Join our Annual Holiday Jam 2025: The Christmas Edition

It’s time to build something joyful, festive, and full of Christmas spirit. Work solo or with a team to create a small, polished game that spreads cheer.

Starts December 13, 2025 at 1:00 PM Ends January 13, 2026 at 1:00 PM Voting ends January 20, 2026 at 1:00 PM All times are shown in your local time.

The theme, special object, and mechanic will be revealed when the jam begins. You must use the theme. You’ll earn bonus credit for including the special object and mechanic.

Your entry must be festive and centered around Christmas. NSFW content is not allowed. Theme compliance is required. The game should be built for WebGL or provided as a downloadable build and must be free to play at submission. All work should be original and created during the jam. Credit any third-party assets you use.

Teams can have between one and five members. You can participate solo or find teammates in our community channels.

When submitting, include a playable build with clear instructions and controls. Add three to five screenshots and a short description. List the engines, tools, and external assets used, with links where possible. You may also include a source or credits file for extra transparency.

Voting will be open to all submitters and contributors. Entries will be judged on theme, festivity, fun, audio, and creativity.

This jam exists to spread the Christmas spirit and give everyone a reason to finish and share something small and joyful. The theme drops at the start. You have one month to create, followed by one week to vote.

Join here > https://itch.io/jam/the-annual-holiday-jam-prizes-

This is not the case, However if you pulled off a one megabyte game with the current requirements to qualified, we would be super stoked. It would be very impressive.

Sure, You can mix all you want! At the end of the jam you will see a questionnaire on submission. Ensure to state their the you mixed. This will most likely earn you bonus points!

The megabyte jam has become active! ( Check out the themes )

Updated to match incoming jams!

HOHOHO … HOLD UP A MINUTE…. It is closing in on Christmas very quickly….. There for we would like to introduce our newest member of our Jam Fam!

The Annual Holiday Jam ( This year we chose Christmas… Because what a wonderful time)!… Maybe next year we will choose easter…. Who knows.

How ever, you should climb into the chimney and get in early! There is a lot more to come from the drop bear community so stay tuned and we hope to see you here!

The Annual Holiday Jam is most likely going to change every year.

The jam will start on the 13th of December 2025 and finish on the 13th of January 2026.

We look forward to seeing you all there!

https://itch.io/jam/the-annual-holiday-jam-prizes-

1: Choose one sub-theme. Mixing or combining multiple sub-themes will earn you a higher rating.

2: Choose one mechanic. Using multiple mechanics will also boost your rating.

3: Choose one special object. Including more than one will further improve your rating.

4: You may switch themes, mechanics, or objects at any time if your first choice doesn’t work out. You have a full month to finish and release your game.

5: Submitting multiple games based on different themes is welcome.

Hello, Yes that is fine!

There will be 3 Primary Themes : Horror : Fantasy : Cozy.
Beneath all 3 Themes will be 3 Sub Themes : So 9 Themes All Together.

How this will work is that you will choose a theme that stands out to you the most. Run with that. 
If at any point you want to change your theme as you have 1 month to Upload a game. You can do so! 

Luparia Sounds has put forward a sound pack for 1st, second and 3rd place now also!

We would like to invite you to participate in the Megabyte jam. 

We have a lot of great collaborations this year and aim to make this our biggest jam yet! If you are interested please check it out. I will link the jam right here  > Mega Byte Jam 2025 + Prizes

Beneath is the jam page. To join just freely press that link up there ^. 

Themes for this years Mega Byte Jam!

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2.

3.

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2.

3.

1.

2.

3.

Requirement's of the Mega Byte Jam!

Alongside the theme's, we’ll also suggest a mechanic to help inspire creativity. Use it if you like, or forge your own path. How ever this will be used as part of the voting criteria. 

Alongside the Themes and Mechanic a required Special Object will be announced at the start of the jam. Don't miss this announcement as it will be live here.

