In this special edition of Trijam, make a game in 3 hours... then update it in 3 more hours... then make a third build in a final 3 hours!
Themes: Chain Reaction, Negative Feedback Loop, Novel Twist on Classic Game
In Trijam, you create a game from start-to-finish in 3 hours. In Triple Trijam, you create a game in 3 hours, then update the game with a second build in 3 more hours, then update the game with a third build in a final 3 hours. This gives you a total of 9 hours to build the game! Then we can see the game's progression with these three development builds serving as snapshots of your process! Make sure to join on Discord!
Check out the special announcement video!
Submit a browser-playable version for the best results! If not, try to submit both Windows and Linux versions!
What is Triple Trijam?
Trijam is a jam where your goal is to try and make something playable (and fun) in only 3 hours! How is that even possible, you ask? Well, just look at the history of previous Trijams and we're sure you'll be convinced that it is not only possible, but very manageable!
Triple Trijam gives you 3 hours for an initial game build, 3 hours for a second build, and 3 hours for a final build, for a total of 9 hours! 9 HOURS! Furthermore, there will be 3 themes this time you can choose from.
To be clear: you should be uploading 3 different builds of your game to your itch.io game page! A build for every 3 hours you worked on it, giving a nice little progression of development! You should submit one project, with at least 3 builds uploaded to it. For example, you may have three Windows builds, one for each 3 hours of development, and then a Web build of the last version. The more builds the better!
This is info about regular Trijam if interested. Most of the stuff still applies.
What are the rules?
Pretty much do whatever you want! The time for coming up with an idea, making a design doc, compiling the game, publishing it, etc. does not count in the 9 hours you have, that time is purely for development of the product. You can also split your 9 hours into whatever chunks you want (as long as you compile a new build every 3 hours!), so it doesn't need to be 9 hours straight, e.g. you can take 2 days working on your game, working on it however many hours each day. If your game took longer than 9 hours to make, that is completely fine, just specify so in the game's description. It will still be played, but will not compete for 1st place in the jam.
Of course, have common sense when making your games. Making intentionally offensive stuff is a no-go and will most likely be voted out of the competition. Also, please specify if your game is NSFW so that we don't get in trouble for streaming it.
On using pre-made assets: make sure you have the necessary rights to the assets you use in your game. Be aware that using assets that you yourself (or your team-member) didn't create during the jam time may affect your game's rating. Clearly state all pre-made assets you used on your game's itch.io page and link to where they originated from.
If you work with others on your game, make sure to add them as contributors to the game's itch.io page! To do this:
- Edit your game's itch.io page
- Click "More"
- Click "Admins"
- Enter the usernames of your teammates
- Toggle on "Display as contributor?" for each of your teammates
- Send each of your teammates the link for them to accept your invite to be Admins
- Double-check with them that it worked; the game should show up on their itch.io profiles
Themes
Triple Trijam will have three themes for you to choose from! You can use any one of these themes, or choose two of them, or incorporate all three! Using a theme is ultimately optional, but theme usage is a voting criteria, so if you want to get the best score within the jam, you should use as many themes as you can, incorporated into the gameplay, art, story, anything and everything you can!
- Chain Reaction
- Negative Feedback Loop
- Novel Twist on Classic Game
You are free to interpret the themes however you want! Call out which themes you used and how on your game's itch.io page!
Themes will be announced via itch.io on this page, email to all participants, the Trijam Discord, and Twitter with #Trijam. You can't miss them!
Diversifiers
Diversifiers are a great way to add a little more fun or challenge to your jam weekend. Sometimes they can be very helpful to limit your scope or refine your ideas. They are totally optional constraints you can choose to add to your Triple Trijam game alongside the main focus of the themes. You can apply as many or as few as you'd like! There will be a bonus voting criteria for use of diversifiers, but don't stress about following these if they don't inspire you!
It's best to pick only a couple of diversifiers (if you decide to use any!) and focus on those few. It would be pretty impossible to use all of them!
Community 🌎
- Join the Trijam Discord and read the #rules channel!
- Play, rate, and leave a comment on every game submitted to the jam!
- Invite your friends to join the game jam! (or better yet, force them to... 😏)
- Work with other jammers to make games set in the same universe!
- Work with other jammers to add Easter Eggs to your games referencing each other's games!
