Releasing 8+ games (ft. game jams) and when to take a break
This is a write-up for my Visual;Conference 2022 talk on game jams.
I will discuss how game jams made me a better developer, walking you through my experiences as director, co-director, and direct creative roles in jam games across two years before I put a moratorium on jams. This talk will guide you to answer the question: Should you participate in game jams? (Spoiler: yes, conditionally)
In the talk, I discussed 3 main topics:
How to Game Jam
Lessons Learned
Should you participate in game jams?
How to Game Jam
The game jam timeline typically consists of four components:
Planning
Recruitment
Development
Release
There may be some overlap between the first three, but let's go in order.
Planning
Identify your premise
Identify your scope
Create references (outline, visual references)
Before you can bring a game to life with your team (or solo), you have to put the idea on the table.
Visual references are especially important if you're working with other artists. They reduce:
Communication difficulties (does the character look like this or that?)
Schedule delays (how can they draw if they don't know what to?)
Future issues (how do you draw this again...?)
Recruitment
Have your idea set before you recruit. When making your recruitment pitch, you'll want to address most if not all of the following:
Who are you? What are you doing?
Premise of the game
Scope of the game
Requested roles
Proof of concept
Here's an example I gave in my presentation:
You might not always have everything, but people won't get recruited if they don't know you're recruiting their role.
Once you've assembled the team, be sure you verify how they want to be attributed in the credits.
If you can't find a role, remember that CC assets exist!
Organizing Your Team
I recommend having a home base such as a Discord server (communication), shared Google Drive folder (assets), and GitHub repo (code version control).
Make sure folks know project information that isn't in your recruitment pitch such as:
File types (.ogg for music?)
Engine (Ren'Py?)
Asset specs (1080p?)
Compensation (if any)
Deadlines
Communication is key in avoiding delays. Start communication before the jam.
Development
Ideally, your planning has prepared you for the development process, and you don't need to do anything but make the game during the jam.
Ideal is rare, issues popping up here and there. Some common ones include:
Q. What if a teammate falls through?
Don't panic! If you're the teammate, remember that your team lead will appreciate upfront communication.
If you're the team lead, there's a number of options to take. Cut scope in that teammate's component, take on the task yourself, try to recruit a new teammate, and or grab some asset packs.
Q. What if we can't finish on time?
A jam is a jam. Remember the trusty old scope knife. In order to avoid having to cut scope from your game, do your planning well.
Release
Jams will give you a visibility boost, but remember to market regardless.
Plan to submit a few days before the jam ends. This gives your team leeway in case delays occur.
I believe in you!
Lessons from 8 Jams
There are 3 types of roles (a bit of a simplification) you can take on in a production regardless of your creative specialization:
Team lead
Solo developer
Contributor
Each comes with pros and cons. Jams are a great way to figure out what you like to do, and what your preferred team dynamic is.
Here's some questions that might help you:
How much creative control do you want?
How do you like to communicate?
Thus with these tips for jamming in mind, we ask and answer the key question:
Should you participate in game jams?
Yes, conditionally.
There are pros and cons to game jams.
But overall, jams are a great way to dip your feet into making visual novels. Make great friends and great games.
If you're aiming for a larger production, especially one with money involved, remember that you don't need to join every jam. Why not focus on your ongoing project first?
_:(´ཀ`」 ∠):_ That's advice I need to take myself...
After note
If you're interested in learning more via case studies, please feel free to check out the following:
Postmortem for NaNoRenO 2021
Postmortem: Spooktober Visual Novel Jam (2022)