Start Date: October 16, 2025 at 10:00 AM (AEST)

End Date: November 16, 2025 at 10:00 AM (AEST)

Voting Ends: November, 30, 2025 at 4:00 PM (AEST)

Prizes

Pizza Doggy is an asset pack developer and game jam organizer. Winners of the Megabyte Jam will receive:

1st Place:

PSX Mega Pack https://pizzadoggy.itch.io/psx-mega-pack

2nd Place:

https://pizzadoggy.itch.io/psx-tech

3rd Place:

https://pizzadoggy.itch.io/psx-textures

You can find more of there assets here : 

PizzaDoggy's Itch Page

 Good Knight Owl is a Game Studio and will be giving the first, second and third winners a copy of there game SOULGLASS.  Click the image to be directed to the steam page!

KnightOwlStudios   

Light studios is a Indie game developer who has put forward there game Taking honey for the first, second and third place. Check out there steam page here ! https://store.steampowered.com/app/3982490/Taking_Honey/

As soon as the game jam is finished and the winners have been announced there is 3 extra copies that we will be giving away on our Winner Announcement stream! Ensure to join in !  Just our twitch, Nothing special

Voting Criteria

Winners will be chosen by the Drop Bear Community Jam team. We’ll be judging based on:

Creativity

Polish

Theme interpretation

Overall fun

Mechanic Implementation

Special Object

We’ll announce 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place and play the winning games live on stream. you can join in on the fun at Just our twitch, Nothing special or you can wait until we announce it on our discord :)

Submission Rules

Game must run in browser (HTML5 / WebGL) – Downloads are accepted, but browser based is strongly preferred due to the fact that most people will most likely not download your game due to Malware reason's.

Assets : can be reused or flipped, but must credit original creators

RPG Maker users: You must include some original art

We encourage everyone to make as much of their assets as possible

No NSFW content: If you would not send it to your boss., do not post it here.

Updating: You can update your game up until the voting begins!

AI : Clarify if you have used AI please, This way people can vote on the section AI was used based on a case to case opinion. AI is only to be utilized as a tool. No full AI implementations. This includes Art, Audio and Full AI Created Programming.

Join our discord to build your teams or collaborate with others! 

Drop Bear Discord

Jame Gam Discord

Good Knight Owl Discord

Link to the jam https://itch.io/jam/megabyte-jam

Themes for this years Mega Byte Jam!

1.

2.

3.

1.

2.

3.

1.

2.

3.

Requirement's of the Mega Byte Jam!

Alongside the theme's, we’ll also suggest a mechanic to help inspire creativity. Use it if you like, or forge your own path. How ever this will be used as part of the voting criteria. 

Alongside the Themes and Mechanic a required Special Object will be announced at the start of the jam. Don't miss this announcement as it will be live here.

Start Date: October 16, 2025 at 10:00 AM (AEST)

End Date: November 16, 2025 at 10:00 AM (AEST)

Voting Ends: December 10, 2025 at 4:00 PM (AEST)

Prizes

Pizza Doggy is an asset pack developer and game jam organizer. Winners of the Megabyte Jam will receive:

1st Place:

PSX Mega Pack https://pizzadoggy.itch.io/psx-mega-pack

2nd Place:

https://pizzadoggy.itch.io/psx-tech

3rd Place:

https://pizzadoggy.itch.io/psx-textures

You can find more of there assets here : 

PizzaDoggy's Itch Page

 Good Knight Owl is a Game Studio and will be giving the first, second and third winners a copy of there game SOULGLASS.  Click the image to be directed to the steam page!

KnightOwlStudios   

Light studios is a Indie game developer who has put forward there game Taking honey for the first, second and third place. Check out there steam page here ! https://store.steampowered.com/app/3982490/Taking_Honey/

As soon as the game jam is finished and the winners have been announced there is 3 extra copies that we will be giving away on our Winner Announcement stream! Ensure to join in !  Just our twitch, Nothing special

Voting Criteria

Winners will be chosen by the Drop Bear Community Jam team. We’ll be judging based on:

Creativity

Polish

Theme interpretation

Overall fun

Mechanic Implementation

Special Object

We’ll announce 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place and play the winning games live on stream. you can join in on the fun at Just our twitch, Nothing special or you can wait until we announce it on our discord :)

Submission Rules

Game must run in browser (HTML5 / WebGL) – Downloads are accepted, but browser based is strongly preferred due to the fact that most people will most likely not download your game due to Malware reason's.

