Game Jam

Twisted Fairytales: A Paper Prototyping Game Jam!

That Exam Nightmare Again Game Jam

Get ready to dive into the surreal and the puzzling! We're thrilled to announce That Exam Nightmare Again Game Jam, a unique competition where creativity, storytelling, and clever problem-solving collide in the world of interactive fiction.

Guidelines

Theme: The storylet must revolve around the common nightmare scenario of realizing you have a final exam for a course you’ve never attended.
Puzzle-Based Design: Include at least one puzzle element that gives players a chance to “pass” or “fail” the exam. This could take the form of:
- Solving a riddle to pass the exam.
- Collecting forgotten course notes scattered through a surreal campus.
- Matching symbols in a bizarre dream logic to answer impossible questions.
Format: Use Harlowe, Twine’s default theme, for your game. We will take care of the code to turn your mini-game into a storylet. You’re welcome to use any Twine-compatible code even if it is not provided in the template. If you do use a story, rather than temporary, variable, please append your initials to the name of the variable so that we don’t run into an issue where two contestants have used a variable of the same name.

The Frame Story

Opening Screen: It’s been an exhausting day. You finish your homework and decide to turn in a little bit early so that you can be fresh for the exam you have tomorrow. You say good night to your roommates, set your alarm, and drift off to sleep.

Once you are deeply asleep, you have that nightmare again, you know the one. You suddenly realize that you have a final exam in a class you’ve never attended, and that your entire college career depends on passing that exam.
Choice 1: Rush to the exam location. (Takes player to first storylet)
Choice 2: Wake yourself up. You don’t need this stress. (results in Closing Screen (loss))
(Players will continue playing until they have three wins or choose to wake themselves up.)

Closing Screen (win): You wake up relaxed and ready for the challenges of the day. If you could make it through the gauntlet of surreal exams you’ve taken in your sleep, you can certainly pass your calculus exam this afternoon when you are fully awake! THE END

Closing Screen (loss): You jolt awake, full of anxiety. You toss and turn for a bit, trying to get back to sleep, but you can’t shake the feeling that you should try again.

Choice 1: Go back to sleep and try to make your way through the dream. (Returns to start.)
Choice 2: Get up and get a warm glass of milk. Maybe that will help you sleep.
- Final Screen for loss: You go back to sleep, and this time only dream of pleasant things. You wake up refreshed and ready to tackle the day. THE END

The Basics

Storylets should be between 4 and 12 screens and solvable with the information provided to the player
We will host a launch kick-off and Twine tutorial on January 24^th, Library Room 321. Contestants do not have to attend this kick-off to enter.
Winners will be announced at the English Department Valentine’s Day event, place and time TBD. Winners who aren’t able to attend that event can pick up their prizes from Dr. Einstein in Lupton 343.
You can download Twine or use it in your browser (though that version is less robust) here.
Download a very simple template here. In Twine, go to “Build” and then “Import.” Select the template file to begin working on your storylet.
Turn your entry in here.

The Challenge

Competitors will create a Twine storylet that captures the essence of a universal nightmare: discovering you have a final exam for a course you didn’t even realize you were enrolled in. This is your chance to explore the anxiety, absurdity, and surreality of the situation in a narrative form.

Your storylet should feature a puzzle-based mechanic—this could be a riddle, a mini-quest, or another interactive challenge that gives the player a clear win/lose condition. The weirder, the better! Whether you transport the player to a dreamscape with floating professors and cryptic textbooks or pit them against a sentient scantron, the goal is to create an immersive, engaging, and slightly unsettling experience.

Tools and Resources

To get you started, we’ll provide:

A Twine template pre-configured for storylet creation.
A Twine tutorial session hosted on January 24^th, Library Room 321.
An overview of the wrapping story in which your storylet will reside.
You can download Twine or use it in your browser (though that version is less robust) here.

Judging Criteria

Submissions will be evaluated on:

Creativity: How unique and engaging is your take on the theme?
Puzzle Design: Are the puzzles challenging but fair, and do they enhance the narrative experience?
Narrative Quality: Is your writing vivid, immersive, and true to the dreamlike scenario?
Technical Execution: Does the storylet function smoothly within Twine, leveraging any creative coding as needed?

Submission Details

Deadline: February 7^th by 11:59pm
Format: Submit your Twine file (.html) along with a brief description of your storylet’s concept and mechanics.
Platform: The final game will be hosted on itch.io for everyone to play.

Prizes

Winners will receive:

First Place: A Meta Quest 3s
Second Place: A retro game emulator
Third Place: A Bloxels Build-Your-Own-Video-Game set
Honorable mentions will be included in the final game, which will be published on Itch.io, earning every writer a credit for writing for a published game.
First 30 participants will receive a tiny, working game keychain! It’s stupid and I can’t figure out how the games actually work, but it’s free!

Join us for That Exam Nightmare Again Game Jam and turn an anxiety-inducing nightmare into a creative triumph! Whether you’re a seasoned Twine developer or a newcomer, this is your chance to showcase your storytelling skills, puzzle mastery, and dream logic. We can’t wait to see how you ace this challenge!

Boo-TC DnD: Session 0

WHEN: Nov. 2, 2024 at 11a

WHERE: Lupton Hall, First Floor Commons

Jason Tondro's Talk at October's Game Jam Launch!

Boo-TC: A DnD 5e Game Jam!

UTC English Presents: Boo-TC, a DnD 5e Game Jam with Special Guest Jason Tondro from Wizards of the Coast

When: Wed., Oct. 9, 2024, 330p to 530p

Where: Lupton Hall, First Floor Commons

Participants will write DnD 5e encounters to create a "Spooky UTC" DnD 5e campaign. Every eligible contribution will be combined into a PDF that will be freely available to all!

Prizes will be given to the best overall individual contribution and the best group contribution (groups may have up to three members), as well as some fun gifts for honorable mentions.

Winners will be announced at the UTC English Halloween Party: Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Undead.

For Submissions: Download and customize this template for your submission.

How to Develop a Campaign: Our Special Guest Jason Tondro Talks About Campaign Design

Introduction to Boo-TC Campaign

UTC RAVE Alert