UPDATE: THIS INFO IS NOW ON THE MAIN JAM PAGE!

GBJam is getting bigger every year and it is very difficult to answer the same question again and again. Please check to see if your question is answered here before making a new topic in the forum or asking in the Discord. There is a lot here; it may be easier to press CTRL + F to search the page for any keywords related to your question.

note: The rules and FAQ here are taken directly from GBJam 13 game jam and are subject to minor alterations for GBJam 14.  These will be added to the jam page sometime soon™️ but in the meantime...

GBJAM RULES

Theme

The themes are “GameBoy” and a second theme which will be announced on the first day of the jam.

160x144 Resolution

Keep the original GameBoy screen resolution of 160px x 144px. You are allowed to scale the viewport, but must keep the aspect ratio and square pixels.

4 colour palette

Color palettes must consist of a maximum of 4 colors. (Only 4 colors can be displayed on the screen at a time).

Gameboy controls

Use the same number of controls as the GameBoy (D-pad, A, B, select start). These can be represented by any keyboard keys you like.

Making Things

All game-specific code, audio, and art assets must be created by you and your team during the jam period. You may use pre-existing fonts. Any game engine features and code libraries for general utilities are also allowed.

AI art/tools

AI art, AI code generation and AI tools are not allowed to be used in this jam. This is to encourage creativity and thinking for yourself. If you need assistance, please team up with a human with a matching skillset - there are plenty on our Discord and itch forum.

A note on Console Accuracy

Aside from the above rules about colours and resolution, your game does not need to adhere to the restrictions of the gameboy, nor run on an actual gameboy. Music and other audio is not restricted by the sounds the gameboy could make. If it’s not in the rules, feel free to experiment!

Ratings

Only participants who submit a game can rate the other games. You must rate three random games before you can rate other games. The criteria for ratings this year are:

• Gameplay : Is the gameplay fun and unique?
• Graphics : Points for style!
• Soundtrack/SFX : How does the game sound?
• Gameboy Soul : Does the game feel like a gameboy game? Does it encapsulate the spirit of the gameboy?
• Quirkiness : Is the game unique, interesting or unusual? Does it do anything new or fresh?
• Secondary Theme Interpretation : Does the game include the Secondary Theme well? Is it particularly original, true or inventive with the restriction?

FAQ

Questions about joining GBJam

Is the jam beginner friendly?

Yes! We welcome beginners every year and we are glad to be the first stepping stone on your gamedev journey.

Can I work in a team?

Yes, it is encouraged.

Where can I find a team?

You can join the Discord or make a post in the “Looking for Team” thread here on Itch.io

How big can teams be?

Teams can be as large or as small as you like, though the moderators reserve the right to remove entries that we believe have been created for the sole reason of vote manipulation.

Do my teammates have to join GBJam?

If your team wants to vote on jam entries, they should join GBJam and also be listed as a collaborator on your submission’s itch page.

I don’t have a team and I can’t do [thing]. Should I give up?

No. Some of the most interesting entries are from people who have been creative with their limitations. If you’re a musician, you can make a concept album for a crossword puzzle and submit a 160x144 png with a zip of mp3s. If you can’t make detailed pixel art, try making a game with a simple protagonist… or no protagonist. If you are an artist, submit a series of cool concept images for what your game might look like.

What engine or programming language can I use?

Any engine or programming language is allowed. Jam games which are playable on the website are played more often, so you might want to make sure your engine outputs HTML5, but it’s not a requirement.

Where can I get technical assistance?

If you need technical assistance with your game engine of choice, you can try looking at documentation or joining that engine’s Discord or forum. For more general assistance with mathematics, you might try talking with other people in the GBJam server, though we are not neccessarily a forum for technical help, you may find someone who has a solution for your issue.

Can I submit multiple games to the jam?

Yes.

Can I join multiple teams?

Yes.

How should I organise my time during GBJAM?

It’s important to properly organise your time during any jam. It’s recommended that you spend a section planning your game and writing down ideas. Then refine those ideas to decide what you will make. Then make the ideas even smaller to make it easier to build. Then start drawing and coding and making music. You should aim to submit something before the last 24 hours of the jam, even if it’s unfinished. You can update the files right up until the deadline.

