Join our Discord here: Halloween Jam Discord

ABOUT THE JAM

This is a week-long game jam hosted by the Student Game Developers Alliance (SGDA), a partnership between university game development organizations across the United States! At the start of the jam, we will release a theme that you should include in your game. After that point, you have a week to work with your team to create a game! 

This jam will have a voting period of one week after submissions are over for our jammers to vote on their favorites.

Categories for voting include the following:

• Use of Theme: How well did the project integrate the theme into its design?
• Fun/Enjoyment: How much fun did you have playing the game?
• Concept: How much did you enjoy the idea behind the game? Was it original, or an interesting take on a well-loved concept?

Please do not panic if you do not finish your project by the submission deadline. We can accommodate late submissions within reason and will make sure that those that want to submit will be able to with some leeway around the deadline.

During the jam, you can join our Discord Server for this jam here. On the Discord, you can look for a team, interact with our community, and ask questions as needed. We also plan to have a mid-jam check-in to share progress and give/receive feedback.

After the jam, consider joining our main SGDA Discord Server here for news and announcements for upcoming events and community happenings.

GENERAL RULES

1. You can use any tools or assets you have legal access to. Please credit any creators for assets, plugins, or other additions that you use.
2. The use of Generative AI tools is prohibited for this jam.
3. You can re-use assets or scripts from previous projects as long as the intention is creating a new project for this jam.
4. You must be 16+ to join this jam. Though this jam is aimed at university students, you do not have to be a student to join.
5. There are no restrictions on team size, but note that larger teams may be harder to manage during a game jam. We encourage you to welcome all skill levels and to consider jamming with fellow developers from different universities.
6. No discriminatory content in relation to gender, race, sexual orientation, age, ability, or origin.
7. Generally no NSFW content. Most participants are university students, so some mature content is allowed, but please do not make your games excessively explicit. If in doubt, please consider using content warnings.
8. Be respectful to your teammates and fellow jammers.
9. Take care of yourselves. We do not condone crunch or self-sacrificing attitudes for the sake of a "finished" game. Please refrain from pulling all-nighters or skipping meals to work on your game during this jam.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

What is SGDA?

SGDA is an organization of student game development groups. Starting in 2016 as a group of Southern California students, we have since grown to include members across the United States. Our goal is to connect students beyond their schools and expand their horizons. 

SGDA hosts an annual summit which features talks, workshops, student showcases, and more. 

For more information, check out our website here.

Do I need to be a part of SGDA to participate in this jam?

Short answer: No.

While this jam is run by SGDA for its community, you're welcome to join us to jam out and practice some game dev. Bear in mind, most of our membership are in US time zones and consist of university students, so this jam may not be for everyone. But in any case, we hope to be a welcoming and open community.

I can't make it for the entire duration of the jam, can I still participate?

If you aren't available for the entire week, that's okay! As long as you communicate your availability with your team and they are able to work around it, you should be fine. You could also consider making a smaller project over a shorter duration of the jam.

I need help finding a team for this jam!

You can try to find teammates on our Discord Server for this game jam. While it's not guaranteed you will find a team this way, you can increase your chances by including some information about your skills, experiences, and what types of games you want to make.

Is there a monetary prize? 

We unfortunately cannot provide a monetary prize, but we'll showcase and promote your games on our socials!

For any additional questions, please feel free to ask us on our Discord Server for this jam.