Welcome to Magical Girl Game Jam #14!
This is a jam celebrating the Magical Girl/Mahou Shoujo genre.
The Magical Girl Game Jam is held twice a year, usually starting from the second Saturday in Feb-Mar and Aug-Sept, with the length of the jam usually 30 days long.
Discord Server
Congratulations and thanks to Falass and TypeG4, who have made the banner and cover this time.
Honorary mention to Apho and Nolly who also participated in the banner submission.
Themes
The custom of releasing the themes early is planned to be tightened this time: The themes will be released at most 2-3 days before the jam starts.
Other than that, as usual, there will be 6 themes for MGGJ14, which will be related to each other in some ways. However, I am not going to give any hints this time... I lied. The themes this time will be taken from gacha game names BUT I will corrupt one word.
(Example: if suppose I took one from the game "Fate/Grand Order", I might corrupt it to "Fate/Grand Chaos")
- Priestess of Victory
- Blue Library
- Grayscale Stage
- Hell Burns Red
- The Battle Dogs
- Moon Rails
Pick at least one theme and make a game about it. As a bare minimum, simply taking one of the words (obviously, except for words like "of" or "the") from the themes is sufficient as usual... though I do prefer the interpretation of the theme you pick as a whole.
In case for some reasons the themes aren't on this jam page when the jam already starts, try clicking the "Submit" button and see the description of the second question: the themes should be written there.
Have fun!
Optional Challenge:
The optional challenges for MGGJ14 are:
- Gambling addict: Use RNG as an important mechanic of your game
- I am special: Make different characters, equipments, or items with different tiers (e.g. 1-star, 2-star, 3-star or R, SR, SSR)
- Limit break: Put an initial limit to a strength of something, and then give a way to break that limit.
These challenges do not affect ratings. They are optional and should be picked just for fun and not under pressure.
Rating:
Only submitters and contributors can participate in rating.
- Magical Girl Concept
- How creative and well crafted are the magical girl ideas in the game?
- Engagement/Fun
- Duh. How fun the gameplay/story is
- Originality/Creativity
- The creativity of the gameplay mechanics primarily
- Presentation
- Combination of Aesthetics and Audio from previous jams
- How well the game looks in general
- Are the artstyles consistent? If the game is in pixel art, do they have consistent pixel sizes?
- How well the audio enhances the gaming experience
- Gameplay Polish
- Primarily talks about gameplay/experience polish. Is the difficulty balanced? Does the game give good player feedbacks, making it more fun to play? Special effects? If it's mostly narration are the texts properly screened for errors that may ruin player experience?
- Graphics and audio polish should be rated based on the previous criteria
- Theme Interpretation
- This is talking about the six themes, not about the whole premise of the jam being themed around Magical Girls.
Genre Explanation
What is a magical girl?
To put it simply, the Magical Girl genre, or Mahō Shōjo (魔法少女) in Japanese, is a genre about cute girls having cute magical powers -- often associated with anime, manga, and other Japanese works. Although not always, Magical Girls often have expected traits such as being cute, wearing cute battle outfits, having cute power, innocent vibes, feminine in nature, sometimes having transformation sequence, etc. These are just expectations however, and expectations can be subverted (especially since 2011 the genre is a popular target for deconstruction thanks to a certain work).
For the purpose of this jam, the definition of a "Magical Girl" is simply a girl having magical power. The definition of "girl" and "magical" are explained in the rules and FAQ section but in general I let the author declare them.
Some examples of Magical Girl works:
- Puella Magi Madoka Magica
- The work that made the genre a popular target for deconstruction. It's very cute I recommend watching this one :3
- Pretty Cure
- Another standard traditional Magical Girl
- Minky Momo
- Probably the original Magical Girl; an ancient anime dating back to the Showa era
If you are previously not familiar with the Magical Girl genre, I hope this explanation at least gives you a vague idea of what you should be aiming for.
For more information, you can check the TV Tropes page for it. While to avoid removal it is enough to fulfill the definition "girls with magical powers", I want you to aim for TV Tropes's Magical Girls
Rules:
Please also note that there have been some new rules with regards to the use of LLM-powered AI.
In general, the rules have become more flexible. These should from now on be treated not as rigid rulebook but as general boundaries with nuances:
- Put at least one Magical Girl character in your game -- it can be your main character, the enemy, anything. Creating an original character is strongly encouraged. For the purpose of this jam, the bare minimum requirement is a "Girl with Magical Power"
- "Girl" and "magical power" can be based on author's intention (implied through designs or directly declared as such). Further details may be found on FAQ section.
