Good morning.
Hope you're doing well. I have a few questions to help me prepare for this jam.
My questions are as follows:
1 - Are plugins allowed for this Jam?
2 - What happens if a judge doesn't vote on all the games?
3 - Can you assure us that the judges will do their duty?
4 - If the judges don't respect their duty, what is planned to compensate for this failure?
For the time being I can only fully answer one of these questions, that being the first one:
1. Plugins are permitted, but only when they are clearly disclosed in the credits. Usage of plugins will also be considered during rating, and non-disclosure of used plugins can and WILL be held against people.
I will discuss the remaining questions with the other current judges, as they are valid concerns due to the small number of judges. I cannot assure that all judges will do their duty as I cannot see the future, but we will discuss these issues further before the jam begins.
If you release it for general use before the jam starts, then we technically cannot count it as being jam-specific work, so in that case it would be permitted. Would it be cheating? Sure, but we wouldn't be able to do anything about it without doing a general ban on usage of any outside code or asset, meaning that we'd probably have to do a flat ban on RPG maker games, RenPy and much more.
So again, if you make a plugin before the jam that gives you an advantage: That won't fly, because only you can access it. If you make a plugin ahead of time and release it to others: That's fine, because you're not gaining an advantage to others in regard to programming.
Thank you for your clear answer. I understand the idea, but there are limits to this logic.
Let's imagine I create this plugin and make it available ( of course I wouldn't.)
-I purposely offer it just before the start of the Jam so as not to give others a chance to learn how to use it.
-I purposely offer an incomplete plugin or one with insufficient documentation to prevent its use. I would, of course, have a working plugin.
I would still be in compliance, and without realizing it, I would have sabotaged my opponents' work.
I'm not totally against plugins. I use one (Skip title). However, it would be wise to set limits on their use.
For example:
- 5 plugins maximum
- Provide the creator's name, pluggin name and a direct link to their work ( Just the name is not enough.)
- The plugin may not implement full gameplay, such as how to transform RPG Maker into an FPS (don't laugh, I'm working on it).
- Plugins released less than 1 month before the Jam are prohibited.
There might be other ideas, but I suggest we talk about them first. Far be it from me to come and lecture anyone. I am nobody.
(Of course, I am also waiting for the judges' response, but I understand that it may take longer.)
I can help answer some of these questions. That said the goal of this game jam is not really a pure competition of game devs but more so a showcase of pregnancy games for the community. Yes there will be rewards for those who make exceptional games but our goal is to make it easier for people to make games as well as help inspire others to make games of their own.
1. Plugins are allowed. As Erron had mentioned previously, we will make a requirement to give credit to the plugins used for a project and that will be taken into consideration while judging. Should you wish to make your own plugins, you are welcome to do so. The idea behind plugins is that many games use them in some form or fashion and can be a core part of development. It also helps expand the base limitations of some engines as well.
2. For the possibility of a judge not being able to vote on a game, we are taking that into consideration. Likely the other judges will go over the game and possibly look at averaging in results. Our hope however is that this doesn't happen.
3. Yes, we have discussed the topic mentioned here and we will be sure to make sure all games are judged fairly and impartially.
4. I'll be honest with this question and simply say that there will be no compensation should issues arise. With that said, it is a risk you take when joining this jam. We will try however to do the best we can and come up with solutions should something we don't expect happen. You or others are welcome to contact us regarding any possible issues that happen during the jam but once the judging period is over, the results are final.
Thank you for this response and for taking the time to do so.
I understand and accept all of your points.
-Modification : (Aside from the notion of engine limitations. For example, with RPG Maker, I think 90% of plugins are useless if you know the engine. But it's true that it requires work and knowledge. But I understand the idea of making the competition accessible to everyone.)
I'd just like to clarify one small point.
4 - When I mentioned compensation, I wasn't talking about money or profit. I don't think I'm the only one who will commit to doing a piece of work, sometimes at the expense of their time and their physical or mental health, without thinking about the rewards. For some, it's their game to give it their all. When this happens, it can be extremely negatively received if a piece of work doesn't receive any comments (which is one thing), but especially if not all the judges find the time to test a game (which is even worse). From a perspective of promoting and encouraging creativity in the community, this can be a barrier or even a reason to stop trying. Some people participate to be sure of being rated and judged. So when I talk about compensation, it's more about psychological than physical issues.
On the other hand, I imagine that judges are volunteers and have a lot of work, sometimes testing dozens of games while leaving a commentary on each one. I know the time and work this requires. I don't diminish the judges' responsibilities. While being a judge is honorable, it does bring its share of responsibility.
The goal of my post isn't to remake a match or attack the referee. It's to ensure that every player participates in a good match with calm and respect for both the participants and the judges.
Thank you again for your response and also for your efforts in creating this event. Please be assured that I write all this without any animosity, but with all due respect and gratitude for your involvement.
Ps: If my comments are inappropriate, I apologize. English is not my native language. French, being an impertinent language, doesn't help either.
I can personally vouch that the judges evaluate even incomplete games. I released one on a previous jam (I didn't have this account at the time)and tried the solo dev route. The 'game' I submitted only had walking, a sprite change, and a single npc pathing route completed by the deadline. They still fully judged what was available of it and gave their thoughts on it.
As for your previous point about people submitting without thought of rewards, I am one of them. I've been following and attempting to take part for a while now and have faith in how it is handled based off personal experience.
Thank you for your reply. I've participated in other jams myself, and I've had some unpleasant surprises in some of them with the judges. I won't elaborate on that. I just want to avoid any potential problems.
I'll just echo your optimism this time. I imagine we'll be opponents. So I wish you good luck with your work.
Unfortunately one of the judges had an issue on itch's end and wasn't able to submit the scores. That said, outside of itch we kept track of each of our scores in the event of that happening. While a few games got a lower score due to that error, we still have a list of all of the accurate scores. All said however, the error did not affect the top three winners.
