Hey folks! Ghost Jam 2023 has concluded, and now it’s time to share the results! We have, once again, had a rather large turnout, so buckle up for a long post!
This year we had 25 submissions by 31 different developers. That’s 2 more submissions than last year!
Of those submissions, 6 of them were made in the first 72 hours of the jam, qualifying for our 72 hour challenge. 3 of those were even done within the first 24 hours!? That’s a first!
13 of the ghosts were made from scratch/just a single template, with no other pre-made assets, qualifying for our New Assets Only challenge!
Additionally, this year we saw a little more variety in the languages, both spoken language and coding language, used to make the ghosts! One ghost was submitted in Japanese, and another in Russian and Belarusian!
As far as coding languages go, most English ghosts use a language called YAYA (or sometimes the older version, AYA), but we had one entry in Satori, and one in Kawari!
Of the participants in the event, 20 of them were participating in a ghost jam for the first time, and 15 of them released their first ghost as a part of the jam!
Harder to quantify with stats, but still very interesting to note, was the great variety in ghosts that we saw this year! There are a lot of really creative entries that deviate from the standard ghost style. Some are desktop buds, some are focused on a single concept, some pull you into the character’s world, and some are entire games! Give them all a try, there’s a lot of cool stuff here!
With all of that out of the way, let’s see the ghosts! As mentioned, it’s a long post, so check under the cut for the listing!
ButtonToy, by OdieDogXP:
[Download]
Enjoy pressing buttons to activate different activities!
Listen to randomized stories, or play various minigames!
Don’t miss the functional power button in the corner!
Camp Camp, by CaptainKiwi and KFC:
[Ghost download] [Balloon download]
Meet your camp guides for the day, counselor David and camper Max!
Learn about the inhabitants of the camp, the good and the bad...
Give them treats!
Comes with a unique balloon!
Captain (DEMO), by Percival / Azazel:
[Download]
Keep the captain company during his breaks!
Overhear the ship logs and strange jobs the crew have encountered!
Chat about cats!
Made with new assets only!
Faeia & Tahir, by WhatAPhantasia:
[Download]
Find yourself in a rich and expansive world to learn all about!
Get to know Faeia and Tahir, denizens of two lands at war that have become friends!
Comes with a unique balloon!
Gallery 512, by Galla, Kat, and Zichqec:
[Download]
Decorate your desktop with 1 of 4 canvas styles, each with their own animated painting and a selection of frames!
Have up to 100 lil guys wobwobwob around your screen!
Comes with a unique balloon!
Made in just 72 hours, with new assets only!
Kafe Kareopsis Hutarkam, by Smoky and sacrificedbuns:
[Download]
Sit down for a nice chat, and order some food!
Throw the food on the floor and/or eat it!
Written in Russian and Belarusian!
Made in just 72 hours, with new assets only!
Macaque, by Venelona (Tumblr / Twitter):
[Download]
Mind his moods if you want to stay on his good side!
Comes with two different shells, to change the look of his ears!
Comes with a unique balloon!
Made with new assets only!
Maxumus the Cat, by Bitzen:
[Download]
Very animated shell, including a satisfying pickup animation!
High quality recommendations... from a cat!
Comes with a unique balloon!
Nanika Atsume, by Okuajub:
[Download]
Set out food and wait for cats to come visit!
Enjoy surreal idle dialogue while you wait!
Comes with a unique modification of the Star Cloud balloon!
The first jam ghost to be made with the SHIORI Kawari!
Please arrive 15 minutes before your scheduled interview time, by Galla, Naryu, and Zichqec:
[Download]
Prepare your résumé and steel yourself for an important interview!
Answer questions, and ask questions of your own! Learn about your workplace-to-be!
Comes with a unique balloon!
Made with new assets only!
Presentable Can, by KFC:
[Download]
Stare at the can! Tap the can! Pet the can!
Comes with a unique balloon!