Marketing 📣
- Tweet out your game with #Trijam and @GunnarClovis for a retweet! Do the same for any videos you make!
- Record your entire development process (with OBS or otherwise) and publish a time-lapse video of the development! (If you're new to OBS, make sure to do a few recording tests first!)
- Make a video postmortem after finishing your game and challenge others to do Trijam at the end!
Code 💻
- Upload the source code of your project to your game's itch.io page!
- Use the player's name as a seed to randomize part of the play experience!
- Make a procedurally-generated game with functionally infinite levels (or an infinitely long level)!
Art 🎨
- Use assets from Asset Jam!
- Use photos of yourself or your pets, etc. as art assets in your game!
- Edit the Theme of your itch.io game page and give it a custom color palette, background, and banner using assets from your game! Make sure to include some content on the game page itself too, like instructions for controls, explanation of themes and diversifiers, how much time was taken, which engine was used, links to any external assets that were used, anyone who worked on the game, etc.!
Audio 🎼
- Make a game with dynamic music / adaptive audio / a dynamic soundtrack!
- Make a game where all sound effects are sounds you made with your mouth!
- Sing a song and include it in the game! You can loop in some friends for a choir piece!
Design 🎲
- Make a real-time turn-based game!
- Make a game with an invisible tutorial!
- Make a game that uses randomness!
Narrative 📕
- Make a game with branching dialogue!
- Make a game where violence is not the answer!
- Make a game that uses cryptography and ciphers!
Accessibility ♿
- Make a game that can be understood regardless of what language the player speaks!
- Make a game that can be played with WASD, ZQSD, Arrow Keys, and IJKL!
- Use a color-blindness filter to test your game's art and make sure it's clear for people with all kinds of color-blindness!
Meta 🎮
- Make a game in a genre you've never made a game in before!
- Make a sequel to an old game of yours—bonus points if the original was 2D and this sequel is 3D!
- Make a game with a main menu! In a game jam! WOW!!
If you use any diversifiers, say which ones you used and how on your game's itch.io page!
Voting
After the jam's submission period ends, there will be a voting period where everyone who submitted a game can rate the games!
You must submit a game or be marked as a contributor on a submitted game in order to vote—this is to prevent cheating!
The games will be rated from 1 star to 5 stars on the following criteria:
- Gameplay
- Visuals
- Audio
- How much do you enjoy the game overall?
- How well does the game fit the themes?
- How well did the game make use of diversifiers?
If your final game build was made in a time longer than 9 hours, you will not be eligible to win first place.
There is no reward for first place or any particular ranking other than your own satisfaction and bragging rights!
For voters: vote with whatever scale you like. Whatever means a 1/5 or a 3/5 or a 5/5 to you is perfectly fine. If no game is a 5/5 for Visuals for you, that's fine! Just be sure to rate every game with the same set of standards.
Video of Your Game + Stream of Your Game
Gunnar Clovis will record a video playtesting your game and giving individual feedback on your game in his Itchy for Jam series on his YouTube channel. Your game will be included in his Featured on Itchy for Jam collection on itch.io. Gunnar needs a Windows or Browser-playable version (i.e., HTML5 or WebGL) of your game in order to make a video on it.
RocknightStudios will livestream playtesting your games on Twitch on Wednesday following the jam. Rocknight needs a Linux or Browser-playable version (i.e., HTML5 or WebGL) of your game in order to play it on-stream.
