13 ghoulish games to play, hack and slash this weekend 👻

Halloween code: Thirteen jam-built games you can fork and modify

Warning: this collection includes zombies, werewolves, mummies, extra-dimensional beings, and other assorted terrors. All thirteen games come from game jams — Ludum Dare, JS13K, Game Off, and others — and every one of them ships with source code you can explore and alter. Several were built in under 48 hours.

Evil Glitch (JS13K 2016)

► Play in your browser · Source (JavaScript)

Evil Glitch by @agar3s layers on scanlines, CRT effects, and bullet-storm combat as glitches tear into your dimension. The fun hack: comment out a single line and you become invincible.

- if(killer)die(killer);
+ // if(killer)die(killer);

Chamber (Ludum Dare 47)

► Play on Windows or Web · Source (Heaps, Haxe)

From @saint11 and @AmoraBettany, Chamber took first place in the LD47 jam. You explore a mysterious temple with help from a friendly ghost while planning an escape.

Sealed Bite (Game Off 2019)

► Play on Windows, macOS, Linux or Web · Source (Godot, GDScript)

Sealed Bite is a pixel-art platformer from @securas, winner of last year's Game Off. You race the clock to find crystal shards, which keep you from transforming into a werewolf.

If it feels too hard, edit the player script to boost your jump height at this line:

- const JUMP_VEL = -150.0
+ const JUMP_VEL = -250.0 

or grant invulnerability here:

func can_be_hit( area = null ) -> bool:
    if fsm.state_cur == fsm.states.hit: return false
    if fsm.state_cur == fsm.states.dead: return false
    if is_invulnerable: return false
    #print( cur_target, " ", area, " ", cur_target.get_ref().name, " ", area.get_parent(), " ", area.owner.name )
    if cur_target != null and \
        area != null and \
        cur_target.get_ref() != null and \
        cur_target.get_ref() == area.owner:
            return false
-   return true
+   return false

Retrohaunt (JS13K 2019)

► Play in your browser · Source (JavaScript)

@DennisBengs fits a full puzzle game inside 13kB of JavaScript with Retrohaunt.

Luna (Halloween Competition 2019)

► Download for C64 · Source (Assembly)

Retro players with a Commodore 64 will appreciate Luna, a Commodore 64 title from @smnjameson. You guide a witch through an endless cave system with increasingly fast, challenging enemies. A C64 emulator is required, and the open source options are plentiful.

Unnecessary Evil (Ludum Dare 43)

► Play on Windows or Web · Source (Unity, C#)

Unnecessary Evil comes from @Xenation, @Suliac, @Voxelse, and @evaabollivier. Switch between five fighters to find a way out — but be prepared to make sacrifices.

Heaven Ascent (JS13K 2020)

► Play in your browser · Source (JavaScript)

Heaven Ascent drops you into a climb through demon hordes, star collection, and angelic bosses. There's also a quick cheat: @Dhmstark added a one-line change that grants infinite lives.

Blood and Volts (Ludum Dare 46)

► Download for Windows · Source (GameMaker)

Blood and Volts by @dev-dwarf, @Nolnad, and @LewmothMusic is an invasion game with a power-management twist: keep the generators up and turrets firing while fighting off native alien life.

Baby Monster Delivery (Ludum Dare 46)

► Play on Windows and Web · Source (Unity, C#)

No storks in Baby Monster Delivery — just pans, boobytraps, and floors made of lava.

Tomb of the Mummy RL (Ludum Dare 47)

► Play in your browser · Source (JavaScript)

In Tomb of the Mummy, a roguelike from @eldarbogdanov, would-be treasure hunters disturb an ancient slumber. Now you must defend your tomb — a mummy's work is never done.

Death String (Ludum Dare 47)

► Play on Windows, macOS, Linux, and Web · Source (Godot, GDScript)

Demons have invaded a pink, pixelated world. You control the robot that banishes them with the Death String.

Shield Bearer (GMTK Jam 2020)

► Play on Windows, macOS, Linux, and Web · Source (Godot, GDScript)

Shield Bearer from @Geminimax casts you as the helicopter parent protecting a would-be adventurer son through dangerous dungeons. A worthy fork: improve the kid's pathfinding.

Soul Harvester (Untitled Game Jam 8)

► Play on Windows, macOS, Linux, and Web · Source (Unity, C#)

@JordyAaldering's Soul Harvester puts you in the robe of a young Grim Reaper, bouncing through procedurally generated levels to send lost souls where they belong.

Looking for more? These 13 fun, fiendish, and forkable games from last year should satisfy the appetite.