Tēnā koutou! Welcome!

This game jam is to celebrate Te Reo Māori, the indigenous language of New Zealand. It's scheduled to coincide with Te Wiki o te Reo Māori 2022, or Māori Language Week. "This year is extra special as 14 September marks the 50th anniversary of the Māori Language Petition. The Māori Language Moment usually falls on this day to commemorate the time and place the petition was delivered to parliament. This year, join a livestream event at parliament as we commemorate the anniversary and celebrate Te Wā Tuku Reo Māori at midday." Anyone is welcome to participate wherever you are in the world and whatever your familiarity or proficiency with Te Reo Māori. You can also - optionally -  register to take part in Māori Language Week on their website and use/follow the hashtag: #reomāori

Theme

The theme of the jam is Te Reo Māori/Māoritanga. 

The theme is purposefully quite broad with the ultimate goal being to create some awesome games that celebrate Māori language and culture. If you know nothing about Te Reo Māori or Māoritanga, all the better! This is a great time to learn something while creating.

Discord

Join the jam Discord server to chat with other jammers, or to look for team members, help, or ideas.

Huatau / Ideas

If nothing immediately springs to mind, here are some ideas:

• A word game / puzzle using māori words.
• An educational game to help others learn te reo. 
• A game that incorporates aspects of Māori mythology

Rauemi / Resources

Māori Dictionary 
Te mana o te reo Māori timeline
Māori Language Week Resources

jabuwu's game jam philosopy (jam tips/advice)

Rules

Make sure to read them!

• Make your submission clean and friendly for everyone. (Nothing NSFW)
• You can ONLY work on your game between  Sept. 9th - Sept. 19th 2022; your game must be created during the jam, for the jam.
• You may use pre-made assets (music, art, etc.), but be mindful that originality is one of the voting criteria.
  Please be honest, and give credit where credit is due.
• You can work alone or as a team. 
• Entries must not stray too far from the theme (Te Reo Māori/Māoritanga); entries which do not incorporate the theme risk removal.
• Entries must be respectful of Māoritanga.
  
• Racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, and all other forms of discrimination will not be tolerated.
• Read and follow the above rules.
• Have fun!

Voting

Submissions will be ranked by popular vote. Voting begins as soon as the jam ends and will go for two weeks. Anyone with an account on itch.io can vote. Submissions will be rated on these criteria:

• Theme: How well does the game incorporate the theme of Te Reo Maori/Maoritanga? How much did you enjoy the interpretation of the theme?
• Gameplay: Was the game fun? Was it interesting? 
• Presentation/Polish: How complete was the overall game? Did you like the graphics? The music?  
• Originality: How unique was the game? Were there any new/novel ideas? 

The submission which scores highest will be the winner!

Prizes

TBA - Watch this space..