From adverts that emulate first-person shooters, to Fortnite maps and eSport teams, Discord servers and Twitch channels - the British Army is gamifying its recruitment practices and targeting teenagers in the UK's gaming community. 

It's time to fight back!

Games Transformed is back for 2024 and we're asking for submissions that counter the military's push into our spaces. Join us to make games that challenge military recruitment and propaganda, encourage resistance to war and imperialism, and imagine a better world.

While many mainstream, triple-A games desensitise us to, and sometimes glorify, the horrors of war and imperialism, some game developers have used the medium to make anti-war statements and interventions in their work - not only through their subject and narratives, but also through the subversion of mechanics.

Games like This War Of Mine, War On Terror, and the Metal Gear franchise convey the horrors of war and imperialism not just for individuals, but also the lasting social and economic impact on populations. Super BunnyHops “Anti-War War Games” video explores how these politics are expressed in these games. 

As the genocide in Gaza continues, enabled by imperialist states and their militaries, it is more vital than ever to be voicing our opposition and encouraging everyone to embrace a politics of peace, justice and solidarity through art and culture.

Last year the winners of the jam worked with us to create a custom arcade cabinet that was showcased at The World Transformed Festival. This year there are two prizes up for grabs; an arcade cabinet for the winning video game, and a high quality edition of the winning tabletop game.

Both will be revealed in a direct action targeting the British Army's recruitment drive!

The jam runs from 1st - 21st June, culminating in a day festival in London on Saturday 22nd June! The jam is open to submissions of games both digital and analogue, and will be centred on themes of anti-war and anti-imperialism.

The Games Transformed 2024 festival

The jam will culminate in a one day festival at Pelican House, London on Saturday 22 June, open to both jam participants and the public. There will be plenty of chances to play the games, as well as talks, workshops and a party! Tickets are available here.

Theme + Voting

The theme of the jam is:

NO WAR BUT CLASS WAR

We are looking for games that might change someone's mind about joining the army, and games that encourage resistance to war and imperialism.

A People’s Choice Award will be decided by public vote on itch.io but a panel will pick which games will have the most impact as part of the action. The cabinet will have a setting that allows all compatible games to be played on it after the action!

Rules

• The first and most important rule is to be kind! This is a progressive jam, we're looking for cooperation and collaboration over competition. Keep it civil.
• Follow the technical requirements if you would like your game to be included on the arcade cabinet or at the festival.
• Games should not be worked on prior to the beginning of the jam. Using tooling, such as engine plugins, code frameworks and similar, that is produced before the jam is allowed, but no game logic or key art may be made first.
• We reserve the right to reject any submission for any reason, including barring offensive material. No violence depicted against real, living individuals. Ask on the Discord if you're unsure, we're happy to discuss limits with teams.
• External assets from the Unity store or similar platforms are allowed, but preferably code assets and gameplay logic should be as original as possible.
• Teams of any size or solo developers are allowed.
• Participants keep the rights to the games they produce.

Video Game technical requirements

• Control scheme: The arcade cabinet will have 6 buttons and an 8-way joystick, mapped to Xinput, such as an Xbox controller, as follows:

• If your game is playable with an Xbox controller using only the buttons specified above, then it will be playable with our arcade controls.
• Controls will be digital and not analogue, so do not rely on precise movements of the analogue stick.
• Games must be browser-based and playable on their itch.io page
• 2-player games with multiple controllers are allowed and will be supported on the arcade cabinet via a plugged-in USB Xbox controller, only one set of arcade style controls will be available on the final cabinet.

If you have any questions, please ask on the Discord.

Games that are playable in the browser but don’t meet the control requirements can still be shown at the Games Transformed day festival but won’t be eligible to be on the arcade cabinet for the action.

Analogue games

We will accept submissions in the form of printable tabletop games that will be played at the main event and the winner will have a high quality printed copy made for the action along with some custom made components subject to complexity. Get in touch on the Discord for more information.

Streamers

We will be encouraging streamers to play the games produced in the jam and will be running a stream for those who can’t make the festival on the 22nd. Please get in touch with us if we can promote your stream or you’d like to take part!

Contact

Discord is the main channel of communications for this event - please join and we will be happy to answer any questions there! You can also email gamestransformed@gmail.com or DM us on twitter @GamesTrnsfrmd

The World Transformed is on Facebook, twitter and instagram.

FAQ

Will there be free tickets to the event? Free tickets are available for anyone who needs them.

What is The World Transformed? The World Transformed is an annual festival and year-round political education project. Our first festival took place in 2016, as an attempt to revitalise the left’s presence at the Labour Party conference, bridge the gap between the parliamentary and social movement left, and develop a space for radical, participatory and creative political education. Since then the festival has grown to become the biggest left-wing multi-day event in Britain, and we have seen the emergence of dozens of local Transformed groups across the country, as well as TWT launching a number of other year round educational projects from short courses to organising schools, podcasts, trainings and pedagogical research.

To find out more about The World Transformed, visit our website and follow us on Twitter.

What is Game Assist? Game Assist first and foremost stands for liberation and transformative justice through video games. Established in 2020, GA’s collective of volunteers primarily produces video essays that use textual analysis of video games to explore and explain political concepts and imagine radical futures. We also engage in more casual conversations around these topics on our Twitch stream and through our let’s plays.

Recently we’ve been working to use our previous experience organising in other realms to drive meaningful change in the gaming sphere, focusing on the connections between gaming and the movement for a free Palestine, as well as calling for demilitarisation of the games industry at large. We’ve also raised a significant amount of money for Medical Aid for Palestinians via Twitch and other social fundraising.

Game Assist aims to provide political education, to build community, and to inspire/organise action in the games industry for our collective liberation!