Hello all. We are just starting development and we want to clarify if what we have in mind does not violate the rules. We want to make a game that consist of several 20-second parts. On the jam page, it says that it's fine to do that, as long as items or progress does not carry over, but in our case, those 20-second levels move the overall plot forward. The levels are sort of connected (there is no inventory, so literal stuff does not carry over, but the progression does). Is this allowed, or do the 20-second levels have to be absolutely separate? Thank you!

hi, TG. i believe the Hosts will agree that we've seen plenty of games in past 20 Second Game Jams that do exactly what you're planning but might seek some clarity; Story progression, level Unlocks, more Bosses to battle, etc, are all fine (and welcome) so long as each is capped at 20 Seconds and nothing is carried over to the next beyond the plot and flavor you plan on adding to the pot :)

Hi TurtleGhost. It is definitely allowed to have multiple levels in your game. We encourage you to make each level a self-contained, like a stand-alone 20 second game. If you are not carrying over items or abilities and your levels could be played in any order without it making a difference, then that's close enough to the spirit of the jam. Having a narrative that continues from level to level does make it more like a longer game played in 20 second installments. Having said that, we like to give advice about what we think is in the spirit of the jam but we accept all games that clearly engage with the 20 second constraint and we don't disqualify games for different interpretations.