Game Jam by Game Anglia

From Monday 12 May, Game Anglia will host an online no-crunch game jam for two weeks ahead of the Festival. The created games will be exhibited during of Norwich Games Festival (29-31 May) and played by thousands of attendees.

A selected group of professionals from the video games industry will judge the games, and winners will be announced at a live award ceremony during the Festival on Saturday 31 May.

The free-to-enter Game Jam is open to everyone, whether you are a professional developer or self-taught student. The main thing is to get involved and enjoy the experience.

This no-crunch Game Jam aims to support physical and emotional wellbeing and encourages rest and having fun. You have two weeks, so pace yourself and keep healthy.

“I had a lot of fun developing my game for the NGF game jam. It was cool seeing people play my game in real life and I got a lot of great feedback from players as well as other jammers which I'll be sure to implement in all my future projects.” - MisterSnappy (Heavenly Ascent) NGF 2024 Game Jam

“The moment I heard about the game jam for the Norwich Games Festival, I was all in! The entire experience was a blast! It was a straightforward project, but I believed it would make a great impact at the Games Festival. I hope everyone who played the game had as much fun as I did making it!” - Duncan McHardy (Beyond the Stars) NGF 2024 Game Jam

About the Jam

Theme announcement, finding team members, and regular check-ins will be happening on Game Anglia's Discord.

The theme of this challenge will be announced on 12 May 2025.

Games must:

🎨 Address the theme announced on the morning of the game jam

🖱⌨ Be playable with a mouse and keyboard as no controllers will be present for the showcase

🧒 Be suitable for players aged 7 years old and above (rating PEGI 7)

📒 Have detailed instructions on how to play game present on the game's page or present in the game. They should be targeted at the public (i.e. folks who may have never played a game before)

🌍 Be playable on itch.io. We will not showcase games that are not playable in-browser, on itch, even if submitted as web pages.

This is to ensure that everyone visiting the Norwich Games Festival can play the games.

Jam rules:

👯 Your team should be no more than 5 people, and you can participate as a solo developer

🛠️ The development of your game must not start before the game jam start date

🔡 You can use Asset Store assets and pre-made frameworks (e.g. a start menu framework), but not continue work on games you were already developing

🌅 Your game must address the theme in some way. If the judges do not believe your game addresses the theme at all, we may choose not to showcase your game.

Showcase & Awards

All eligible games will be showcased at the Norwich Games Festival, between 29 May - 31 May.

At least 1 member can be present at Norwich Games Festival for the awards ceremony on the 31 May 2025. If no team member can be present for the awards ceremony, we reserve the right to not showcase your game and not consider it for an award.

A selected group of professionals from the video games industry will judge the games, and winners will be announced at a live award ceremony during the Festival on Saturday 31 May 2025.

Award categories:

• Judges' Choice – The best game voted for by a panel of games industry experts.

• Game of the Show - The best game voted for by attendees of Norwich Games Festival.

• Best Use of Theme - The game which most matches the game jam's theme, voted for by a panel of games industry experts.

About Game Anglia 

Game Anglia supports young people and independent game developers in the East of England get the connections, skills and experience needed to succeed in the UK-wide and international game development industry. Since our first conference in 2017, we have empowered over 2,000 young people, assisted in the creation of 5 studios, and showcased 56 games.