Are you just starting out with game development or are you already an experienced game developer? Do you want to create a horror game? Are you looking for a game jam to motivate you to finally finish something? Are you willing to follow a certain theme, in order to find inspiration and maybe try something else you wouldn't normally consider? Whether you plan to make a serious, dark horror masterpiece or a B-movie style game about typical horror movie protagonists going into spooky places where no sane man would ever dare to tread, this game jam is for you! Hopefully, at the end of the game jam you will have something playable you can be proud of!

Discord: Here's the link to the Discord server!

Theme: For this game jam, you will have to select one of the four Themes.

You need to incorporate your chosen Theme into your game in some way and before you submit it, you will need to write atleast 1 short sentence about how your game fits your chosen Theme. It's completely up to you how you interpret the theme. Feel free to be creative with it.

Bonus Challenges: Unlike the Theme, these are entirely optional. Feel free to do one, two, all of them or ignore them completely. Each Theme will have three bonus challenges associated with it.

*Themes and Bonus Challenges associated with the Themes have been revealed!*

Theme 1: Realm of the Dead

Bonus Challenges:

1 -The Gatekeeper: At some point, the protagonist finds their way blocked by a gatekeeper who demands something from them in order to let them pass.

2 - Pass Beyond the Threshold: There's a scene in the game where the protagonist passes from the mortal realm into the realm of the dead.

3 - Stand in Judgment: There's a part in the game where the player has to judge souls of the dead.

Theme 2: Technological Menace

Bonus Challenges:

1 - Can't Let You Do That: There's a scene in the game where a computer, AI or some kind of sentient machine consciously refuses to obey and/or perform its function.

2 - Robot: There's a robot in the game.

3 - Repairs Needed: There's a part in the game where the player needs to repair something to progress.

Theme 3: Lady of the Lake

Bonus Challenges:

1 - Lakeside Cabin: A cabin near a lake is a location in the game.

2 - Suddenly Vanished: There's a part in the game where a person the player can see in the distance suddenly vanishes as soon as they get close.

3 - Fishing Trip: The game includes some kind of fishing mechanic/minigame.

Theme 4: Twisted Fairytales

Bonus Challenges:

1 - Horror Anthology: The game is a horror anthology, featuring multiple short horror stories that each share a common theme and/or a common element and tie into each other in some way.

2 - Fables: The game includes some kind of morality lesson(s).

3 - Prince or Princess: The game includes a prince and/or a princess.

Rules:

• You can only start working on the actual game project after the submission period starts, but you can start planning and creating/gathering assets and other resources before that time.
• There's no restriction on the Engine, Libraries or Framework you can use to develop your game. Feel free to use Godot, Unity, Unreal Engine, Game Maker Studio, Construct, Adventure Game Studio, RPG Maker or anything else you want.
• Your game must be a horror game, or atleast have horror elements. It doesn't have to be outright scary, so long as it can even remotely be considered one.
• You can use premade assets, so long as you have the rights/license to use them, abide by their Terms of Use and give credit.
• Your game must incorporate the Theme in some way.
• Abide by itch.io's Terms of Service.
• Provide content warnings for your game if needed. This includes marking the game as Adult Content if it's necessary.

 Suggestions:

1. Try to include a Browser version of your game if you can. You don't have to do so, but you will get a lot more people to play your game if it can be played in a browser.
2. If you use Unreal Engine to make your game and it's not a VR game, make sure to uncheck the "Start in VR" option in project settings, just so that it doesn't Steam VR when people try to play your game.
3. If you wish to create a game with an optional VR mode in Unreal Engine, you should either include  an option in the Game Settings to turn VR mode on, or include two separate versions for download, one with VR enabled and one with it disabled.
4. If you use an old version of RPG Maker to create your game, make sure it's playable without needing the RTP package to be installed.