It’s a busy time of year for games. There are games coming out left, right, and center, and more holidays than I know what to do with. It feels like there aren’t enough hours in the day in the last few months of the year so let’s add some fuel to the flame. It’s been a while since we talked about game jams, so let’s highlight some interesting ones you can join. As always, you can also check out the list of all upcoming jams on our tracker. Let’s dive in.

Powerpoint Game Jam (12/1-12/31)

If you pay attention to game jams you see a lot of recurring ideas. Sometimes jams are based around themes, others on major development engines, but I’ve never seen anything like the Powerpoint Game Jam. Yes this jam is based entirely around using a specific toolset but what makes this unique is that the toolset is from the Microsoft Office Suite. 

I have no idea how you develop games in Powerpoint, I don’t know how the host of this jam even stumbled upon this possibility, but I’d be lying if I wasn’t intrigued to see what results from such a wacky concept.

Historically Accurate Game Jam (12/27- 1/4)

I love a historical game, you love a historical game, we all love historical games. Well, I think we all love the idea of these games. To call these games “accurate” is a stretch at best, and hilariously off base at worst. Fortunately there is a jam ready to help balance the scales. History buffs can ring in 2020 with a week of jamming and hopefully produce something that can teach us a little bit about the past.

Decade Jam (1/1/20 - 1/1/30)

I’ve been watching Decade Jam for months but I could never really justify covering it until now. Decade Jam has been on the calendar since early this year, but we’re nowhere near the submission deadline of January 1st, 2030. This is without a doubt the longest jam I’ve ever seen, but it’s also one of the most relaxed. The jampage allows submissions all throughout the decade and has themes that ask jammers to explore how they and their work grows over the duration of the event.

Hardcore Punk Jam 2 (12/12-1/14)

This one is a personal pick for me. I love punk music and anti-corporate sentiment but this philosophy is a little underrepresented in gaming. Sure there are a few out there in the wild, but we could always use more, right? Right. Hardcore Punk Jam starts in just a few weeks so dust off your studs and rip up those jeans, because we’ve got an establishment to tear down.