Made in 72 hours, with new assets only! (Actually, made in less than 24 hours!)
Rock Blue and Peach, by JopsyJop and Waffles:
[Download]
Get to know a couple of besties and learn about the inhabitants of their town!
Discuss various types of media!
Comes with a unique balloon!
Shigure, by TechNekoKit:
[Download]
Bring a rainstorm right to your desktop
Enjoy the company of a mysterious spirit
Beautiful mixed media shell
Made with new assets only!
Skrunkly, by StrangelyKai:
[Download] (Mind the content warnings in the readme!)
Enjoy a wide variety of skrunkle quotes!
Use dressups to modify the outline of Skrunkly, or invert the colors!
Made with new assets only!
Slime Fighter 2000, by Smoky:
[Download]
Fight terrifying household objects!
Play as multiple different classes!
Made with new assets only!
Slugcat, by Percival:
[Download]
It’s a slug! It’s a cat! It’s a slugcat!
Watch it loaf!
Made in 72 hours, with new assets only! (Actually, made in less than 24 hours!)
sNO - STORMBRINGER!!, by WhatAPhantasia:
[Download]
Deal with a demigod villain existing on what you thought was your balcony!
Get predictions about the weather, using actual weather data!
Comes with a unique balloon!
Made in just 72 hours!
Styrmir, by Galehaut and Ecclysium:
[Download]
Assist a god with their pet project - an island of humans!
Manipulate their mood to provide different weather variants to the humans
Help the island survive, and with a little work, thrive!
Comes with a unique balloon!
Team Snakemouth, by Adante:
[Download]
Pay for the assistance of the reliable team snakemouth!
They'll assist you with keeping your computer tidy and give peptalks whenever you need!
Help them collect items and berries along the way!
The Poke!Partner Program [BETA], by Rosenheim, Okuajub, Harmony, Blackfyre, @ohnoitsme / PEANUT, and ChatGPT (by OpenAI):
[Download]
Multiple shells, one for Professor Azalea and one for Porygon!
Nuzlocke tracker system with custom rules!
Send your pokemon on adventures and let it collect berries!
The Rain Station, by Digi_056:
[Download]
Dictate the weather and temperature!
Watch as the environment outside changes based on the time of day and weather conditions!
Images for the ghost made with clean 3D models!
Toad, by Galehaut, Secret Pie, and Ecclysium:
[Download]
Comes with a unique balloon!
Made in 72 hours, with new assets only! (Actually, made in just 2½ hours!?)
Kick the toad!
Wally Darling / Welcome Home, by idk and thebubble-mancer:
[Download]
Friendly dialogue
A toggle for horror elements, so you can play safely
Rare events made to spook you in the darkest hours of the night
Made with new assets only!
Witching Hour, by Zdzisiu:
[Download]
Take up the mantle of elder witch to guide and reform a delinquent apprentice!
Gather and study magical ingredients to fill your grimoire!
Brew your inventory into potions and test them on your pupil!
ヒカリキツネ@hikarikitsune, by ななっち:
[Download]
Spend calming days with hikari, a kitsune that relies on you to interact with the world!
Chat about your plans for the day and places you'd like to go to support her hobby as a photographer!
Made by our first ghost jam participant from the Japanese community! for jam regulars, that means an interesting structure and style not yet seen among English devs!
The first jam ghost to be made with the SHIORI Satori!
Just finished watching a retrospective on Wertpol and the Menagerie series and man. I saw Mark’s playthrough of Presentable Liberty when I was… 15? And I was really starting to struggle with my depression for the first time in my life. Presentable Liberty gave me a weird sort of catharsis to sort through the feelings I was having in a safe way. I know I tend to focus on the wackier and more lighthearted parts of the games (yes, these lighthearted parts exist!), but I hope that doesn’t come across as being disrespectful of Robert’s legacy. I respect him immensely as both a creator and a person. To be more frank, I miss him, as I’m sure many others do as well, not just for what he made, but for who he was.
