The Game Jam as a Format for Formal Applied Game Design and Development Education

Abstract

This paper introduces the design and results of an applied game jam integrated in a game design and development curriculum, which took place February 2016 at HKU University of the Arts Utrecht in the Netherlands. The game jam followed a four-phased structure over the course of four days. Forty-five participants shared their demographics, baseline competency, attitude towards game jams, and learning expectations in a pre-jam questionnaire. In a post-jam questionnaire they assessed their collaboration and learning outcomes. Results are generally positive, although some measures of collaboration constructs were unreliable. Nevertheless, a game jam is in principal a format worthy of introduction into formal game design and development education. Several implications and next steps are discussed.