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Still from game 'Make Me Rich'. An animated character with a monitor for a head, a grey suit and red cravat is smiling and waving. The background is a pale pink.
A large group of people are in a computer room looking at a screen. Many are applauding and smiling.
Still from game 'Hot Seat'. A retro office desk in a dark room. There are old computers and cluttered notes and buttons everywhere.

Global Game Jam 2024

Norwich students build games from scratch in the Global Game Jam 2024, the world’s largest games creation event.

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The Global Game Jam is a collaborative project that operates worldwide every year, giving participants just 48 hours to construct a playable game from scratch. Each year a new theme is revealed, and teams from over 100 countries put their heads together to construct an idea that both fits the brief and is possible to deliver within the time limit.

Norwich’s St. Andrews building was a jam site host, inviting participants to use the University’s games development labs to work on their projects. This year Norwich hosted over 80 jammers, making the University the 8th largest site in the UK, and the 93rd largest out of 797 sites worldwide.

Still from game 'Hot Seat'. A retro office desk in a dark room. There are old computers and cluttered notes and buttons everywhere.

Still from game 'Tough Crowd'. A background of a bar with lots of small round tables. Overlayed are three white bars, a yellow dot is moving towards the top of the bars.

The theme for this year’s jam was ‘Make me Laugh’, which saw Norwich’s games populated with everything from comedians and toilets to angry office bosses. Students from BA (Hons) Games Art and Design and BSc (Hons) Games Development produced nearly 20 games, and gathered together at the end of the jam to share their work and test out other groups’ games.

The goal of the Global Game Jam is to stimulate innovation, experimentation, and collaboration across games design and production. It’s not a competition, and anyone in the world is welcome to sign up and take part. Jammers often also try their hand at roles and skills they might not have experienced before. It’s an excellent opportunity for students to try their hand making something outside their course.

Two people are standing with their back to the camera. Over their shoulders a group of people can be seen watching a screen on the wall. A game is being projected onto the screen.

BA Games Art and Design Lecturer and Jam Site organiser Ian Griffiths said about this year’s event:

‘Another year, another outstanding turnout for Global Game Jam at Norwich University of the Arts. Truly once again our participants have gone above and beyond expectations in their creative practise and really found their voice. Every year it’s wonderful to come together as a community, to not consider deadlines for assessment and grades but to see our passion for games and their creative development shine through. Global Game Jam really allows for a wonderful time of friendship and camaraderie and the bringing together of our games community. From the team we would like to say a huge thank you to everyone who participated to make this year’s event truly memorable.’

Featured game stills, top to bottom:

For a full list of the games from Norwich University of the Arts, take a look at the Global Game Jam website.

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