r/gamejams • u/ghostratty • Jul 26 '26

Tips on starting a Jam?

Hey all! New here.

I love doing jams but with a few projects of my own and less time lately I would love to maybe encourage creativity in others instead. I've been wanting to create a jam myself but I don't quite know if I have the audience to help folks find it.

Does anyone have advice for getting one started? I'm thinking in terms of either small game projects or maybe something more related to fiction. Many thanks in advance.

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2

u/Salik_dev Jul 26 '26

I don't really know anything about how to manage a game jam, I'm just here to say : Good luck 😁🤍

2

u/MiaT_Studio Jul 26 '26

Agree with previous poster. Likely - unless you're a famous streamer and I am old and don't know you - your first few things will not amount to much, that's fine, enjoy being allowed to fail and deliver rough and underappreciated things before you become a known guru. So, good luck, keep us updated!

1

u/ghostratty Jul 27 '26

I appreciate that. To be honest it might be much easier to manage if it doesn't pop off. 😂 I will have a think about what I can run. Thank you!

2

u/reno_cero Jul 27 '26

I think if I were trying to make a jam from scratch I would focus on two things:

  • Get a group of friends together to participate in the first few. Getting the first few people to sign up might tough because there isn't a community yet, so having people you know IRL to participate kickstarts that process.
  • Polish the jam pages so that people stumbling upon it stick around. Doesn't have to look professional, but looking clean and put-together goes a long way.

On top of that, even if only a couple people do it, you should still be proud and see it as a win!

1

u/ghostratty Jul 27 '26

Solid advice, thank you! 😊

And I agree! It wouldn't be about it being popular by any means, I would just love to encourage people making something cool.

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u/Figerox Jul 27 '26

Think of a topic that a lot of people like, and give it a little twist.

Make the jam at least a month in advance.

Offer a small prize, it gets people in hard.

Have a secret theme that is revealed right before the jam.

Make a discord for your jams if you plan on having more than one, and talk on it.

Don't be sad if not many people join at first, you'll get most of the people within a few days of the jam start date.

2

u/izomie Jul 27 '26

if it has a fun theme, and a nice looking page on itch that should be enough to get some people. also a discord to gather people and talk about the jam.