during the game jam time period.
Your game must be playable in browser on itch.io.
Your submission must follow Itch.io's quality guidelines. https://itch.io/docs/creators/quality-guidelines
No stolen, copywritten or trademarked content not owned by you. Properly attribute the makers of free content used in your game.
No NSFW thumbnails.
Any NSFW game must be properly labeled on itch.io AND have a warning screen in-game before NSFW content is shown. Our judges will not feature NSFW games on their channel. (I strongly recommend not making an NSFW game for this jam.)

Breaking these guidelines will result in your game being removed from this game jam.

Community and Support

Join Duck Duck JAM Discord to connect with other participants, find team members, share progress, and get help. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to us at support@aquaduckstudio.com

FAQ

Can I participate solo? Yes, both individual and team entries are welcome!
Does my game have to be made during the jam? Yes. Games made outside the time period of the contest will be disqualified.
Are there any restrictions on tools or engines? No, you may use any tools or game engines you prefer.
Can I use pre-existing assets and code? Yes, but you must have the rights to use them and properly credit any assets not created during the jam.
Can I use AI like Midjourney, ElevenLabs or ChatGPT? Yes, just don't submit anything illegal like copywrite material to which you do not own the rights.

We're excited to see what amazing games you'll create. Let's make Duck Duck JAM a memorable and inspiring event! 🐤