Year’s End Game Jam

The Sandbox Game Jams are Creator Contests open to anyone who is passionate about creating games! We invite you to enter our vibrant ecosystem where gaming meets culture, and creators come together to build the future of the platform and make their dreams come true. Only your imagination sets the limits. Let’s build the metaverse together!

We invite you to join the Care Bears™️ for another fun Game Jam in The Sandbox! Harmony Bear is sensing an unnerving energy approaching in the Kingdom of Caring.

December 8th Update!

Prepare the defences! The harmonious Kingdom of Caring is under siege — Are you ready to help?

Fortify your castles, towers, and gates for this epic TOWER DEFENCE themed Game Jam — the first ever to allow creators to explore the new, diverse Rules System and other tools of Game Maker 0.9!

Build a fortress that defies the laws of physics or a diverse army of units with unique abilities and specialties!

Are there brave Care Bears in shining armour, stealthy ninjas, crafty wizards, or futuristic drones?

Outsmart and overpower the incoming waves of enemies before they breach your walls and take what is yours… Get in position, brave Game Architects. You’ve got this! 💪

⏰ Registrations are closed!

You will need

• An Account in The Sandbox! If you are a new user, please find a beginner guide here.
• Our no-code Game Maker software to create your game (required). Download it for free here.
• Our VoxEdit software for creating your own custom assets (optional). Download for free here.

Prizes

You stand a chance at a share of the 50,000 SAND prize pool! SAND is The Sandbox’s native token, which can be used to purchase various items in our ecosystem such as ASSETs and LAND!

BRAND OPPORTUNITY: Care Bears would like to welcome some of your experiences on their LAND in The Sandbox! Taking part in this Game Jam offers select contestants the opportunity to get their games published directly on the Care Bear’s virtual estate!

🥇1ST PLACE — 15,000 SAND

🥈2ND PLACE — 8,000 SAND

🥉3RD PLACE — 5,000 SAND

🎖️ 4TH PLACE — 3,000 SAND

🎖️ 5TH — 10TH PLACE — 1,500 SAND

⭐Honorable Mention (up to 10) —1,000 SAND each!

To place in the Top 3, you must have completed KYC for the wallet provided in the registration form. Read more about KYC and our other Terms and Conditions.

If you are using a Team / Studio wallet without KYC, it must instead meet the conditions for a “Verified Creator”. Find out more under ⚠️Important Rules.

Key dates

• December 1st: Registrations Open (10:00 AM UTC)
• December 7th: Registrations Close (11:59 PM UTC)
• December 8th: Game Jam kick-off & theme reveal (10:00 AM UTC)
• December 22nd: Submission Deadline (10:00 PM UTC)
• December 31st: Bug-Fixing Deadline (5:00 PM UTC)
• January 27th: Live Awards Ceremony on Twitch (7 PM UTC)

Make sure to join the Live Awards Ceremony on January 27th to take part in the celebration and for a chance to enter exciting giveaways!🎉

Winners will also be announced on Discord and Twitter/X between January 28th-29th for those who miss the Live Awards Ceremony.

🗣️Join our Discord for updates and announcements related to Game Jams and the Game Maker.

Please read more about the Bug-Fixing phase below ⚠️Important Rules.

How to participate

Please follow the steps below to get started!

• Create a The Sandbox account by following these steps.
• Join our Discord to stay up to date and meet other creators!
• Form your team consisting of 1–4 people.
• Register for the Game Jam.
• Stay ready for the Game Jam kick-off on December 8th and remember to check your emails!
• Make sure to check out the 📚Resources section below to learn more about being a creator in The Sandbox.
• Plan and build your game!
• Share your completed game to the Game Maker Gallery. Instructions will follow in the registration email sent to you on December 8th.
• Submit your entry to the submission form provided in the registration email.

Why participate in The Sandbox Game Jams?

The Sandbox is an exciting ecosystem where the lines between creators and brands are blurred and everyone comes together to build the future of the platform. Whether you have dreams of creating your own gaming franchise or working alongside your favourite brand, there is a special place for you in The Sandbox!

Explore our Map here!

Regardless of your experience level, Game Jams have much to offer for all creators!

