What is the Pumpkin Game Jam?

This October, the University of Michigan’s WolverineSoft will be hosting a weekend-long game jam that all are welcome and encouraged to participate in. Participants will work together in teams to try and create the best game possible throughout the weekend. These games will be built from scratch, culminating in a showcase at the end where teams get the chance to present their work and have others play their game.

When and Where Will It Take Place?

The Jam will begin at 6:00 PM October 14th, 2022. It will end at 6:00 PM October 16th, 2022.

The event will take place in 1690 BBB on the university's North Campus. Important events include a watch-along of Minecraft Live and the mob vote this year,  "Prototype by Pizza" event on Saturday evening where participants play each other's in-progress games and eat free pizza, and final judging and showcase where we play everyone's games after the jam ends on Sunday evening.

How Can I Participate?

IF YOU WANT TO PARTICIPATE IN THE GAME JAM:

1. Join the WolverineSoft discord at https://discord.gg/EFHS3ceJ!
2. Discussion and announcements regarding the game jam will be contained within the channel titled #pgj-general! Make sure to pay attention to this channel for the duration of the jam.
3. Make sure that you get the Game Jammer role on Discord by reacting to the message in #roles! This is the only way you can guarantee you'll get jam related pings and announcements throughout the week.
4. Make sure either you or one of your team members has clicked the "Join Jam" button! Voting and submissions can only be done by itch.io users who've submitted, so it's very important you have one!

After you complete these steps, you’re all set!

Rules

1.  If you use any third party assets (music, sfx, art, etc) they must be free-to-use and properly credited in your game.  
2. Your game must uphold University standards of inclusivity, tact, and general all around positive-feeling! Use common sense, and avoid depicting offensive material. If we determine that your game grossly violates U of M values, you will be disqualified.  
3. Have fun, be kind! Let the officers know if you have any questions! 

Theme

Will be announced and updated at the Opening of the Game Jam

Judging

The FOUR categories that your game will be judged on are:

• Use of theme
• Gameplay and Mechanics
• Style, Polish, and Aesthetic
• Music, SFX, and Audio

Each game will be rated on a Google Form, where you will rank the games in comparison to each other. Judging will be open for a short period after the end of the game jam, from 6 PM  to 7 PM.

FAQ

View our FAQ here!

Schedule

Keep up to date with it in Discord!