FAQ
| Q: Can I work with others? Would we all have to sync up and work within 3 hours for each build? | A: Of course you can work with others! Everyone in your team gets 3 hours each to work on each build of your game, which of course need not (and probably shouldn't be) synchronized at the same time. You have a full 72 hours over a weekend to find the time needed for each of you to work on your segments of the game for each build. |
| Q: If I work with others, won't we get more than 9 hours total between all of us? Isn't that cheating? | A: Yes, but this is not cheating. That's just how teamwork works! Working on a team is a time multiplier; this is true for all game jams and everything, in general. If three people work together on a 48 hour game jam, well then between them the game they make actually gets 48 * 3 = 144 possible work hours. This is why big teams can get so much done. But, keep in mind that teamwork is its own beast, and sometimes being on a team can be more trouble than it's worth. Effective teamwork is its own skill after all! |
| Q: Should I submit three different projects to the jam? How do I submit 3 builds? | A: You should submit three .zip builds of your game to the same project. On itch.io you can submit as many versions of your game as you'd like to a single project. In general, you should submit as many builds for as many different platforms as you can, and for Triple Trijam you should be explicitly submitting at least three game builds, one for every 3 hours you worked on the game. For example, a minimum submission might be three Windows builds, which are named something like: "GAMENAME_Windows_3Hours.zip", "GAMENAME_Windows_6Hours.zip", and "GAMENAME_Windows_9Hours.zip". If you can manage a Web build for the last 9 Hours version, then awesome! If you can manage Linux, Mac, and/or Android, etc. builds as well, then fantastic! You should only be submitting one project to the jam, at least per game. If you spend 9 hours on one jam game, and then want to spend another 9 hours on a second jam game, of course do that and submit both as separate projects, but each project should have at least 3 builds. |
| Q: What if I go over 3 hours for any one build? What if I go overtime? | A: That's fine, just let us know about it on your game page and when submitting! If you go overtime, you won't be eligible for winning 1st place in the jam, but that doesn't really matter anyway! There's no reward for high-placement. |
| Q: Can I spend less than 3 hours on a build? What if I go undertime? | A: That's completely fine. You're not rewarded for getting as close to 3 hours without going over; that's just the intended time limit. You can work for one or two hours on a build, or spend 3 hours on the jam in total, however long you would like! Just let us know. As long as your total project time is under 9 hours, you're eligible for first place in the jam. |
| Q: What if someone lies about how long they worked on their game? | A: There's no benefit for lying on your development time, as there's no reward for high rankings, just the deep internal personal regret, shame, embarrassment, guilt, and torment from knowing you're a dirty little liar. Also it's usually pretty obvious when someone seriously lies. |
| Q: What if I don't submit a browser-playable version? | A: Games on itch.io get WAY more plays and attention when they have browser-playable builds. It's just removing barriers between people and your game, making your game more accessible. Without a browser-playable build, expect far less plays, ratings, comments, etc. And without a browser-playable build, you'll need a Linux build for Rocknight to play your game on-stream and a Windows build for Gunnar to make a video about your game. |
| Q: What if I don't submit a Windows version? | A: Well, you can't have multiple browser-builds, so you need to have some other kind of builds uploaded to show the game's progress every 3 hours. Gunnar also needs either a browser-playable version or a Windows version of your game in order to make a video about your game. |
| Q: What if I don't submit a Linux version? | A: Well, you can't have multiple browser-builds, so you need to have some other kind of builds uploaded to show the game's progress every 3 hours. Rocknight also needs either a browser-playable version or a Linux version of your game in order to play it on Twitch stream. |
| Q: Can I use assets made before the jam? | A: Yes, just note exactly which external assets you used and provide links to your sources. It's totally fine to use free public domain Kenny assets or similar, just say that on your game page and link where you downloaded them from. |
| Q: Can I submit late? | A: Yes, just let Gunnar Clovis know on the Trijam Discord. Try not to make a habit of it, though. |
| Q: Can I submit multiple games? | A: Yes, just make an itch.io page for each separate game as normal and submit them to the jam! |
| Q: Can I submit a board game or card game? | A: Yes! This is always tricky, and especially with the three builds of the Triple Trijam. Submit 3 documents / print-outs that explains your physical game all the same, each for 3 more hours of work. Expect far less plays and ratings for a board or card game, and Rocknight will not be able to stream your game. Gunnar Clovis will probably be unable to make a video on your game either. He'll try his best, but don't expect a video on your board or card game. |
| Q: I really want to have all 3 of my game versions playable in-browsers, isn't there any way to do this? | A: Yes, if you really need or want to have multiple web-playable builds, you can make three itch.io projects, with a build uploaded to each one. Submit only the last 9 hour build, and link the other 2 builds in the description of that submission. |
| Q: Can I submit my game to another game jam at the same time? | A: Yes! As long as you meet the requirements for both game jams, making three builds in 3, 6, and 9 hours respectively for this jam, while also following whatever themes or requirements the other game jam requires, then feel free to multi-submit your game to other game jams on itch.io concurrently. |
| Q: What if I have a question not listed here? | A: Ask Gunnar Clovis in the Trijam Discord. |
Discord
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