Exciting prizes: Win exciting prizes, publishing opportunities, and recognition within The Sandbox’s community.

Exposure: Game Jams are a great way to show off your game development prowess to become a recognized game designer in The Sandbox ecosystem while also gaining valuable feedback and connections within the community.

Build Your Resume: With strict time constraints, these contests offer you a great opportunity to rapidly build your resume as a creator and show the world what you are made of!

Skill Enhancement: Sharpen your Game Maker skills and experiment with new ideas. The Game Jams are an opportunity to learn, grow, and refine your competences.

Community Spirit: Take part in a vibrant community of fellow creators, where you can share your progress, exchange ideas, and collaborate with others who share your passion for game development. Don’t forget to join our Discord!

⚠️ Important rules

Please make sure that you read all the rules HERE!

It is very important that you do that to ensure that your submission is valid and follows our rules and guidelines.

Some key rules to keep in mind includes:

• Software: Your game must be designed in our Game Maker software using the version stated in the email sent to you on the Game Jam Kick-Off date.
• Creation Date: Your game must be created on or after the kick-off date of this Game Jam.
• Size: Your game must be no larger than 1x1.
• KYC/Verification (Top 3): To place in the Top 3, all prize-winning wallets must have completed KYC or they must classify as “Verified Creators”. To qualify as a Verified Creator, you must fulfill one of two conditions:

1. Your wallet is linked with a Game Maker Fund account.
2. You have participated in 5 Game Jams and/or VoxEdit contests and placed in the Top 10 at least once.

Please note that you only need to meet one of these requirements to qualify.

Bug-Fixing Phase

The bug-fixing phase is implemented to allow you time to fix any issues present in your games so your final product is playable and runs as smoothly as possible.

After submitting your entry in the submission form, you are allowed to make minor updates to your game in the Drafts Gallery until the deadline date & time stated in this article.

No new gameplay content may be added to your games. This will be specified below. We will verify this during our verification & voting phases.

The following changes are allowed:

• You may fix any issues and bugs present in your game.
• You may fix any level design issues that causes players to get stuck or being able/unable to access unintentional areas.
• You may make minor adjustments to quests, crowd events, and timed events as long as the objective and connected gameplay remains the same.
• You may fix grammar and language errors or adjust dialogue / quest objectives for better clarity.
• You may make adjustments to level difficulty to avoid frustrating or cumbersome gameplay elements.

The Following changes are NOT allowed:

You may not add any new gameplay elements such as

• Quests — no new quests are allowed. Changing quest type is allowed if necessary for functionality, but the overall objective must remain the same.
• Crowd Events — No new crowd events are allowed. Objective of existing crowd events must remain the same.
• Timed Events — No new Timed Events are allowed. Objective of existing timed events must remain the same.
• New player interactions — You may not add any new player interactions such as new dialogue from askers/speakers, buttons, platforms, doors, etc.
• New parkour elements — You may adjust sections to optimize gameplay difficulty, but you may not add entirely new sections to the parkour.
• New areas — You may not add any additional areas to your game unless it is specifically to solve an issue.
• New battles — You may not add entirely new, meaningful battles. You may add or remove enemies or make adjustments to their stats to adjust difficulty. Meaningful battles can, for example, be a new Boss fight.

Judges & Voting

Voting consists of two phases and is done primarily by The Sandbox staff in collaboration with The Council.

Game Jams done in collaboration with The Sandbox’s partners may also include partner judges who will vote in phase 2.

Games are judged based on five categories, amounting to a maximum of 22 points per judge.

You can read more about how we rate your games here.

Resources 📚

• Learn to use the Game Maker here.
• Learn to use VoxEdit to create assets here.
• Join our community of creators on Discord, where you can ask for help, find teams to work with, read important updates, and make connections with other passionate game developers.
• Download the Game Maker here.
• Download VoxEdit here.
• Save time and buy assets from our Marketplace here.

❓FAQs

If you have any questions or concerns, please read the rules and FAQs carefully first or consider whether the answer could be found in the resources linked above.

If you did not find an answer, we look forward to welcoming you in the Game Maker and Game Jam channels in our Discord where staff and fellow creators are ready and happy to help you!

Good luck to all participants!