THE LONG JAM FOR SHORT GAMES
Make a game that lasts only 20 seconds!
IMPORTANT SURPRISE NOTICE: The jam has been extended by one week! We do this every year to allow people to finish their games with less stress and less crunching. Your health is important: Remember to take breaks, drink water, talk to humans.
You don't have much time to grab the player's attention so you have to make those seconds count.
This jam is relaxed and beginner friendly. You have three full weeks to make a short game. There are no judges, rankings or prizes.
Join the 20 Second Game Jam Discord to get news, ask questions, join a team, share progress or just hang out with other jammers!
Optional Themes selected by our community:
- Slow Decay
- Explore or Explode
- Oh No, Not the Apocalypse Again!
All games must have a web build. You may use any engine that can meet that requirement. You can provide downloads for additional platforms. See the Rules and FAQ below for more information.
NEWS: To celebrate the 20 Second Game Jam, DragonRuby Game Toolkit is giving away free Standard Licenses for a limited time! You'll get a full copy of DragonRuby that you can keep forever, including updates. You can use it for personal or commercial projects and it's royalty-free. Claim your free licence here.
ORIGIN STORY
20 Second Game Jam began life in 2020 as the TeenyTiny DragonRuby MiniGameJam. After two successful jams, we thought the concept was too much fun not to share with everyone! In 2022, we changed the name and made it open to everyone using any game engine.
Check out these awesome games from past jams:
Legend of Song
Gem Snag 20
CountdownCastle
20 Seconds to Jam to my game
20 WORDS // 20 SECONDS
Zodiac Ranger III
Lina: Suika Hunt
Rubblar
Toe II Toe
Crumbly Dungeon
Clavis's Part Shop
Sword Saint
Check out these playthroughs from 2023 by Rheia Gaming and AchieGameDev
And there's even more great games from previous jams!
RULES
- Submitted video games must last for 20 Seconds or less, start to finish (see FAQ for details)
- All submitted games must include a version that is free and playable in web browsers (more info in the FAQ).
- Be respectful and tolerant towards participants and players.
- Games containing mature themes or material that is not suitable for young audiences should be very clearly marked.
FAQ
- Q: Does my game really have to be exactly 20 seconds?
A: Yes, because that’s the whole point of the jam (although we won't be checking games with a stopwatch)
- Q: When does the 20 seconds start and end?
A: There should be 20 seconds of gameplay, not including titles, menus or cutscenes. You are highly encouraged to minimize these elements or make them skippable to let the player get into the game as quickly as possible.
- Q: Can my game have multiple 20-second levels?
A: Yes! We're asking for a complete game in 20 seconds or less but if you want to add more 20-second levels to it, that's fine.
- Q: Can the player keep their items/health/upgrades etc from one play-through to the next?
A: Every play-through or level should be a separate, self-contained, 20-second experience. Don't carry pick-ups or learned skills from one play-through or level to the next. Sorry Mario, you can't keep that fire flower.
- Q: What game engines can I use?
A: You can use any engine to make your game (but please see the next question).
- Q: What platforms should I release the game on?
A: Your game must be free and playable in the browser. You are encouraged to provide downloads for additional platforms.
- Q: Do you have any advice for web builds for my engine?
A: Some engines have web exporters or tools provided by their communities that you may not know about:
- Scratch: Turbowarp
- Love2D: Love Web Builder
- PyGame: PygBag
- Raylib: Guide, and a CMake Template with automatic toolchain installation
- Q: Can I work with a team?
A: Yes!
- Q: Can I start working on my game before the jam starts?
A: Yes!
- Q: Can I submit more than one game?
A: You can submit as many games as you like but if you do, please ensure that they follow the rules and are made to a reasonable standard. Flooding the jam with very low effort entries risks having them removed.
- Q: Can I submit an unfinished game?
A: Yes, but please submit it near the end of the jam. Do not submit non-functional games.
- Q: Oh no! I worked really hard on my game but the web build is still broken! Will my game be disqualified?
A: By default, yes, but contact a host if you are in this situation.
The 20 Second Survival Guide will help you make it through the jam and emerge victorious! It contains extra details not found in the FAQ, tips about surviving game jams and some useful hints for making tiny games.
SPONSOR
20 Second Game Jam is sponsored by DragonRuby Game Toolkit, a 2D game engine that’s super easy to get to grips with but powerful enough to make professional strength games. It uses the awesome Ruby programming language and it can build games for Windows, Mac, Linux, Web, mobile, consoles and VR.
DragonRuby is giving away free, commercial licenses to jam participants! Claim your free license here. This offer has now expired.
For help with DragonRuby and Ruby code, visit the DragonRuby Discord: http://discord.dragonruby.org.
20 Second Sample Game
A 20 second sample game is included with DragonRuby and you can use it as a starting point for your game. You will find it in the following folder:
/dragonruby/samples/99_genre_twenty_second_games/twenty_second_starting_point