- The Magical Girl should play a somewhat major role in the game.
- Properly follow the themes (or other forms the specific MGGJ might have).
- Keep pornographic materials away from this jam.
- G*nitalia and female n*pples will 100% lead to disqualification no questions asked. NSFW games that are otherwise still acceptable should have content warning.
- Avoid explicit r*pe scenes; if you have to include r*pe in your game's plot, I suggest simply implying it and not showing it.
- In general though I want to be loose with this rule; but more risque submissions may be scrutinized with my subjective judgement.
- As a quick test imagine your character in a beach. If what your character wears (in terms of coverage) seems sus even in a beach environment you may want to ask me first; otherwise you are 100% safe.
- Gore NSFWs are generally fine, but please don't go overboard.
- Keep real money away from this jam.
- Only submit free games, and do not put in-app purchases. I would love to see if your jam project becomes a commercial product, but please during the duration of the jam keep real money away.
- Submit video games.
- You are free to use any assets you have legal access to -- however, I encourage you to create as much as possible during the jam, and during submission you will be asked about it -- players might rate more harshly if your game is mostly purchased/premade assets.
- As will be emphasized by the next rule, assets generated by AI are generally illegal.
- Do not use AI to generate anything tangible for your submission, except for translations to English. After a lot of discussions, the use of LLM-powered AI generation to create tangible objects to enter your final game product are contrary to the spirit of game jams, and also have legal and ethical problems. And thus ANY project proven to have LLM-powered AI generated images, audios, scripts, etc. will be immediately disqualified. Some specific examples:
- What are allowed:
- Looking at AI results during google search
- Asking AI for instructions
- Using AI to help you brainstorm, get the general vibe you want, etc.
- Using AI to translate from another language to English, if you are not confident in your English ability but want players who only speak English to understand the story of your game.
- I do not recommend translating from English to other languages unless you can proofread the translation.
- Using game engines made with AI assistance
- Since YOU are not the one doing the AI generation but the tool you use, this shall be allowed. However, judge the game engine you use with your own conscience.
- What are NOT allowed:
- AI generated assets: images, audios, scripts
- Tracing AI generated images
- Using images, audios, scripts, etc. someone else made that are AI generated
- AI generated codes (a.k.a. vibe coding)
- No direct reference to real life recent events and/or people allowed.
- If I have to put a hard line, "recent events" shall be events that ended less than a year ago (exceptions may apply in both directions).
- Answer the submission fields/questionnaire properly. Your answers are checked by a human for quick screening.
- Do not give vague, non-descriptive answers especially for the "How does your game fits the Magical Girl genre?" question. If how your magical girl would be like in the game is hard to understand from the answer alone, your game may get disqualified.
- Bad examples (will definitely get disqualified):
- "This is a magical girl game."
- "This game has magical girls."
- <Flowery words to describe nonsense>
- Somewhat bad example (may get disqualified depending on context):
- "<Character> is a magical girl."
- Good example (definitely safe):
- "<Character> has the power to <insert description of power here>."
- Intentional falsehoods in the answers, if caught, may lead to disqualification depending on the significance.
- Please answer the questionnaire in English. Non-English games are allowed, but English is required for the questionnaires for quick screening.
- Treat this jam with respect. Or any jam really. Submissions with obvious malicious intent deemed harmful to the spirit of the jam may lead to disqualification. Examples include attempting to skirt the rules through loopholes to test boundaries in a disrespectful manner
- Respect the unwritten rules for game jams in general.
- Only submit games that are made for the sake of this jam. To quote itch's quality guideline: Do not add your game to unrelated jams for promotion.
- Keep toxicity away from this jam... or any jam for that matter. Toxic behaviors may lead to the ban hammer.
- Inquiry on my rules and/or decision to disqualify a submission should be done respectfully and civilly.
The one running this jam is a human who understands nuances, not a rigid rulebook. If you have good intentions with your submission, the host too does not want to disqualify it. Against submissions that are otherwise harmful to the vision of the jam, the experience of other jammers, or other reasons impossible to fully explain in rules though, the host will do whatever it takes to protect the jam.
