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8biter Game Jam #1

Getting the most from the least

8biter Game Jam is a recurring jam celebrating a forgotten mastery of game development:

        Fitting the most creativity, gameplay, and personality into the smallest possible space.

Inspired by the 8-bit era—where developers worked with tiny memory budgets and limited hardware—this jam challenges modern devs to rediscover that discipline and turn constraints into strengths.

This is not about nostalgia alone. It’s about craft.

Example by @KassumiDirect:


THE PHILOSOPHY

Early game developers didn’t have:

  • Gigabytes of storage
  • Massive engines
  • Unlimited memory

They had:

  • Clever tricks
  • Smart reuse
  • Tight design
  • And serious technical skill

8biter Game Jam exists to celebrate that mindset and challenge developers to push themselves creatively by doing more with less.

THEME

To be announced when game jam starts.

Interpret the theme literally or creatively, but it must be clearly and meaningfully present in your game.

CONTROLS (REQUIRED CONSTRAINT)

To honor classic 8-bit hardware limitations, all games must be fully playable using only the following controls on controller or keyboard:

  • D-Pad / (Up, Down, Left, Right) / (W,S,A,D)
  • A Button / (Z) / (Space)
  • B Button / (X) / (M)
  • Select / (Shift)
  • Start  / (Enter)

Control Rules

  • No additional buttons or inputs may be required
  • Keyboard, controller, or touch inputs are allowed as long as they map cleanly to the controls above
  • All core gameplay must be achievable using this control set

This constraint is intentional and should influence:

  • Game mechanics
  • UI design
  • Menus and interactions

GAME REQUIREMENTS (ALL REQUIRED)

Your game must include:

  1. One complete level
  2. At least two enemy types or puzzles
  3. At least one collectible or upgrade
  4. One final boss encounter
  5. A clear ending or win condition

This is a complete game challenge, not a tech demo.

SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

To keep the competition fair across engines and languages, two builds are required.

1: Browser Build (Required)

  • Must be playable directly in the browser on itch.io
  • Must contain the entire game
  • No downloads required to play

2: Windows PC or MAC OS Build (Required)

  • Must be playable on Windows or Mac
  • Must contain the same content and features as the browser build
  • No demos, stubs, or reduced versions

❗ Both builds must be functionally equivalent.

FILE SIZE CALCULATION

Your Total File Size is calculated as: 

Total Size = Browser ZIP size + Windows ZIP size
  • ZIP compression is allowed and encouraged
  • Only the uploaded ZIP sizes are counted
  • Unzipped size does not matter

JUDGING (STANDARD GAME JAM CRITERIA)

Games will be judged using common, familiar jam categories.

Each category is rated 1–10.

Gameplay / Fun

  • Is the game enjoyable to play?
  • Do the mechanics feel good?
  • Is the challenge fair and engaging?

Visual Readability

  • Is the game visually clear?
  • Are enemies, hazards, and UI easy to understand?
  • Is the visual style consistent?

Audio

  • Do sound effects and/or music enhance gameplay?
  • Is audio feedback clear and appropriate?

Theme Use

  • How well is the Dracula theme integrated?
  • Does the theme influence gameplay, not just visuals?
  • Does the theme feel intentional and meaningful?

Controller Use

  • Does the game make effective use of the limited control set?
  • Are controls intuitive, responsive, and well-mapped?
  • Does the control scheme feel intentional, not restrictive or awkward? 
Base Score = Gameplay + Visual Readability + Audio + Theme Use + Controller Use

FILE SIZE MULTIPLIER

Where efficiency is rewarded

After judging, each game’s Base Score is multiplied by a size-based modifier.

Smaller games receive a larger bonus. Larger games receive little or no size bonus.

Size Multiplier Table (Total ZIP Size)

≤ 50 KB × 2.00

≤ 100 KB × 1.80

≤ 500 KB × 1.65

≤ 1 MB × 1.50

≤ 5 MB × 1.35

≤ 20 MB × 1.20

≤ 50 MB × 1.10

≤ 200 MB × 1.05

≤500MB × 1.00

Final Score = Base Score × Size Multiplier 

Fun and creativity come first. Efficiency separates great entries from good ones.

ALLOWED TOOLS & ENGINES

  • Any engine or programming language is allowed
  • JavaScript, C/C++, Godot, Unity, Phaser, Pico-8, custom engines — all welcome
  • Optimization, procedural techniques, and clever reuse are encouraged

There are no engine bans, only tradeoffs.

DISALLOWED PRACTICES

  • Reduced or placeholder builds for one platform
  • Games that do not fully run in the browser
  • Missing required gameplay elements
  • Misleading ZIP uploads

BONUS AWARDS (JUST FOR FUN)

These do not affect final rankings:

  • Smallest Complete Game
  •  Best Fun-Per-Kilobyte
  •  Best Use of Dracula Theme
  •  Best Audio 

ABOUT THE 8BITER GAME JAM SERIES

8biter Game Jam is built around one core idea:

        Limitations create better developers.

Each jam explores a new constraint inspired by classic hardware:

  • File size
  • Visual limits
  • Control schemes
  • Genre restrictions

All focused on rediscovering the lost art of efficient game design.

READY TO PROVE YOUR SKILL?

Strip it down. Optimize everything. Make every byte count.

Welcome to 8biter Game Jam #1

Join the DISCORD!