Welcome to the Tray Table VR Jam, the place for Teeny Tiny VR Games perfect for Row 27 Seat E.

Inspired by  Daniel Beauchamp (aka @pushmatrix)'s viral tweet, shown in the video below, the Tray Table VR Jam aims to bring out all the creativity you can fit in your carry-on.

VR is basically magic, and with standalone headsets like the Oculus Quest, all those magical VR worlds are now portable! But that doesn't mean you can play all, or even most games, from the comfort of Basic Economy.  Most require standing, twisting, ducking, dodging, flailing, and fighting, and that's just not gonna fly when you're flying. Trust me. But also, don't ask.

So that's where you, the Tray Table Jammer, come in! You're here to make a game that fits snugly within your ever-diminishing bubble of personal space, so future frequent flyers can fill their flights with fun without finding their friends flinching. (An amazing side effect: these games might be more accessible to those with some motor limitations, for whom many VR games are physically inaccessible!)

So here are the rules:

1. You (and your team?) are to make a game in 48 hours according to the theme (TBA at the beginning of the jam)
2. Your game must work on a spatialized platform (VR, AR, XYZR), preferably with 6DoF input
   1. You may use any game engine or any spatial computing device, but keep in mind that the number of people who play and vote on your game will be limited by the ease of installation and access to that device (you'll probably get more votes with a game that runs on Quest than on Magic Leap)
   2. Tracked controllers or optical finger tracking are both acceptable for input
3. Most importantly, your game must fit within the confines of an airline tray table (16 inches wide, 10.5 inches deep, or 40.6 cm x 26.7 cm) and be feasibly playable in an airline seat
   1. "Feasibly playable" probably means not twisting around 180 degrees,  bending down to the ground, or punching wildly to your left and right
4. Your game will be ranked on multiple criteria (TBA) by everyone & anyone at the end of the jam

More info to come! Thanks for signing up and Fly Safe!

FAQ:

Q: What's the theme??

A: The theme is: GATE. 

Now while I personally am most familiar with gates at the airport, there are plenty of other (probably more interesting) ways of interpreting this theme. Close your eyes and picture a gate. No no, not that type of gate--another kind. NO! Another kind! 

See? There you go. That's three right there!

Q: It says the play field has to be the size of a tray. Does the game have to be modeled around the air plane seat and tray? I would prefer using limitless space but limiting head and hand movements (for example a platformer you control with the joystick like Moss).

A: To be clear, Moss's interaction scheme is a great example, as long as your hands can generally stay within your tray table area. It's totally fine for game's visual action to go outside of that, as long as you don't have to turn in your seat to see it. 

Keep in mind a major (albeit somewhat downplayed) thrust of this jam is accessibility--and the ability to actually finish a VR game in a weekend--much more than the literal smallness of the game (though i think the idea of teeny games is still a lot of fun). Immersive worlds are all-the-better!

Q: Will there be a plane interior model for me to use?

A: Yes! My modeling days are mostly behind me, but I've put together a lowish-poly plane model for you all to enjoy! You can download the pieces here! But importantly, you don't have to set your game on the plane! It can be in whatever fantastical world you want...as long as the gameplay fits in your lap.

Inspiration: