I discovered this year the concept of a short and focused TTRPG contest called Jam. And it was a blast : I found so many astounding games ! I loved the concept : simple and evocative, no winner or loser. Just a deadline.
So I started to wonder : “what if we can list all those jams ? Find all those contributions ?”. The problem is that a lot of Jam are hosted on itch.io, and itch.io has no usefull tool for exploring jams.
And so here we are: I started listing all the jams made in 2019.
If you know of a jam I’ve missed, please let me know in the comments.
- Record Collection 2k19 – 01/01/2019 to 16/01/2019
https://itch.io/jam/recordcollection2k19
Record Collection is a game jam where we challenge you to make a game that is based on, inspired by, or an interpretation of a music album! Simply pick an album, listen to it, and then make a game that evokes it. - Emotional Mecha Jam – 29/01/2019 to 13/02/2019
https://itch.io/jam/sad-mecha-game-jam
“GIANT ROBOTS AND THE SAD PILOTS THAT DRIVE THEM. Robo-combat is cool. Space politics and future tech are great! But one of the things we like the most about the mecha/mobile suit genre is the strong emotions that drive the pilots and the drama that entangles them. So! An Emotional Mecha Jam. ” - Traverser l’hiver – 01/02/2019 to 01/03/2019
http://troplongpaslu.fr/traverser-lhiver-enfin-disponible
Quand le froid s’empare du monde et que les jours commencent à peine à s’allonger, la présence d’un ami peut nous réchauffer agréablement. C’est de cette idée que nous partons. - March of the Wizards 2k19! – 01/03/2019 to 15/03/2019
https://itch.io/jam/march-of-the-wizards-2k19
A game jam about the arcane, the heretical, the eldritch! Cast aside your compunctions and crack open those grimoires! - belonging outside belonging jam – 30/03/2019 to 22/04/2019
https://itch.io/jam/belonging-outside-belonging-jam
Make role playing games based on the belonging outside belonging framework as described in Dream Askew by Avery Alder. - Me, Myself, And My RPG Game Jam – 01/04/2019 to 26/04/2019
https://itch.io/jam/me-myself-and-my-rpg-game-jam
This is a game jam dedicated towards making tabletop games that can be experienced alone. - Pamphlet Dungeon Jam – 01/04/2019 to 11/05/2019
https://itch.io/jam/pamphletjam
Easy to carry, cheap to reproduce and distribute, pamphlets have historically been a key format for distributing political, religious, or fringe ideas. It also happens to be a great format for tabletop rpg adventures! - Big Bad Game Jam 2019 – 13/04/2019 to 01/06/2019
https://itch.io/jam/big-bad-game-jam
Let’s make games inspired by and about FOLK TALES & FABLES! We can play them at Big Bad Con, a tabletop and live action gaming convention featuring fantastic games and even better company- happening in Oakland, CA October 10th – 13th, 2019! - BREATHTAKING: “Redesign Your Logo” – 15/04/2019 to 25/05/2019
https://itch.io/jam/redesign-your-logo
Over a decade ago, Pepsi redesigned their logo. This cost them a million dollars. Then, Agency Spy released the design document. So here’s the challenge: Design a game using this design document as loose inspiration, letting the power within it flow through you. It can be whatever you want! The idea of using physics in advertising, as lore, as an idea for a marketing game. It’s up to you! This document simply contains untold power. Who knows what could be unleashed by it? I don’t, but I’m certainly excited to find out. - Folklore Jam – 19/04/2019 to 21/05/2019
https://itch.io/jam/folklorejam
Folklore Jam is a tabletop RPG jam on folklore, myths and the people in them - Dog Jam 2k19 – 20/04/2019 to 20/05/2019
https://itch.io/jam/dogjam2k19
This jam is pretty self-explanatory, we want dog games. While specifically seeking games inspired by or somehow involving dogs, you can also get as out-there as you want, maybe designing a game that you play with a dog, a game that is exclusively for dogs to play, or collaborating on writing your project with a dog. The world is your bone. - Growing Season – 28/04/2019 to 13/10/2019
https://itch.io/jam/growing-season
It’s time to get out in the garden, get your hands dirty, and make some games. - Otherships Jam – 02/05/2019 to 01/06/2019
https://itch.io/jam/otherships-jam
Otherships Jam is a game jam about creating tabletop roleplaying games featuring diverse, underrepresented relationship structures - Never Alone Jam – 21/05/2019 to 09/07/2019
https://itch.io/jam/never-alone-jam
create a single-player analog tabletop rpg, hack or module for an existing rpg, or digital desktop rpg - Roll Camera – 31/05/2019 to 03/06/2019
https://itch.io/jam/roll-camera
Everyone loves movies – but what if you could play them? - Pride Month: Tabletop Gaymes – 01/06/2019 to 22/06/2019
https://itch.io/jam/pride
For Pride Month this June, I’m thrilled to be hosting a Tabletop Gayme jam for LGBT-themed games! - Legacy Jam – 01/06/2019 to 22/06/2019
https://itch.io/jam/legacy-jam
Legacy Jam is an analog RPG jam exploring ideas of succession, consequence and time. - Worldbuilding Jam – 01/06/2019 to 08/07/2019
https://itch.io/jam/worldbuilding
This jam is for creating worlds or for creating games about creating worlds! - Jollyboat Jam 2k19 – 10/06/2019 to 01/07/2019
https://itch.io/jam/jollyboat-jam-2k19-tabletop
We are Jollyboat, a geeky comedy musical duo. We tour games conventions across the UK and, as we tour, we gather people into The Jollyboat Crew: a Facebook community which is all about keeping life bright. In the Crew we share jokes, puns and nerdiness, and support each other through life’s tough days. - Libre Baskerville Jam – 19/06/2019 to 16/08/2019
https://itch.io/jam/libre-baskerville-jam
This is a tabletop game jam, and I’d like you to participate. All you have to do is design a game. My hope is that you will design a game that comes from Outside. It’s harder than it seems, until it’s not. - Couch Dungeon Jam – 21/06/2019 to 21/07/2019
https://itch.io/jam/couch-dungeon-jam
The Couch Dungeon Jam (#CouchDungeon) is a tabletop RPG jam inspired by IKEA’s build-your-own-sofa site, and the idea that you could create dungeons out of something as innocuous and comfy as a couch - Hot Horror Jam – 26/06/2019 to 31/08/2019
https://itch.io/jam/hothorrorjam
Hot Horror Jam is a tabletop RPG jam of intimate horrors, the supernatural, and how they turn us on - DREAMJAM – 01/07/2019 to 07/08/2019
https://itch.io/jam/dreamjam
The internet asks, “What is SWORDDREAM, anyway?” It’s time for the emerging movement to give answer. *DREAM is an offshoot of the OSR (Old School Renaissance), but it’s more than that. - Jumbled Up July 2k19! – 03/07/2109 to 22/07/2019
https://itch.io/jam/jumbledupjam
The jam where the only rule is to make a game with a physical component that isn’t dice or cards! - Corazon Bundle Jam – 14/07/2019 to 06/08/2019
https://itch.io/jam/corazon-bundle-jam
This rpg charity bundle is a response to the ongoing detention of immigrants at the southern United States border and seeks to raise money in support of detainees. Proceeds will benefit RAICES - #RPGenesis 2019 – 04/08/2019 to 12/08/2019
https://itch.io/jam/rpgenesis2019
#RPGenesis is a tabletop RPG design community challenge, aiming to write a tabletop RPG with a minimum of 5000 words, in seven days of August 2019 - Mapemounde – 08/08/2019 to 18/08/2019
https://itch.io/jam/mapemounde2019
A game in which the map portions belong to different age - Discord RPG Jam – 09/08/2019 to 31/08/2019
https://itch.io/jam/discord-rpg-jam
We’re already playing RPGs & chatting with our game friends on Discord, why not make some RPGs specifically designed to play on Discord? - Goon Jam – 09/08/2019 to 06/09/2019
https://itch.io/jam/goonjam
Make a hack of Tunnel Goons! - Earth Empathy Jam – 15/08/2019 to 13/09/2019
https://itch.io/jam/earth-empathy-jam
This game jam aims to raise awareness about the critters, plants, and habitats we share this world with. - Met Jam – 17/08/2019 to 30/09/2019
https://itch.io/jam/met-jam
Recently the Metropolitan Museum of Art made 375,000 works of art available for “any purpose, including commercial and noncommercial use, free of charge and without requiring permission from the Museum.”Please create an analogue game (RPG, larp, card/board, interactive fiction/poetry, etc.) or Twine/VN that either uses art from this collection or is about pieces in the collection. - Jammi Jam Jam – 30/08/2019 to 13/11/2019
https://itch.io/jam/jammi-jam-jam
A Jam of ritual RPG/Larp for Healing, Emotional take the lead, Local Myths and/or DecOloNizAtIiOn - Your move Jam – 01/09/2019 to 23/09/2019
https://itch.io/jam/your-move-jam
The idea is to create a game where your only mechanic is one, single move as loosely defined by Apocalypse World and other Powered by the Apocalypse (PbtA) games. - Bideo Jam – 01/09/2019 to 31/12/2019
