FREE COURSE FOR ALL SUBMISSIONS

Welcome to the annual GameDev.tv Jam 2024!

This is an event where participants work as part of a team or solo to make a playable game in 10 days according to a theme! Join our 1 Million + students from 170 countries around the world and make an epic game!

THEME WILL BE ANNOUNCED AT THE START OF THE JAM

A theme is an idea or concept that you should try to implement into your game if you can, and use it for inspiration when creating something. You don't HAVE to use the theme, but there is a rating category dedicated to it, so keep that in mind. 

Rules:

• Games must be submitted by June 3rd, the end of the game jam.
• You can build a game solo or with a team. If you're on a team, one person is the designated uploader, and the max team limit size is 6 people.
• Free assets only! Using paid assets is NOT allowed, but free assets and those under an open source licenses like CC0 are allowed. Note: this doesn't include paid assets that you got for free, only freely available assets are allowed.
• Buggy submissions are okay! Hotfix patches are allowed after the deadline if you want to fix bugs.

Don't know where to start?

Submit a game, get a course from GAMEDEV.TV!

All submission will receive an email to their itch.io account email with details on how to redeem the course of their choice. This email will be sent out the week of 10th June 2024, after the voting period ends. Game submissions that do not follow the rules, don't include an actual playable build, or are clear manipulators of the system will be removed prior to this outreach.

Judging Criteria:

When the jam ends, participants will have 1 week to play and rate other submissions in the jam. These submissions will be rated 1-5 stars based on the following criteria:

• Fun - Well, how fun is it?
• Theme - How well did the game fit into or use inspiration from the theme?
• Aesthetics - How pretty is it?
• Music - How do those epic beats sound?
• Sound - How much do your ears love those sweet in-game sounds?
• Mechanics - How interesting are the things you actually do in the game?
• Story - How well written is the story, plot, or it's characters?

At the end of the voting period, the winners will be announced on the jam page, and every submission will receive a ranking for both overall and individual categories.

FAQ

Q: Can I use generative AI in my jam game?

Yes.  Feel free to use content generated by AI programs that might help with programming or assets. We ask that you use your best judgement when using them ethically, not break any local laws, as well as making sure you have the legal rights to distribute the work if you use this technology. 

Q: Do I have to use Unity?

Nope, you can use any engine you like!

Q: How should I plan my time?

Plan to make something you think you can complete in 1/3 of the time (4-5 days). This will give you plenty of time for issues during development, fixing bugs, and polishing.

Q: How do I form / join a team?

Participating in a team is an informal process. You can find others to team up with from the jam community forum, one of the course Facebook groups, or the GameDev.tv Discord. Note that only one person on the team will be the one who submits the finished entry. Other team members can be listed in the entry description to give credit. Also remember that the team limit for a single team is 6.

Q: Are there prizes?

Yes! Everyone that submits a game gets a free course on GameDev.tv. However, there are no prizes for winning or placing highly in the ratings, this is not a competitive event. Users will vote on each other's submissions across 7 categories (fun, theme aesthetics, music, sound, mechanics, and story) as well as provide comments and feedback. The voting period lasts for two weeks after the conclusion of the event.

Q: Can I use open source frameworks / libraries?

Yes, just be sure to follow their license terms, many of which require you to credit the author somehow.

Q: Can I use paid tools?

Yes, just be sure to follow their license terms and not break any license agreement or local laws.

Q: The jam is over, how do I redeem my free course?

All submission will receive an email to their itch.io account email with details on how to redeem their course. This email will be sent out the week of 10th June 2024, after the voting period ends. Game submissions that do not follow the rules, don't include an actual playable build, or are clear manipulations of the system will be removed prior to this outreach.

Q: If I'm on a team, do we all get a free course, or just me?

Yes! The team limit is 6, so make sure your team is 6 or fewer people. But other than that, the primary submitter will receive a message about how to claim their free course, and in that message there will be instructions for your team as well.

Q: Aww something went wrong? How do I submit late?

If it's within 2 hours of the jam, send a message to one of our "Game Jam Support" team on Discord (their accounts should show up in the top right of the discord window), with a link to your game, and we will send you back a confirm link.

Q: Can I edit my game once I submit?

You can fix game breaking bugs in your submission and upload those. If your game is unpleasant or unplayable due to technical issues, we want you to fix those! You just cant add new features or gameplay. or things like that.

Our Featured Content Creator List:

There are content creators that are either actively making videos and streaming their submission OR making content about other submissions. If you are making content about the jam or submissions in the jam, get in touch! We'd like to feature you!

Want your link on this list? Contact us!