DeconRecon is a game jam in which participants deconstruct the elements of a classic video game and reconstruct it into something new. When the jam begins, participants are presented with a classic retrogame and are given a breakdown of its salient elements. Over the course of the following week they incorporate those elements into a new game.

Participants can work solo or in teams, but all assets for the jam should be created within the week alloted. Using commercial, public domain, or pre-existing assets as placeholders is fine as long as you have the rights, but if they weren’t created for the jam, they can’t be part of the evaluation.

The goal here is not to create a perfect 1:1 clone of the jam’s inspirational game, but to use it as a recognizable starting point and make it your own. You do not have to incorporate ALL of the game’s elements, how how many you’re able to and how well you execute them is a primary ranking criteria.

Rules:

• You have a week to create a game that incorporates the chosen elements of a classic old game without directly recreating that game
  
• You can work alone, or create a team.
• Assets should be created during the jam, it should be mentioned if they weren't, and those categories should be ranked with that in mind.
• Make sure your game exists in a form that people can play. A web export is best in terms of getting judges to play it.
• Do not infringe upon others' trademarks and copyrights; make sure your game looks distinct enough. No sprite rips/flips.

Ranking Criteria:

• Concept: How well does the game incorporate the jam elements into a cohesive whole?
• Technical: How well was the concept executed? Is it bug free?
• Gameplay: Is the game fun to play? Does it work as ‘a game?’
• Presentation: The art and music. Does it look good? Does it sound good? Were the art and music assets created for the jam?

The Game:

Our first Recon Decon Jam’s focus is Atari’s 1980 hit Missile Command. It saw a number of ports, remakes, remasters, and clones for various home systems, and you can find web versions playable in the browser.

For our purposes, Missile Command has the following characteristics:

• You’re defending targets from attack.
• The player controls a targeting cursor
• Player shots travel to the point of impact and then explode, making the game less about reflexes and more about anticipation and leading your target.

The game of course has other qualities, but these three will be the ones considered when games are ranked. Remember, we’re not recreating Missile Command, we’re creating new games using the characteristics of Missile Command. It does not in any way have to resemble the source game, or be recognizable as it, beyond the core characteristics above

Resources:
Play the Atari 2600 port of Missile Command online

Missile Command Arcade Longplay

Schedule:

On June 12, midnight CST, the jam begins.

Entries must be submitted by June 18th, midnight, CST.

You'll have until midnight June 25th, CST, to play and rank these games.