The Jam for Passionate Adventure Game Developers!

The theme of the jam is The Dunning-Kruger Effect! Read the following closely for the specific rules:
https://itch.io/jam/108-adventure-game-challenge/topic/4094096/the-theme#post-10...

The purpose of the $108 Adventure Game Challenge is to encourage and support creators of graphical adventure games. The Jam lasts two weeks (See time above for the start in your local time zone) after which the games will be judged by a small panel of judges. The creator of the game the judges deem to be the best will be given $108 USD!

Unlike some jams that claim to be focused on adventure games, the genre criteria in this jam is always strictly enforced to keep the focus squarely on adventure games and adventure game developers. See the rules below.

You can join this discord server to chat during the course of the jam: https://discord.gg/fhrERYw

This is the eighth year of this annual jam. You can see the games from last year here: https://itch.io/jam/107-adventure-game-challenge/results

There will be a theme announced at the start of the jam that must be adhered to when making the game.

Rules:

• The game must fall within the genre of graphical adventure game. If you're not sure what an adventure game is, the Wikipedia page may be of some help: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adventure_game. Also, be sure to check the FAQ at the bottom of this page. Innovation and inclusion of elements not traditionally associated with adventure games is permitted and even encouraged, but the game must be clearly and primarily a graphical adventure game. I will remove entries that are clearly not adventure games. I remove several for that reason every year. I really, really don't want to remove games people have spent time and effort developing so please understand what an adventure game is.

• Sorry but text adventures are not within the scope of this jam. It must be a graphical adventure game.

• The games will have to adhere to a theme which will be announced at the start of the jam. The purpose of having a theme is to ensure no one cheats by starting their game early, but also just as importantly to encourage creativity under pressure and new avenues of thought. As such, the theme is usually quite specific, not as vague or open to interpretation as many other game jam themes tend to be. Adherence to the theme will be strictly enforced. The game must be built around the theme in an obvious way.

• Creators are free to use any tools or assets they have the right to use. This includes tools and assets they have created prior to the start of the jam, tools and assets that are free for anyone to use, and tools and assets they have purchased a license to use. Proper credit must be given if required by the licenses for the tools and assets.

• You are free to use and discuss AI generation tools in this jam.

• Creators of all skill levels are encouraged to join. The games will be primarily judged on game design, puzzle design, and writing. The flashy professional looking game with amazing graphics is by no means guaranteed to win. We're looking for fun, well-written, well-designed games here, even if they have some flaws. Of course if your game is so buggy that it's not fun to play, that's a problem.

• The game must be in English. You will not be judged on your English ability, but it must be understandable.

• The game must be playable on Windows. Other platforms are optional.

• A team can consist of any number of members.

• The $108 USD will be sent via Paypal to an email provided by the entrant. Paypal is the only way I can promise to be able to send the money. $100 is enough to get a game on Steam, and I want to see more adventure game creators with their games widely available, either a polished up version of the jam game or another game. But of course you can use the money for whatever you want.

At the sole discretion of the judges, any entry can be disqualified for the prize if it is deemed to be in violation of any of these rules.

Judging:

The games will be judged on story, characters, puzzle design, visuals, audio, and overall funness.

Judges:

Vance Baryn:

Vance is the game designer and programmer for Stand Off Software. He is the creator of the Sir Typhil's Tale series including the upcoming fifth game in the series, Vagabond Starship. His interest in gaming started with adventure games, and he still believes that genre is the pinnacle of gaming.

Francisco González:

Francisco González has been developing point & click adventure games since 2001. In 2014 he began his commercial career, developing titles such as A Golden Wake, Shardlight, Lamplight City, and the upcoming Rosewater. Find out more about Francisco and his games at https://www.grundislav.games/

Amy Tant:  

Amy (goes by "Summer" online) is a software developer who spends her free time participating in the adventure gaming community. On top of co-organizing the AdventureX narrative gaming conference, she helps run various adventure game (dev) Discord servers and participates in game jams on Itch. She also frequently tests and proofreads games for other indie developers (Lucy Dreaming, Blood Nova, The Crimson Diamond, Rosewater ...) and streams/speedruns narratively driven (adventure) games on Twitch.

FAQ:

Q: How do I know if the type of game I am thinking of is an adventure game?

A: The easiest way to tell is to go play the games in this jam from previous years!! I say this a million times every year. Just go do it. Is the game you're thinking of like those games? If so, it's probably an adventure game. If not, you may not be thinking of an adventure game.

Q: The games from previous years are mostly traditional point & click adventures. Do I have to make that?

A: If you are newer to adventure games, I highly recommend you make a traditional point & click adventure game. Those tend to rank highest anyway, so you'll be well positioned, and your game won't get removed. If you are a long time adventure game fan and have a thorough understanding of the genre and when you have strayed outside it, then by all means push the limits!

Q: Are visual novels and walking simulators adventure games?

A: Um... kind of? They fall within the broad adventure game family. Thus they are fine for this jam even if they are not adventure games in the purest sense. However, there must be at least some amount of player agency or you're just publishing a story not a game.

Q: Are games like Portal or A Story About My Uncle adventure games?

A: No, they are not. Those are puzzle platformers. If the gameplay is primarily "twitch" based, requiring precise timing in action oriented puzzles, it is not an adventure game.

Q: Are games like The Legend of Zelda or Star Tropics adventure games?

A: No, they are not. Those are action RPGs. If much of the gameplay consists of killing or avoiding a lot of enemies, it is not an adventure game even if there are also some puzzles involved.

Q: If the game uses a text parser for interaction, is it a graphical adventure game?

A: If the game uses graphics prominently, it's graphical. Games like the original King's Quest or Space Quest which use a text parser interface for interaction definitely still count as graphical adventures.