Theme: Travel✈️🌍

The holiday season is here — and while real-world travel is expensive, game travel is free!

So let’s make games about journeys, destinations, and adventures instead.

Welcome to the Traveller’s Jam — your ticket to exploring the world without leaving home! ✈️

Be sure to join the discord for access to game dev resources and community discussion:

Jam Rules

• ✅ Your entry MUST follow the theme and all jam rules listed below (including the Keep it Real and the Language Rule) AND incorporate at least TWO (2) limitations. The game can be in any genre - anything from a cozy farm/life simulator to an Action RPG.

• 🛠️ Any Game Engine is allowed (Unity, Godot, GDevelop, Unreal, your own custom engine, open source libraries, etc.)
  

• 🤝 You may work in teams or solo. Teams are limited to a maximum of five (5) participants.

• 🌐 Web Games/Builds are strongly encouraged, but downloadable games (Windows preferred) are allowed as well.

• 🤖 AI Usage: AI tools are allowed only for coding. All art, music, and story content must be created by participants or properly sourced from assets.

• 🎨 Any non Generative AI assets (art, music, sound effects, etc.) are allowed: your own creations, free assets or asset packs, open-source assets, or properly licensed assets. Any unlicensed or copyrighted assets are also allowed, but are used are at your own risk. Be sure to give proper credit for any assets that you use.
  

• 🚫 No NSFW Content.

• 🛂 No rate spam / Review-for-Review: Any attempt to manipulate the voting results, including using fake accounts, vote-swapping, or offering review-for-review incentives, is strictly forbidden. Violations will result in immediate disqualification and removal from the jam.

• 🏁 You may begin working on your jam content immediately (as in right now) - there is no need to wait for any announcement.

• ⏰ Be sure to submit your game before the submission period deadline ends. You will not be allowed to modify your game submission during the voting period, but will be able to do so after the voting period ends if you wish to make a post-jam version.

🌍 Keep It Real (Real-World Locations Only)

Base your game on a real location — no fictional worlds. You can stylize it, miniaturize it, or reinterpret it, but it must have a recognizable real-world anchor.

Examples:

• Bangkok floating markets 🚤🛍️

• Venetian canals 🛶🌊

• Almaty mountain trails 🏔️🥾

• Hong Kong at night 🌆✨
  

• Antarctica 🧊

• The Moon 🌕

🗣️Language Rule (Primarily In English)

Games should be primarily in English, but you are encouraged to include local or historical language snippets — such as signs, menus, dialogue, or cultural phrases — to enhance authenticity and flavor.

Examples:

• Menus in French at a Paris café 🍽️
  

• Neon street lights in Tokyo 🏮
  

• Festival greeting signs in Mexico 💀
  

Rating

Games will be rated in a 2-week voting period after the jam on the following 4 categories:

• Gameplay 🎮

• Theme Incorporation 🗺️

• Presentation / Art 🎨

• Audio 🎵

The highest-rated games will be featured in a livestream, where the jam host will play them live and share first impressions and give real-time feedback! 🎟️🌟

🎯 Limitations (Pick 2 or more!)

Choose at least two limitations from the list below. Each one is a “modifier” to your travel adventure — mix and match to create your own unique journey. You can choose more than two if you like, but two is the minimum.

1) 🕰️ Time-Travel

Your game must allow the player to visit the same location in different eras than the present — either travel to the past, to the future, or both. This can affect visuals, characters, gameplay mechanics, or story.

Examples:

• Paris in the Middle Ages → Modern Paris 🏰🏙️

• Edo Tokyo → Neo Tokyo 🏯🌃

• Prehistoric Times vs Post-Apocalyptic Future (Think Chrono Trigger) 🦖⚡

2) 🌸 Seasonal Travel

Your game must showcase the same location across one or more seasons.
This can be for atmosphere, puzzles, traversal, or story.

Examples:

• A mountain town in winter vs. summer ❄️☀️

• A sunny beach then the same beach during monsoon season 🏖️🌧️

• Cherry blossoms vs. autumn leaves in Japan 🌸🍂

3) 🏛️ Historical Event

Your game must place the player in the middle of a real historical event.
This doesn’t have to be a war — could be cultural, scientific, or artistic, or even a cozy event.

🛑 Historically heavy themes (such as war) are allowed, but your game must handle real cultures, events, and people respectfully. No hateful, racist, discriminatory, or politically inflammatory content. Games created to shock, provoke, or depict sensitive real-world events in a disrespectful way are not permitted. Submissions that violate these guidelines may be removed at the host’s discretion.

Examples:

• Building the Great Wall 🧱🐉

• The 1889 Paris Exposition 🎡🎨

• The Silk Road 🏜️🐪

• A real festival or ceremony 🎊🎶

• Apollo moon landing 🌕🚀

• Fall of Pompeii 🌋🏺

4) 🚪 One-Room Journey

The entire game takes place in one physical space, but time, seasons, or events change around the player.

Examples:

• A café in Paris where the same table witnesses events across centuries — patrons, decor, and atmosphere change over time ☕🕰️

• A mountain hut where snow melts and returns as the player solves puzzles across seasons ❄️🌱

5) 🚋 Journey Type / 🛶 Unique Transportation

The game must involve a specific or unique type of travel.

Examples:

• Travel only by boat along Venice canals 🛶🌊

• Hiking a mountain trail in Nepal 🥾🏔️

• Riding a train across the Swiss Alps 🚂❄️

6) 🛖 Local Customs

Incorporate cultural practices, etiquette, or rituals from the location.

Examples:

• Attending a tea ceremony in Japan 🍵

• Local market bargaining rules in Morocco 🛍️

• Día de los Muertos celebrations in Mexico 💀

• Traditional drumming ceremonies in Ghana 🥁

7) 🌉 Iconic Landmarks

Players must visit or interact with a famous landmark.

Examples:

• Climbing the Eiffel Tower 🗼

• Exploring the Sydney Opera House 🎶

• Wandering Machu Picchu 🏞️

• Exploring any of the UNESCO world heritage sites 🌍

8) ⭐ Historical Figures/Legends

Players must visit, interact with, or even play as a famous historical or cultural figure.

Examples:

• Play as Cleopatra 👑

• Interact with Albert Einstein 🧠

• Have a rap battle with Shakespeare 🎤

• Team up or battle with Genghis Khan 🏇

• Train under Bruce Lee 🥋

9) 🎁 Collectibles / Souvenirs / Artifacts

Players collect local souvenirs, mementos, or artifacts as part of exploration.

Examples:

• Souvenirs from landmarks 🎁

• Festival tokens 🎟️

• Ancient Artifacts 🏺
  

• Local crafts to complete a quest 🧵

• Passport stamps from visited locations ✈️