RPG Maker has spawned many great horror games and now it's time to create games in the style of these classics! You are welcome to join this jam no matter if you are a beginner or an experienced developer, so long as you want to create a game inspired by traditional RPG Maker horror games. Hopefully, at the end of the game jam you will have something playable you can be proud of!
Aside from any version of RPG Maker, this game jam also allows entries made in certain RPG Maker-like game engines and even games made in any other engine of your choice (with additional restrictions). Check the Rules and FAQ section below for details!
You can also join the jam's Discord server!
Do you want to play a game? One with the highest of stakes, where the greatest prize one can foolishly hope for is to be allowed to keep their own life?
Rumours are, there is one such game, where the participants have to overcome many ingenious traps and challenges designed by a twisted mind. It could be a test which one must pass in order to prove themselves "worthy", a sick game created by a serial killer toying with their victims, or a competition targeting those desperate enough to risk everything for some grand prize that might never be awarded. The possibilities are endless.
And it's certain that the protagonist of your game will need more than luck to survive as they participate in this Death Game!
1) The Gamemaster: The protagonist is periodically contacted by a twisted gamemaster, who explains to them what exactly they have to do in their next trial/challenge, the rules they have to follow and the consequences for breaking those rules.
2) Deadly Traps: The player character will face ingenious, deadly traps that take some skill and clever thinking to overcome.
3) Make Your Choice: There's a scene in the game where the player character has to choose which character lives and which one dies.
You can only start working on the actual game project after the jam's submission period starts, but you can start planning and creating/gathering assets and other resources before that time.
This is a casual game jam, so premade assets are allowed and you can reuse some code from past projects if you want. However, don't go overboard with it. In order to comply with the spirit of the jam, the bulk of the work on your game should be done during the game jam itself.
Entries made in any version of RPG Maker or an RPG Maker-like engine are preferred. The following game engines are considered RPG Maker-like for the purposes of this game jam - WOLF RPG Editor, RPG Architect, RPG Developer Bakin, RPG Paper Maker, RPG in a Box, SRPG Studio, Solarus, Smile Game Builder.
If you use RPG Maker or an RPG Maker-like engine from the list above to make your game, then no additional restrictions apply.
You can also use any other game engine, such as Godot, Unity, Unreal Engine, or even your own custom game engine coded from scratch. However, in this case, you need to make a game that captures the vibe of classic RPG Maker Horror Games, with 2D sprites and a top-down or side-view perspective. Just to reiterate, this restriction doesn't apply if you are using RPG Maker or one of the listed RPG Maker-like engines to make your game.
AI-generated assets are allowed, if you disclose their use on the game's project page. This applies even if these originally AI-generated assets are later edited by you.
That said, this is only a requirement if there are any AI-generated assets in your game. It doesn't apply if you've used AI-generated images as inspiration or if you've simply asked ChatGPT for coding advice, for example.
Yes, you can form a team. There's no limit to the amount of team members your team can have. You can also work on multiple games or be a part of multiple different teams.
Your game has to be a horror game or at least contain significant horror elements. It doesn't need to be outright scary, so long as it can even remotely be considered one.
We tend to give games the benefit of the doubt when it comes to this, so don't worry about it too much.
This is a game jam, incomplete games are totally fine and expected. You are encouraged to work on your game even during the Rating Period.
Follow itch.io's Terms of Service and tag your game appropriately. We also advise all jam submitters to include content warnings in their games whenever it seems necessary.
You need to incorporate the Theme from the current jam into your game in some way. It's completely up to you how you interpret the Theme, so long as it's obvious that you've at least made an effort to follow it. We aren't too strict with it and creative interpretations are encouraged.
Yes, the Bonus Challenges are totally optional and serve mostly to guide people who need that extra guidance. It's up to you if you decide to implement them or not.
There has to be some kind of free version of your game made available for the duration of the both this game jam's submission period and also its rating period. It could be a free demo version or the game itself being made free for a limited time. This requirement no longer applies after the game jam ends.
This jam accepts late submissions during the Rating Period. A Late Submission Thread will be set up in the jam's Community tab once the submission period ends. Anyone who wants to submit their game to the jam after the submission period ends will have to put a link to their game's project page in said thread and will receive a reply with a Submission Link that will allow them to submit their game to the jam.
After the Rating Period ends, the Community tab will be closed and no further late submissions will be accepted.
1) Follow itch.io's Terms of Service.
2) Follow the Terms of Use of any assets you use in your game.
3) Have fun!
Art by: Doma