The “Winter Game Jam” game designing marathon organized by the Eastern Mediterranean University (EMU), Faculty of Communication, Department of Visual Arts and Visual Communication Design and, EMU Game Design and Development Society completed with huge interest. 12 teams participating in the event intensely worked to complete their “Heat it up” themed game projects within the allocated 48 hours. The event which acts as a professional simulation of game designing processes, aims to ensure that the students take the best of their educational journeys and to provide them with the opportunity of gaining experience before starting their careers in the sector.
The Winter Game Jam projects, designed to offer participants an immersive working environment and a chance to build valuable connections for students aspiring to advance in the gaming industry, were assessed by a jury made up of faculty members from the Visual Arts and Visual Communication Design Department and the Digital Game Design Program. The selected projects were carefully evaluated according to criteria such as creativity, technical skills, and relevance to the theme.
Following the jury’s assessment, ranking teams were determined as Jinxers, Russian Sleep Experiment and Rookie. Jinxers team consisting of Maral Mosayyebi, Orkun Beşgül, Finlay Matthews, Kadir Karbuz and Niayesh Rezaei won the first place with their game, which centers on the challenge of warming a house in snowy weather. In the game, players try to maintain the warmth of a house while steering clear of dangerous snowmen and a ghost within. Along with driving the ghost away and heating the house, they must strategically navigate to stay alive without freezing.
The “Heat it up” theme is often centered on concepts like temperature, warmth, hot air, fire, intensity, or challenges. In creative fields like game development, this theme inspires game designers to use temperature-related situations (such as attempting to warm up in a cold setting, surviving in a heated world, or battling against extreme heat) as part of game mechanics or story elements.
Making a statement on the topic, Head of the Visual Arts and Visual Communication Design Department Assist. Prof. Dr. Fırat Tüzünkan underlined the significance of continuous production in this field. Moreover, Assist. Prof. Dr. Tüzünkan stated that these events allow students to gain valuable experience, develop teamwork skills, and boost their creativity by building a playable game from scratch in only 48 hours. Assist. Prof. Dr. Tüzünkan congratulated the award-winning students of the Winter Game Jam and expressed that such events will be held in the future.
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