There are also further clarifications as well as advices:
- Unfinished games shall be allowed. If you couldn't finish on time, it is advised to submit an unfinished version first then update later, since this jam allows for updates during rating period (although please leave the original version available if possible).
- If you want more chance for the host to play your game, it is advised to create a browser playable game with managable difficulty and reasonable length.
- Prioritization of quality over quantity is advised.
- Please be very careful if you ever decide to insert politics into your game. Due to the toxic and divisive nature of the topic, I have always discouraged the inclusion of politics into my jam since the start of MGGJ.
- Despite my discouragement however, submissions with political undertone/statements are generally safe from removal as long as it is kept civil. Remember however, direct reference to actual ongoing or recent political situations will lead to removal when caught.
- However, submissions with toxic messages such as those that target/judge/harass people based on identities/groups, especially ones that can't be reasonably changed, may be subject to removal.
Also while this is not really a rule, I would appreciate it if you put the following hashtags if you tweet about this jam: #MGGJ, #MGGJ14
FAQs:
A few questions that came up a few times in past jams in my discord server that may be in your head too if you are new:
- What do you define as "Magical Power"?
- For the purpose of this jam, there are a few ways it can fit:
- A power the author declares as magical in nature.
- A power that may not be explicitly declared as such by the author, but natural explanations for the power is not given.
- A power the author may declare as not magical (e.g. machines), but somewhat intends to feel magical and/or mimics something you may expect if it were magical. For a quick test, try to replace the supposed "non-magical explanation" with "magic" and see if it makes sense and does not feel forced.
- However, for a power to be considered magical, it needs to be an ability that is actually extraordinary -- something that can't normally be done. Please do not use flowery words to describe nonsense or an ability that is otherwise ordinary. Bad examples:
- Magical Girl Centrisia has the ability of neutrality, which is the ability of everything and nothing at the same time.
- Magical Girl Neuro has the ability to send electrical signals from her brain to her muscles through her neurons, allowing her muscles to contract and move her body.
- Do Magical Boys count?
- In general, no; but as long as the magical form is a girl, you may have the non-magical form as any other forms including animals, boys, objects, etc. and it still counts -- or maybe the opposite such as a girl having the ability to change into objects. As long as we can see a girl wielding some sort of magical power in action, it is good.
- In addition, as long as you put at least one Magical Girl I don't mind what else you put into your game as long as it doesn't get you into legal troubles.
- Can I submit my game into other jams?
- If it also fits that jam, yes. Feel free to do multiple jams in conjunction if it happens to coincide with MGGJ (assuming that jam also allows submissions to multiple jams).
- Beware though if you submit to so many jams, it might look suspicious. If I see your game being submitted to jams that your game doesn't actually fit into, even if your game fits my jam, I might question whether or not your game fitting into my jam is just a coincidence.
- Can I submit multiple games into this jam?
- If you have the time, sure! You can also participate in multiple teams; your choice. As long as you have the time, and your games all fit into the themes.
- Can I continue my project from previous MGGJs?
- Creating a new entry to a series is fine. Updating an old project, however, is not.
- Does a commercial game with a free demo fulfill the game has to be free rule?
- No. You are saying you made a game worth paying in a month-long game jam, and you offer to submit a demo whose content is a fraction of that, time wise a fraction of the month-long period, for this jam? I don't think so. Instead you should simply make a jam version and then continue to expand it into something worth paying.
- Can I pick multiple themes?
- Yes. Picking multiple themes is logically also picking at least one theme. If I were to forbid this all you needed to do would be to pretend as if you only had picked one theme and just coincidentally had matched the other themes.
- Can I modify my game during the rating period?
- I am very lax regarding this, so in this casual jam, I do not lock submission modification during rating period. However, I request you include all versions every time you add a new one -- or at least just the original one or the last one submitted before the submission period ends.
- Can I submit my game late?
- I used to be more lax regarding this, but now, unless your reason is very, very convincing, I do not intend to accept any late submissions. Rather than submitting late, if you are unable to finish your game on time but still want to submit, it is better to submit first then modify later (do keep the original if possible tho).
- The themes are revealed 1 week before the start of the jam itself. Why?
- My jam, my rules XP. However, the primary reason is to let players ponder about the theme for a week first before jumping straight into coding/asset making/etc.; I want you people to have a mature concept/plan first. Can you start making your game anyway during that time? Yes; and I can't check. It's really up to you, although I think it's much better to work on the concept first (^.^;
- Why are there multiple themes anyway?
