If you doubt your own motivation, I suggest you do this: do any activities not related to video games at all for couple hours or a day then ask yourself: do you want to make a game or not?
If the answer is no, then maybe you shouldn't make a game at all. But if the answer is yes, then get started with something small.
When I saw the screenshot and read RPG elements, I thought it's a top down survival game at first. However, after analyzing more, it looks more like strategy game, which is either turn based or RTS. The control suggests RTS but it's still possible to be turn based.
My suggestions are :
1. Change your game description to avoid confusion. Simply mention if it's RTS or turn based strategy game.
2. Show screenshots with more than one unit preferable shots featuring offensive units with enemy units.
First of all, you should show us (not just devs) your music work so we could have a taste of your work.
Second, you need to tell us how much time you need to compose a track. For games developed for game jams, time is essential so having composer who could compose tracks within jam's duration is great.
Third, you need to tell what kind of genre your music work would be or I should say, what music genres you are capable of composing.
I've watched the trailer and my first impression is your intro takes quite long. Try shortening it or jump straight into gameplay while showing game's title. Then show something like "this game was made by studio name".
As for game itself, I agree with the above that it needs more juice. Add effects such as pieces tossed from broken bricks. Yes, I see that you send broken bricks away, but I prefer seeing broken bricks to break into pieces.
I want to make larger games which features not just more stages/levels but also deep gameplay. I made Contra fangame 10 years ago but I used unoriginal assets so I want to do it with original assets in the future.
It's hard to check your previous projects if you don't tell us where to find them. IOW please provide links for us to listen to your music work without have to download big files nor talking in discord.
If you're willing to do anything, the first thing you should do is to make a complete game. Doesn't matter the size but it has to be complete. Doing this not only boost your confidence but also a good learning step to making better games.
I think your HUD looks too big, comparing to Castlevania NES. In the latter, you can see many info in the HUD without sacrificing readability. IOW reduce the text, icon and HP size to allow more info in the HUD. That includes boss's HP bar.
That being said, it looks good. I can imagine on what's happening here.
Oh if you're going to post updated mockup next time, please show the weapon from both characters to see how much screen is filled with their weapons.
1) What do you think would help improve your game development skills the most? Is a GameJam the right way and if so why?
To improve game dev skill what you need to do is game dev. So Gamejam is great way to do it cause aside you have to create a game (mostly from not-so-nothing) , you have time limit to push yourself to complete your game within time limit.
But of course, people could cheat despite the rules but it's their loss if the jam had no prize rewards.
2) Would you like to have experts at your group's "disposal" during the gamejam?
Which experts? since gamejams have time limit, I'd need experts which could make stuffs within time limit so they could be used in the submitted game.
3) What would you like to see more at a GameJam?
Well, a team of professional judges to judge and rate the submitted games. This is to get fair and unbiased rating and judgement.
4) What do you think would be the best way to make people meet people to build teams?
I don't work in team so I can't give proper answer to this.
I get free music from sites such as opengameart.org, incompetech, and soundimage.org . Sometimes some composers offer their free service to compose music so I have some tracks composed by them.
For SFX, I got some from opengameart.org and the rest from browsing Internet.
