GitHub Game Off Returns for a Month of Game Building
GitHub's annual game jam, Game Off, is back and kicks off this weekend. Participants will receive a secret theme on November 1 and have the entire month to develop a game based on their personal interpretation of that theme. It's a solid opportunity to create a first game, experiment with a new programming language, or dive into an unfamiliar game engine — or simply to launch a fun side project for evenings and weekends.
Past Themes and Submissions
Last year's theme was "leaps and bounds," which drew over 200 game submissions. The lineup included pixelated platformers, a blocky puzzler, an LCD-style point-and-click adventure, and many other creative takes on the prompt.
Free Tools for Beginners
Developers who have never built a game before can explore free and open source engines such as Phaser, ideal for those comfortable with JavaScript; Godot, suitable for developers familiar with C#, C++, or Python-style syntax; or libGDX, a strong choice for Java programmers. More examples and resources are available on the official Game Off website.
While open source tools are encouraged, they aren't mandatory. Past entries have used commercial engines like Unreal Engine and Unity, as well as PICO-8, and there have even been games built for retro platforms like the Commodore 64 and NES.
Interested developers can join Game Off now via the official jam page.
