I often hear doubts about the usefulness of joining jams such as Games Jam Kanobu. Supposedly, they are just a distraction, and it is all publicity out of thin air when not even half a game is ready. Never mind that games such as Punch Club (over $1 million in sales on Steam, iOS and Android), Message Quest (Steam, coming soon to iOS and Android), Skyhill (Steam), Scrap Garden, The Tribe (passed Steam Greenlight), The Mooseman, Paper Knight, Divide by sheep (Steam, iOS, Android), Breached began at a jam or passed through one at an early stage. And that is only a small selection of well-known projects.
Let me simply list the benefits of taking part in jams:
Entering a jam is a project's first milestone. As we know, no milestones means no development plan. It is then unsurprising when a game takes years with no release in sight. It is quite different when you need a project description, playable demo and promotional materials by a fixed date. A good reason to pull yourself together and focus on specific tasks. After the jam, you will also have something to take to other websites.
The next milestones are clear too. After Games Jam Kanobu, it is only a short step to DevGAMM in Moscow on May 12–13, where you can show your game in the showcase. Then the showcase at White Nights in St. Petersburg on June 28–29 is not far away.
Where there are milestones, there is planning how to reach them. The jam lasts a little over a month. At the time of writing, only two weeks remain. Not much, but still enough: people make games at Ludum Dare in just 2 days. Limited time forces you to plan. If you need a playable demo at the end, you must decide what it should contain and how to achieve it. Then, when plans begin slipping, you must decide what to cut to finish on time.
Developing behind closed doors makes it easy to waste effort on something players will not find interesting. Even a publicly shared written concept lets you test an idea with an audience and learn what grabs attention and what leaves people cold. In theory, you can publish concepts anytime, but then you must chase an audience; at a jam, the audience finds you.
If your game's release is the first news about it, it will also be the last. Nobody will write articles about you if they have never heard of you before. For a small indie team without a substantial marketing budget, the most reliable survival strategy is to keep telling everyone about your game. A jam is the first place to start. Everyone is there: players, developers, publishers and journalists. Even if it brings no tangible results such as articles or contracts, you will still begin appearing in front of people and building brand awareness.
A jam brings together developers just like you, from professional teams to people merely thinking about starting to make games. While tinkering with your prototype, you may understand everything and need no outside help. But believe me, when it comes to legally establishing a studio, contracts, releasing on Steam, contacting Apple and Google, and talking to journalists and streamers, you will be very, very grateful to have developer friends who have been through it and can help.
When you start a jam, you probably will not have a complete team covering every development and promotion need. Jams often begin with a single person passionate about an idea; I am one of them. But show the idea and you will find people inspired by it who want to help. A developer who loves the idea and comes to you is much more valuable than one you must find and persuade.
One reason we want to make games is dissatisfaction with existing ones. When everything is clones of clones with minimal gameplay, you want to scream and make your own: hardcore, old-school, with soul. But there is another way to get more of the games you love: inspire other people to make them. It is not difficult. The more you write about your game and the more openly you share, the more people will want to follow your path.
For example, with my game SMASH BASH, I try to discuss development as often and in as much detail as possible: how the design is written and why decisions are made. The result: three teams have already been inspired by this approach: Mobamates Manager, Valley of Dungeons, Project “Mediator”. I also helped two old acquaintances get moving after they had been building games without emerging from their dens: Saint Gun and Under the Void.
Let me simply list the benefits of taking part in jams:
1. Milestone
Entering a jam is a project's first milestone. As we know, no milestones means no development plan. It is then unsurprising when a game takes years with no release in sight. It is quite different when you need a project description, playable demo and promotional materials by a fixed date. A good reason to pull yourself together and focus on specific tasks. After the jam, you will also have something to take to other websites.
The next milestones are clear too. After Games Jam Kanobu, it is only a short step to DevGAMM in Moscow on May 12–13, where you can show your game in the showcase. Then the showcase at White Nights in St. Petersburg on June 28–29 is not far away.
2. Planning
Where there are milestones, there is planning how to reach them. The jam lasts a little over a month. At the time of writing, only two weeks remain. Not much, but still enough: people make games at Ludum Dare in just 2 days. Limited time forces you to plan. If you need a playable demo at the end, you must decide what it should contain and how to achieve it. Then, when plans begin slipping, you must decide what to cut to finish on time.
3. Feedback
Developing behind closed doors makes it easy to waste effort on something players will not find interesting. Even a publicly shared written concept lets you test an idea with an audience and learn what grabs attention and what leaves people cold. In theory, you can publish concepts anytime, but then you must chase an audience; at a jam, the audience finds you.
4. Publicity
If your game's release is the first news about it, it will also be the last. Nobody will write articles about you if they have never heard of you before. For a small indie team without a substantial marketing budget, the most reliable survival strategy is to keep telling everyone about your game. A jam is the first place to start. Everyone is there: players, developers, publishers and journalists. Even if it brings no tangible results such as articles or contracts, you will still begin appearing in front of people and building brand awareness.
5. Networking
A jam brings together developers just like you, from professional teams to people merely thinking about starting to make games. While tinkering with your prototype, you may understand everything and need no outside help. But believe me, when it comes to legally establishing a studio, contracts, releasing on Steam, contacting Apple and Google, and talking to journalists and streamers, you will be very, very grateful to have developer friends who have been through it and can help.
6. Head hunting
When you start a jam, you probably will not have a complete team covering every development and promotion need. Jams often begin with a single person passionate about an idea; I am one of them. But show the idea and you will find people inspired by it who want to help. A developer who loves the idea and comes to you is much more valuable than one you must find and persuade.
7. Inspiration
One reason we want to make games is dissatisfaction with existing ones. When everything is clones of clones with minimal gameplay, you want to scream and make your own: hardcore, old-school, with soul. But there is another way to get more of the games you love: inspire other people to make them. It is not difficult. The more you write about your game and the more openly you share, the more people will want to follow your path.
For example, with my game SMASH BASH, I try to discuss development as often and in as much detail as possible: how the design is written and why decisions are made. The result: three teams have already been inspired by this approach: Mobamates Manager, Valley of Dungeons, Project “Mediator”. I also helped two old acquaintances get moving after they had been building games without emerging from their dens: Saint Gun and Under the Void.