In the end, does this jam really matter, and is it super serious business?

No. This jam doesn’t matter, and it’s not super serious business. If you miss the deadline nothing bad happens. If your game sucks but it’s uploaded, you at least finished a game. If your team falls apart and you don’t get to submit anything, you have learned valuable lessons about game development. We encourage and celebrate failure because it means you tried. The ratings your game receives do not reflect the amount of effort you put into the game, how good your game is on an objective scale, or the benefits you gained from participating. Have fun.

What prizes are available to winners?

There are no prizes for this jam. What matters most is trying your best, learning new lessons, creating something new and having a good time.

Why is the GBJam Discord so quiet/noisy?

When GBJam is not active (outside of September), we put the Discord into hibernation. This means we have just one channel for asking questions about GBJam, which is usually dormant. This is to reduce the required moderation and to keep the focus on the jam period. When GBJam is active (during the jam period), we open up the Discord and are a lot more active. This often results in hundreds or thousands of users participating in the jam commenting on what they’re doing.

Can I offer my skills for money?

All work done as a jam participant should be done freely and voluntarily.

Can I promote my Youtube/Vimeo/Social Media channel? Are videos/letsplays of participant’s work welcome?

Historically, letsplay videos have been very popular in GBJam and they preserve art and code which has long since been lost. It is also a great way of providing a service to GBJam while promoting your social media channel. Having video of someone playing your game is really useful feedback for developers. We encourage you to post these directly in the comments of GBJam entries and in specific channels on our Discord. However, please note that promotion of material unrelated to the jam (i.e. videos about the Gameboy, game development in general, COD battle montages) are not welcome and you / your links will be removed from the discord as spam. If in doubt, please ask one of the moderators.

Questions about GBJam’s theme

Is there a theme?

Yes, there are two themes - one is “Gameboy”, the other theme will be announced on the first day of the jam.

How will we know what the second theme is?

The theme will be announced on the first day of the jam, posted at the top of this page. It’ll also be sent out via email to everyone who has joined the jam

Questions about GBJam entries

What are the rules on audio?

All audio must be made during the jam period. There are no specific rules on style, but making it feel like gameboy sound is encouraged.

Can I use a resolution which isn’t 160x144?

You may use a smaller resolution if your game engine of choice does not produce 160x144. The play area should fit within a gameboy screen. Black bars or ‘super gameboy’ frames around the outside of the gameplay area are fine.

Can I upscale my game?

Yes. As long as the native resolution is 160x144, you can upscale it. Remember to keep the pixels sharp and upscale by whole numbers only. i.e. 2x will result in 320x288, 3x will result in 480x432 etc etc.

What can I work on before the jam?

You are allowed to set up your tools and your game engine. Tools include: palettes, fonts, tracker instruments and code libraries. Anything that is specific to a particular idea should wait until the jam starts.

Can I submit an NSFW game?

No, sorry. The jam is intended to be beginner friendly and open to as many people as possible. Keep it PG, and don’t be excessive. Please exercise moderation so we don’t have to - our moral compass is capricious, whimsical and final.