Assets : can be reused or flipped, but must credit original creators

RPG Maker users: You must include some original art

We encourage everyone to make as much of their assets as possible

No NSFW content: If you would not send it to your boss., do not post it here.

Updating: You can update your game up until the voting begins!

AI : Clarify if you have used AI please, This way people can vote on the section AI was used based on a case to case opinion. AI is only to be utilized as a tool. No full AI implementations. This includes Art, Audio and Full AI Created Programming.

Join our discord to build your teams or collaborate with others! 

Drop Bear Discord

Jame Gam Discord

Good Knight Owl Discord


Link to the jam https://itch.io/jam/megabyte-jam

Themes for this years Mega Byte Jam!

1.

2.

3.

1.

2.

3.

1.

2.

3.

Requirement's of the Mega Byte Jam!

Alongside the theme's, we’ll also suggest a mechanic to help inspire creativity. Use it if you like, or forge your own path. How ever this will be used as part of the voting criteria. 

Alongside the Themes and Mechanic a required Special Object will be announced at the start of the jam. Don't miss this announcement as it will be live here.

Start Date: October 16, 2025 at 10:00 AM (AEST)

End Date: November 16, 2025 at 10:00 AM (AEST)

Voting Ends: December 10, 2025 at 4:00 PM (AEST)

Prizes

Pizza Doggy is an asset pack developer and game jam organizer. Winners of the Megabyte Jam will receive:

1st Place: PSX Mega Pack

2nd Place: PSX Tech

3rd Place: PSX Textures You can find more of there assets here : 

PizzaDoggy's Itch Page

 Good Knight Owl is a Game Studio and will be giving the first, second and third winners a copy of there game SOULGLASS. 

Voting Criteria

Winners will be chosen by the Drop Bear Community Jam team. We’ll be judging based on:

Creativity

Polish

Theme interpretation

Overall fun

Mechanic Implementation

Special Object

We’ll announce 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place and play the winning games live on stream. you can join in on the fun at Just our twitch, Nothing special or you can wait until we announce it on our discord :).

Submission Rules

Game must run in browser (HTML5 / WebGL) – Downloads are accepted, but browser based is strongly preferred due to the fact that most people will most likely not download your game due to Malware reason's.

Assets : can be reused or flipped, but must credit original creators

RPG Maker users: You must include some original art

We encourage everyone to make as much of their assets as possible

No NSFW content: If you would not send it to your boss., do not post it here.

Updating: You can update your game up until the voting begins!

AI : Clarify if you have used AI please, This way people can vote on the section AI was used based on a case to case opinion. AI is only to be utilized as a tool. No full AI implementations. This includes Art, Audio and Full AI Created Programming.

Join our discord to build your teams or collaborate with others! 

Drop Bear Discord

Jame Gam Discord

Good Knight Owl Discord

You can join the jam here :  MegaByteJam2025

Thank you for taking the time to offer a solution for a separate topic, however this is perfectly fine from SaryahM as she is an admin! Thank you though!

Current Jams Running Now are  : Mini Byte Jam 2 and not to far away will be the Mini Byte Jam 3. Cant wait to see you all there!

Hello Skye. So there a jams out there where designing the game is all you need to do, But these are extremely rare, On the other hand most jams would like a product, But most jams also have a Community discord in which they offer for you to collaborate with other people. So if you are looking to join a jam, Find one with a discord. and see if you can find people who can bring that idea to life!

Hello anime core! We have a community of devs that you might be interested in meeting. Perfect place for connection and protentional collaborations! 

Our Discord

Have a little look around and if you need anything look for Dylan or Lucas in the members list we will help you where we can.

i think that this is a wonderful idea. Count us in!

Look, If it is a game that fits all themes and it was honest work cool. But if the game gets disqualified more then once do you still think they should be allowed to do such things?

