We're supposed to make our game within 96 hours. What kind of work (programming, art) counts into those hours and how will that be checked?

It's a bit of an Honor Code for this event. The more you are that easier it gets.  You are allowed to do 48h + 48h days or what you want to do.
It doesn't need to be in one sitting, this goes against traditional gamejams, but for this one just dont go over 96 Hours.