I have a question about the four colour limitation

You can only have four colours on the screen at once. Black is a colour. The four colours include all shades, all tones, all hues. Gameboy does not support semi-opacity. The four colours apply to the whole screen, including sprites. You cannot have one four colour palette for your background and another for sprites. This jam does not allow for a fifth experimental colour like ‘default screen background’. Four is the total amount of colours you are allowed. You may use three or two. Five is right out.
The four colours you choose do not have to be the default palette you’ve found on Wikipedia. Lospec.com has loads of four colour palettes you could try. You can even make your own.
You can change your palette mid-game so long as the new palette is four colours. You cannot change your colours mid-scan-line or any other sneaky trickery. If you have more than four colours on the screen at any one time it is not obeying the rules.
Yes, the gameboy had three colours plus transparency on sprites. No, this is not a restriction you need to obey in your competition entry.
You can change the palette with a light switch or when it’s night time so long as there are only four colours on the screen at one time. Are there four colours on the screen? Yes? Congratulations, you abide by the rules. Are there five colours? Do two of the colours blend with opacity to make a new colour? Wow buddy, looks like you’re in more than four colour territory!
‘Four colours maximum’ means ‘four unique colours’. A colour is a unit measured by its unique properties such as hue, saturation and value (or whatever other colour system you subscribe to). You could have red, blue, green and yellow on your screen, but ‘a slightly darker shade of red’ would count as a new colour. You could not have fifty shades of blue and argue that you’re only using ‘one colour’.
Yes, the illusion of a fifth colour counts as a fifth colour. Do you quickly flip the palettes to make an extra colour? Does it have an extra colour on the screen? Welcome to five coloursville friendo, population: you.
No, dithering does not count as an illusion of a fifth colour, as long as you are sticking to the 160x144 resolution.
If you want to argue how your five colours are special, do it in your game jam submission. I’m sure the reviewers (your fellow game jammers) will understand… 👀
If your next question starts with “but what if” the answer is no. No, you can’t do your special idea. It breaks the rules.
“Can I use shaders?”
Does your game have four colours? Is the resolution 160x144? Does your game art adhere to the spirit of the jam - i.e. does it look and feel like it’s on a gameboy? Yes? Go ahead.
“But-”
Then no.

Can I use public domain assets?

No. Music, art and programming must be provided by the people entering the jam. This is to encourage teaming up with other users to make the best game you can!

Can I use a public domain font?

Yes. You do not have to make your own font for this jam.

Why can’t I use AI generated creative materials?

GBJam is an event focused on personal improvement, creativity and teamwork. If you are unable to create something, just use your best effort to make a placeholder, or ask someone to join you in your jam entry. AI generated materials are often very average in terms of creative freshness. It is far more interesting to see your personal interpretation and world view, even if it’s realised in crayon.

Why can’t I use AI generated code?

While we accept that AI is integrated into some code bases in the form of autocomplete and autocreation, it may also introduce bugs and structures which the coder doesn’t understand. So as to improve the strength of the coder, and in the same way that we don’t allow third party game code, we encourage coders to write their own code and improve themselves and their understanding.

Why can’t I use AI… (whatever)?

This game jam is for humans, the expression of creativity and the development of the self. The purpose of generative AIs and LLMs are to replace or supplement human creativity and thinking in a way that the organiser feels is against the spirit of the jam. Please don’t come to the Discord to argue why your use of AI should be allowed, you will be removed.

Can my entry be a remake or a demake of an existing game?

No, games must be original and not use existing intellectual property.

Can I update or submit my game after the deadline?

No, once submissions are closed file uploads are locked until the voting period ends. For the purposes of fairness, we do not accept late entries. However, once the voting period ends, feel free to develop your game into a fully playable thing! It’s recommended you submit this to itch.io as a new project or to preserve your jam entry version - both for SEO purposes and to preserve the history of your work.

Who owns the rights to my game?

You and your team own the rights to your game. The moderators of GBJam do not lay any claim to your work and you’re free to do with it as you like.

I have an idea for a game, can I make it during GBJAM?

Why wait until GBJAM? Make your game now! If your game fits the themes of GBJam, you can make it then too.

General questions about GBJam

Why are the rules not hardcore and technical?

GBJAM is for new and old developers alike, celebrating the artistic aesthetic of using four colours in a specific aspect ratio. We are more interested in encouraging an interest in the platform than requiring entrants to code assembly or making functional ROMs (though we enjoy seeing real ROMs). As such, the restrictions are arbitrary to encourage creativity, and not a definition of actual gameboy functionality.
The gameboy aesthetic we are trying to recreate is that of running an original Gameboy Game Pak on a Gameboy Color. We are aware this is a niche aesthetic, but it is cool.

Who makes GBJam possible?

GBJam is made possible by the following people:

GBJam page artists:
Polyducks (art direction, CSS/HTML, copy writing, minor animation and edits)
Batfeula (character concept/design/illustration)
DL (animation, additional art details)

GBJam moderators:
Traslo
timconceivable!
Graf
tatltuae
poltergasm
Polyducks

GBJam directors:
Polyducks (GBJAM 7 - current)
Retroshark (GBJAM 1 - GBJAM 8)