- My jam, my rules :/. The reason is that I don't want the themes to be restrictive. I want the themes to function as inspiration, not as restrictions. The idea came from a story my friend told me of a Game Jam he participated in. I can't go into details but the jam in question is said to use Sonic titles as themes.
- With your definition <non-Magical Girl character X> is a Magical Girl (or vise versa)?
- Well obviously I want as many obvious Magical Girl characters in while keeping as many obvious non-Magical Girl characters out... We however, are dealing with art and fiction, and it is basically impossible for me or anyone to enact a hard-line one fits all definition to categorize everything perfectly. If there were such a thing, people will always find ways to subvert it. Because of that, what I put is simply a bare minimum definition that is as loose as possible which in consequent may technically allow obvious non-Magical Girl characters in (e.g. Wizards, some Sci-Fi chars); but I want you to aim for TVTropes' ideal. If you have better ideas for the definitions however, I will welcome it.
FAQs regarding AI use during game jam:
- How is using AI to generate assets contrary to the jam spirit?
- I can give at least four reasons:
- I am of the opinion that arts matter not only for its superficial quality, but also for the effort and conscious decisions the creators put in to make it, and that this fact is especially true for game jam submissions. A painting is often appreciated for the conscious decision made by the artist in every stroke and every subtle color choice, a piece of music for the conscious decisions the composer made for every note placement and instrument choice, and a literary work for the conscious decisions the author made for every word choice and sentence structure -- an AI generated image, audio, and script lack such soul. Arts, unlike simple tools that are useful by reducing one's effort required to accomplish a certain task or goal, instead actually require effort, a.k.a. time and energy, to be appreciated and enjoyed, and thus it is expected that the art also requires some semblance of effort to be made. No matter how beautiful it may superficially look (often times it is not anyway), it leaves a bad taste in the mouth when the realization hits that said "art" form had been mass produced with zero effort by giving a prompt to a machine that simply makes predictions.
- A game jam is also an opportunity of learning to hone your skills, and using AI to generate your assets is contrary to that spirit.
- You are acting as an unnecessary middleman when you show someone something AI generated. If I want to see AI generated images (I don't) I can just ask the AI directly.
- There are also legal and ethical problems, since the AI is often trained using images, musics, etc. in a way the original creator does not consent to.
- Some of the above might be just opinions, and might not be the best reasons for forbidding AI, but they are my reasons and opinions nonetheless; and I ask you to respect them since this is my jam.
- Why is using AI for brainstorming allowed though?
- Ideas are not tangible, and unlike tangible assets, you are still the one making conscious decisions. When you use LLM-powered AIs like Gemini to help you generate ideas, you read through its output, process it in your brain, and then implement it. The ideas generated directly by LLM are sometimes really crap anyway so often times you need to make a lot of modifications and reinterpretations so that they even make sense.
- Furthermore, ideas are worth dime a dozen. A game idea is said to only matter 20%, while the rest is about executing that idea. A great game can be made with a "bad" idea if executed well enough, and good idea can turn into a bad game if not executed well -- one of the most popular video game series is about a plumber stomping on mushrooms and turtles. There is a reason you cannot get into a game company by just being an idea person. There is also a reason you don't actually need to worry about your ideas getting stolen by other devs, because they also have their own ideas that they think are as good, and are more busy working on it.
- I still think it is more ideal if you generate your ideas yourself, so that you train your creative muscles, but I think I will tolerate this much.
- If you do use AI for brainstorming, so that you are still the one really in control, I suggest you ask your chosen AI to generate multiple ideas every time, and you pick one (and modify to your liking).
- How do you check whether an image, audio, etc. is AI-generated or not?
- I won't go into details, but due to how LLM works, there are a lot of telltale signs that I, and people in my community look for. I expect some to slip through the cracks, but it is not that easy to slip an AI generated asset under our nose.
- How do you intend to check for vibe coding?
- I can't. I can only ask you to please honor it -- but if you are so pro-AI that you want to try to sneak past me with this, I would like to try to give you a motivation to honor it :
- What you are doing by not honoring this rule is ultimately going to get people more and more anti-AI. The moment you are caught (e.g. maybe by bragging about it in some social media), you show everyone that the people who use AIs are indeed the unethical assholes who lie and cheat to others.
Previous jams
Some of you who are new might want to see games (or themes) from previous jams. Here are some links to the previous jams:
