Ok, listen: I'm going to state the obvious. 2020 has been rough. We're all sad. We're all tired. We're all lonely. I can't solve the world's problems just by myself, but what I can do is host a nice little birthday party in Bitsy cyberspace where we can all get comfy, make games, and love each other. Now who's with me??

Let's Party!! 🎉✨✨✨✨✨

Wait, who are you and why should I care if it's your birthday?

My name is Emma!! I'm in the Bitsy community! And I love my Bitsy friends, so I'm celebrating my birthday by throwing a game jam where we make Bitsy games!! This is a thing I did last year & the year before that, and was really happy with how they turned out, so we're doing it again! Wheeeee!

Basically this jam will be a run for two weeks, starting on October 11th and ending on October 24th (which encompasses my birthday, October 13th!). Anybody who likes using Bitsy is welcome to join the party! Old friends, new friends, friends who haven't even used Bitsy before...we're all friends here! 💖

Hold on there, friendo, what is Bitsy??

Bitsy is a cool online program made by this neato Adam guy that lets you make cute narrative games! It's really easy to use and you can make awesome stuff with it! You could check out these collections I have for examples of some of the cool games that have been made with Bitsy!

If you have never done anything in Bitsy before, here's a really good tutorial on how to get started, and of course, if you want to hop into the Bitsy Discord (Bitscord), the people there will be happy to answer any questions you have!

Theme?

Usually the themes for this birthday jam reflect on my own personal interests and vibes that I get throughout the year leading up to October. Well, in these circumstances...it was a little hard to think of something upbeat. And so I asked myself: what is one thing that has been keeping me sane throughout all of this?

And the answer to that was:

🍜 Noodles. 🍜

And so inspired by my large intake of pasta during quarantine, as well as the rise in popularity of bread-baking, sourdough-startering, and YouTube channel-cooking, this year's theme is Carbs & Comfort Food!

Feel free to play with this theme however you see fit! Do you have a favorite dish that brings you comfort to eat? Is it the act of cooking that brings you comfort? Do you like to follow recipes, or do you tend to do your own thing? How do your favorite foods connect you to people and culture? What's the best thing to put on toast?

Are you hungry now? Because I sure am. Hungry for all the ✨great ideas✨ you're going to come up with!

In addition, this jam is collaborating with ZONE to bring you a companion Movie Night featuring a setlist of films that have to do with food! The movie night will be happening in ZONE on Tuesday, October 13th (my birthday!) starting around 1:00PM CST. You are absolutely welcome to attend and join in the celebration!

An FAQ:

Does the game have to be made in Bitsy?

Um, yeah. I think that was pretty clear. 💖 If you're really feeling contrarian, I guess instead you can make a game with Candle's Flicksy, or SG's Môsi!

Can I use hacks?

All hacks / any hacks / no hacks is all welcome here!! Fuck it up, Kenneth!!!!

I've never used Bitsy before, can I still join?

OMG YES!!! I'D BE HONORED IF YOUR FIRST BITSY GAME WAS MADE FOR MY JAM ✨✨✨

Does the game have to be made within the timeframe, or can we start on it early?

The spirit of the jam is to make it within the given timeframe, but like, I understand if that's Tricky™ because of Life™. So I won't say no if you want to start early! ^^ Also, if you wish to submit a late entry, just message me once you're finished and I'll add it to the submissions list!

I've got some smart & clever ideas for my game, but it involves some mature themes. Is that alright?

Yes, that's perfectly okay! But please be mindful and put the appropriate content warnings on your game!

Hey, I want to be a dick and making something that's racist/sexist/homophobic/transphobic/something that insults and attacks marginalized groups, is that alright?

NO!!!!! Please keep your evil content to yourself! 🎵It's my party and I'll ban if I want to🎵

Are you aware that "Carbs" is one letter-swap away from "Crabs"?

Oh no you've unearthed my secret

Is this just Food Discourse 2020?

Shut up!!!!!

Happy Birthday!! 🎉

Thank u, thank u <3

Happy jamming!!! 💖🍜💖🍞💖🍜💖🍞

(Yummy bread pics by Jason Li ✨🍞)