This is something that needs to be stopped. I cannot count on one hand how many times i have had to disqualify submissions and on one occasion I have been duked by a downloadable submission.

It would make sense for itch io to set up a system where if a game gets disqualified from more then one jam or the account itself has games removed from multiple jams to shut their account down. These spammers have a massive pattern that is really easy to recognize. That is my 2 cents.

Hello, Thank you for your kind words, we do try our best to cater towards everyone.

To answer your question I would first like to thank you for taking the time to ask a question and join the jam. 
The  " Mega Byte Jam " Has 3 Themes and 3 Sub themes for 1 purpose  :  Catering to everyone. Some people are good at making horror games where others are good at making fantasy games  or cozy games. Based on the jams voting criteria picking one game to take on home gives us a variety of games to play and a tougher judging stand point taking into consideration that every game is going to be hugely different. Which also makes it easier to select who the winners will be. The reason that this will make it easier is it really happens to work with the system of who polished there game the most, Who's mechanics were nicer, Who really put the time in. This will be a joint voting decision between the judging team in the drop bear community discord. There will be no favoritism. Just a game that excelled most out of all of them purely based on the hard work and dedication that we can feel with said game. I hope that covered your question. If you have any more questions do not be afraid to ask. Thank you!

CURRENT JAMS :

 The Mega Byte Jam ( 190 + Participants )

UPCOMING JAMS : 
Drop Bear's : Horror Jam Vol II

Debug Jam ( Beginners Jam)

Christmas Jam ( Drop Bear's Annual Holiday Jam )

We have decided to operate under the one thread to save clutter and allow other Jam host's to still appear without hogging all the space.

We have other features that we think is very creative for seasoned and beginner developers. 

We have put a lot of thought into these jams  * Cries in endless hours and arthritis in the fingers from typing so many game jam promotions *
The thought we put into these jams are strictly about YOU, we want to see you thrive so we throw challenges at you, we are lenient yet strict with the deadlines to help YOU become your better self.

We offer a positive environment. Everyone is welcome to participate and join in. We also offer feedback, resources and any development assistance that we can. If you have not teamed up with some one yet and would like to, our discord offers sections for jam conversations, Teaming up, Help and assistance. We also have someone active 95% of the time that has knowledge in some sections that can provide support. 

Although we do not support the USE of AI at all. We also understand the need for others to utilize and use this based on restrictions in Their/Your personal lives. We get it. That is why we try our hardest to teach you how to do things independently, Through pushing you to do your best in the jams that we host. We also offer extra assistance for those who want to drift away from AI and become truly independent in the game development process. How can we stop people from utilizing such a tool if all we do is tell them that AI is terrible and not to use it Without offering a fostering and supportive environment that allows AI users to have access to materials and other people who have experience that could teach them how to do something independently. This is what we are all about.

Discord

Here are some of our previous jams that you could check out! 

https://itch.io/jam/mini-byte-jam
https://itch.io/jam/drop-bear-horror-jam

Thank you!

We have been trying, But we cannot seem to get pass the pit, Is there something i am missing? I am aware of your secret jump mechanic but we cannot get it to work. Please give us some information. Find Dylan in the discord and swing him a message!

Correct, It is called a mini byte jam for the purpose of the time frame been so short. You will be able to post what ever you like how ever you only have 7 days to make it.

TO be more clear, Here is a example, This post took us ages to write, although it seems simple, the formatting was a pain. 

https://itch.io/t/5000451/mega-byte-jam-2025-1-month-long-prizes-in-discussion-

Hello all,

First off, allow us to introduce ourselves. Drop Bear Studios Community is a hub that has many jammers and game devs alike. We are hosting game jams in the likeness to build on our community and make a safe place for all devs to hang out.

Whenever we seem to post our game jams in the community or anywhere really, we are having a really hard time finding potential jammers.

What are we doing wrong, and where should we be posting and promoting our content? We have multiple posts in the Game Jam Thread and don’t really receive much feedback. Support would be appreciated. Discords that allow us to share our game jams, etc.

We work really hard on our jam posts, pages, and prize stacks but receive no output from our input.

Please help us.