https://itch.io/jam/bideo-jam
This is a game jam for you to turn aspects of your favorite video games into TTRPGs, or to write TTRPGs inspired by your favorite RPGs - Value Your Work Jam – 01/09/2019 to 01/10/2019
https://itch.io/jam/value-your-work-jam
Your work has value! This jam’s purpose is to reinforce that notion by encouraging people to charge money for their games. - Donjon pour débutants – 05/09/2019 to 05/10/2019
https://itch.io/jam/donjons-pour-debutants
Offrir aux débutants des aventures faciles à prendre en main, sans système particulier ni trop de bizarreries, bref de quoi leur permettre de revivre ce que nous avons vécu il y a vingt, trente ans ou plus ! - Safety Jam – 20/09/2019 to 08/11/2019
https://itch.io/jam/safety-jam
That rule seems simple enough in theory, but it becomes complicated by the fact that everyone has a different definition of what fun is. - The Mega RPG Jam – 28/09/2019 to 30/09/2019
https://itch.io/jam/mega-rpg-jam
This Year’s Theme Is…you are not the hero - NO DICE: A Diceless Tabletop RPG Jam – 1/10/2019 to 31/10/2019
https://itch.io/jam/no-dice-a-diceless-tabletop-rpg-jam
The rules are simple: build a tabletop RPG, using any system you want, as long as it doesn’t use dice in any way. Any other form of randomizer, or no randomness at all (i.e., resource allocation or narrative mechanics), are fine. - Cryptid Jam – 1/10/2019 to 1/11/2019
https://itch.io/jam/cryptid-jam
This is a month-long game jam about cryptids, which are creatures “presumed […] to exist on the basis of anecdotal or other evidence considered insufficient by mainstream science,”¹ with many entities being identified only in folklore, rumors, and urban legends. Some of the most well-known cryptids are Bigfoot, the chupacabra, and the Loch Ness monster. - Troika Backgrounds Jam! – 16/10/2019 to 31/10/2019
https://itch.io/jam/troika-backgrounds-jam
Create a troika background ! - TONY HAWK JAM – 21/10/2019 to 10/11/2019
https://itch.io/jam/tony-hawk-jam
“Ever wanted to make a game specifically for legendary skateboarder, video game developer, and twitter personality Tony Hawk? Now’s your chance.Before the end of the month, create a game meant to be played by Tony Hawk. (Not about him, inspired by him, or dedicated to him–for him.) Games can be of any length or style, digital or analog. Please submit new games, not just already existing games that Tony Hawk might like.” - The Galavant Jam – 21/10/2019 to 21/11/2019
https://itch.io/jam/the-galavant-jam
Your noble quest is to create something based on the ABC show Galavant. Make a musical tabletop RPG, write a game in song, make a world that plays with the sort of meta-modern fantasy tropes of the show. Make that tribute to Timothy Omundson’s beard you’ve been dreaming about. Whatever you like! It doesn’t even have to be directly related to Galavant the show. Maybe you want to explore the idea of a musical, or a sitcom, or a self-aware fantasy realm, or you just really like Weird Al and Kylie Minogue. Get at it. - Business Card Jam – 30/10/2019 to 14/11/2019
https://itch.io/jam/business-card-jam
RPGs don’t have to be book-length in order to be compelling game experiences. In fact, they don’t even have to be page-length. This is a jam for making games that can fit onto a business card. Business cards are often exchanged by game designers (and others) as a social ritual, but many end up lost or recycled without ever being used beyond the moment of exchange. What would it look like to try and make that experience more story-shaped, or even to embrace the transient nature of a business card as a part of gameplay? - The BadTTRPG “Change Your Name” Jam – 31/10/2019 to 01/12/2019
https://itch.io/jam/badttrpgs/entries
“The rules are simple.All games must be based on a Bad TTRPGs tweet If you create a game that is harmful, prejudiced or cruel we will remove your game from the jam immediately.” - Three Forged Jam 2019 – 01/11/2019 to 29/12/2019
https://itch.io/jam/threeforged2019
A three forged jam - Ad Astra Jam – 1/11/2019 to 01/01/2020
https://itch.io/jam/ad-astra-jam
Ad Astra Jam is a tabletop RPG jam about feels in space, focusing on the emotional aspect of outer space in all its many forms. - Joined Worlds Jam – 1/11/2019 to 08/12/2019
https://itch.io/jam/joined-worlds-jam
