The Exceptional Minds Game Jam is a 48-hour celebration of game design open to aspiring and working creators of all experience levels. Join us in-person at Exceptional Minds Academy in Los Angeles or participate fully remote. Opening Ceremonies and the Winner Reveal will be livestreamed on the Exceptional Minds official Twitch channel.

Please register here in addition to clicking the 'Join Jam' button above!

WHO CAN ENTER

The jam is open to solo designers or teams of up to 5 people. There is no entry fee. Entrants must be at least 14 years of age. A parental release form must be filled for entrants under 18. No prior game-making experience is required. We welcome:

• First-time designers
• Hobbyists
• Working professionals
• Students at any school
• Current students of Exceptional Minds

AWARD CATEGORIES

ON-SITE PARTICIPATION

Teams are welcome to visit Exceptional Minds Academy to collaborate, plan, playtest, network, and work on their games during open hours:

• Friday June 26: Open from Opening Ceremonies at 6 PM — closes 11:00 PM
• Saturday June 27: Open 7:00 AM – 11:00 PM
• Sunday June 28: Open 7:00 AM – 6:30 PM (submissions close at 6 PM)

Please note: No overnight stays. Parking is not validated.

RULES & GUIDELINES

• PARTICIPANT QUALIFICATIONS
1. Participants must be on a team of 1 to 5 members.
2. Participants must be 14 years of age or older.
3. Participants may be neurotypical or neurodiverse.
4. Participants may be a hobbyist, enrolled student, or professional established in the industry.
5. Participants agree to follow the Code of Conduct.
6. Teams can register and be organized up until the theme is announced.

• GAME CONTENT
1. Any form of hate speech or themes will disqualify your game.
2. Sexuality may be tastefully explored but do not include graphic pornographic content.
3. Use of any art, code, or audio assets generated by artificial intelligence is not permitted.
4. Games must be original work and made entirely during the duration of the jam.
5. Participants must own the rights or have license to use all assets used for their submission. Royalty free and public domain assets are okay.

• SUBMISSION
  1. The final deliverable may be a board/card game with directions and printable pieces or an executable build of your game (submit as PDF.)
  2. Video game submissions must be playable on both Mac & Windows or in a web browser.
  3. Only one game submission is allowed per team and must be submitted through a single itch.io account.
  4. Your game must be submitted by the time specified to be considered for recognition and awards.
  5. All team members must be listed as collaborators on the game’s itch page at time of submission.
  6. Once the deadline has passed, no updates will be allowed to your submission during the evaluation period.

• JUDGING
  1. A panel of Judges will evaluate submissions for each category except for the Audience Award.
  2. The Audience Award will be the one game where participants and the general public may vote for their favorite game.
  3.  Winners will be announced Friday July 10th at 6 PM on the Official EM Twitch Channel.

ABOUT EXCEPTIONAL MINDS

Exceptional Minds is a non-profit academy and studio preparing young adults on the autism spectrum for careers in animation, visual effects, 3D gaming and other related fields in the entertainment industry. We provide technical and work readiness training customized to help students achieve their artistic and professional goals.