This jam is for creating games that explore two or more worlds that are linked together in some way. The original idea was parallel worlds, but as long as two or more worlds are linked together, go with your idea. - Me, Myself, And My RPG Game Jam Part 2 – 1/11/2019 to 31/12/2019
https://itch.io/jam/me-myself-and-my-rpg-game-jam-part-2
This is a game jam dedicated towards making tabletop games that can be experienced alone. - Correspondence Jam – 01/11/2019 to 19/12/2109
https://itch.io/jam/correspondence-jam
Correspondence jam is for epistolary games! What does that mean? Any game where the main mechanic is players writing letters back and forth! This can mean a game played through dms, through email or shared documents, through snail mail, or any other message sending system! - https://itch.io/jam/solo-game-chef – 01/11/2019 to 01/12/2019
https://itch.io/jam/solo-game-chef
The rules for this are simple. You are to write a short soloable tabletop game based off only six pictures that you’ll roll from Tangent Zero’s Zero Dice page. - NEILVEMBER JAM – 3/11/2019 to 1/12/2109
https://itch.io/jam/neilvember
Neilvember Jam is a jam for creating TTRPGs that celebrate the many and varied works of Neil Cicierega - Sequel Jam – 4/11/2019 to 9/12/2019
https://itch.io/jam/sequel-jam
“The goal of Sequel Jam is to make a sequel to a game that doesn’t exist, be it in the form of a supplement, a bestiary, new classes or mechanics, or even an entirely new game! The content doesn’t have to stand on its own (especially if it’s an add-on), but it must be evocative of what the “original game” was and is in an imagined world where it exists.This is a casual, unranked jam; it’s not a competition!” - MEOWER UP! – 06/11/2019 to 13/12/2109
https://itch.io/jam/meower-up
Join us in making games we play with cats! - Guardians & Guides: New Designer Education Jam – 07/11/2019 to 1/7/2020
https://itch.io/jam/guardiansandguides
i am running this jam because there is a gap that needs filling. A knowledge gap. a mentorship gap. and it crowds out many people who would otherwise have something to contribute but are too overwhelmed or intimidated to try. - IMPACT FONT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS RPG JAM – 13/11/2019 to 13/12/2019
https://itch.io/jam/impact-font-jam
IMPACT FONT. It’s bold. It’s bossy. It’s punchy and preachy. It is a classy dame and just the best. We love it to death as our favorite font in the world. - Pleasant Dream Jam – 30/11/2019 to 30/01/2020
https://itch.io/jam/pleasant-dream-jam
“There are many ways to play a game and they require many different types of energies. Sometimes you don’t have enough of the energy needed for a specific game. Constant improvisation might be exhausting. Having to deal with your own feelings might be draining. Being drawn to close to a story might be too intense.We feel that there is a space in this community of vibrant and inventive designers for pleasant dreams, kind rituals and low-stakes games.Let these games be for those who are out of spoons, who aren’t in a space to be emotionally taxed, who had a stressful day and want most to relax or indulge in fantasy.” - Stories of Storyplay Jam – 5/12/2019 to 05/01/2020
https://itch.io/jam/stories-of-storyplay
Write the Fictionalized Experience of Playing a Tabletop RPG or Storygame You Don’t Think You’d Otherwise Ever Get To Play. - Decade Jam – 31/12/2020 to 01/01/2030
https://itch.io/jam/decadejam
What if we took our time in a game jam – let’s say… 10 years. Would it still be a game jam? Would those games still be game jam games? How many games can anyone submit to one jam? And how much will the game development scene change over 10 years? - #280 words challenge
https://twitter.com/hashtag/280RPG?src=hashtag_click&f=live - #AprilTTRPGmaker
https://twitter.com/hashtag/AprilTTRPGMaker?src=hashtag_click - 200 words RPG challenge
https://200wordrpg.github.io/ - 24 hours RPG
http://www.24hourrpg.com/ - Naga Demon
http://nathanrussell.net/naga-demon/ - Game chef
http://www.game-chef.com/ - Défi Trois Fois Forgé
https://ptgptb.fr/mot-cle/trois-fois-forge
Others Jams
Cure Light Wounds Jam from August 15th 2019 to August 22nd 2019
BREAKING NEWS!! Jam from July 9th 2019 to July 23rd 2019
Pro Wrestling Game Slam 2k19 from April 7th 2019 to May 25th 2019
Short Rest from February 17th 2019 to March 17th 2019
