2015: NaNoWinter, SuNoFes, Yuri Game Jam

[Alte]

NanoWinter
An "experimental" jam.

itch.io gamelist

Lightyear. (itch.io) by chromebookbob

Pink by VAPMichaelaLaws

The Walk [Psychological] by OokamiKasumi, Play-Tested & Proofread by the magnificent AntiquedFae

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SuNoFes
SuNoFes is a Summer Novel Festival for both developers and players alike to read visual novels and interactive fictions.

itch.io complete gamelist | Discussion thread

A Day in the Life of a Slice of Bread by sasquatchii | itch.io

Cerulean by Pink Pomeranian Parade - WiP | itch.io

For Ambergris [Linear][SuNoFes][Fantasy] by Sleepy Agents - WiP | itch.io

Kusoge by z04 - WiP | itch.io

Les Contes Magiques: Marie Lévesque (Demo) by chocojax - WiP | itch.io

Must Love Jaws by Katy133 - WiP | itch.io
14 Things About Must Love Jaws

The Life Threads [KN][Desert Adventure] by Heiden | itch.io

Until Eleven - [GXB] [Mystery] [Thriller] [Romance] (itch.io) by seventhstranger - WiP

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YuriJam
The jam is two months long, from September 1st to October 31st.

itch.io complete gamelist | Discussion thread

The Sad Story of Emmeline Burns by Ebi-Hime - WiP | itch.io

Written in the Sky by UnwontedStudios | itch.io | Steam

Melos by Skarn (Text), Katta (Sprites), Anne (GUI), and for all other credits - WiP | itch.io | github
Postmortem | Chapter 1: Envy | Chapter 2: Sloth | Chapter 3: Pride | Chapter 4: Anger | Chapter 5: To do what must be done | Chapter 6: Aftermath | Chapter 7: In the end

A Wild Catgirl Appears! by NewWestGames | itch.io

VC: Simple Answers by AfterEffect Visual Novels | itch.io

Princesses's Maid by toki production | itch.io

Lily Seed (itch.io) by peppertsuki

[Holland]

I think two weeks would be the perfect amount of time for a mini VN challenge. It's a great excuse to just /finish something/ for those of us who are just starting out but can't afford to spare a whole month for NaNoRenO.

Considering its length, why couldn't it be done twice year? I.e. - once in the summer and once in the winter. That'll let students who are busy in the winter participate during the summer or seasonal workers who're busy during the summer do it in the winter, etc.

[Ran08]

This would be really cool idea! Both my released works were actually done in a week, haha, and even though the time pressure was hard, it was super duper duper fuuuun. Hahaha. I definitely vote for this!

[Alte]

Seems reasonable to have one for the summer and one for the winter.

Hmm, how about the "1st of July" and "15th of January" sound?

[Hazel-Bun]

Sounds good ^^ My only fully released VNs were also done under similar restraints. Would it be themed like a jam entry? Or just open like NaNoRenO became?

[Holland]

Hmm, how about the "1st of July" and "15th of January" sound?

That seems reasonable. Most schools are out by July, and the 15th of Jan is far enough into the month that it should avoid the holiday season backlash.

[Alte]

It's open like NaNoRenO became. I added mockup guidelines for the two events in the thread. Good to know there's not much of a conflict within the holidays.

[Anne]

I don't really like the idea of more short-term events as I feel they give people "a great excuse" to be lazy while there's nothing to encourage hard work and quality. And as a player I'd like to see more of the latter instead of short KNs no one bothers reading anymore.

[Holland]

I don't really like the idea of more short-term events as I feel they give people "a great excuse" to be lazy while there's nothing to encourage hard work and quality. And as a player I'd like to see more of the latter instead of short KNs no one bothers reading anymore.

That's like saying you don't want anyone to write a short story because it's not encouraging them to write a novel, or not to draw a sketch because it's not encouraging them to create a painting. It's hard to just jump into writing a full novel, and if you've never sat down and written a short story to the end beforehand, the chances of you ever finishing that novel with it being a decent quality are slim to nil. The same goes with art. Most people can't just jump into painting a masterpiece when they've never bothered finishing a quick sketch. And, guess what? That applies to visual novels all the same.

The purpose is just to help designers get over those first bumps of 'finishing a game'. Not to mention that it's good practice and practice makes perfect. Whether or not you'd want to play the games that come out of it has no impact on its results.

[Alte]

I don't really like the idea of more short-term events as I feel they give people "a great excuse" to be lazy while there's nothing to encourage hard work and quality. And as a player I'd like to see more of the latter instead of short KNs no one bothers reading anymore.

How about a compromise, why not make one as a entire season requiring collaboration or one person not by finishing instead to ensure quality at it's fullest of three months. (Summer or Fall) I don't think everyone has the capability to make a visual novel in one month. (March, either work or education) I guess that's part of the challenge. Of course there's NaNoWriMo which takes place in Fall. For making a visual novel, it should take be different from the original processor. A second variation may serve that purpose.

[Anne]

That's like saying you don't want anyone to write a short story because it's not encouraging them to write a novel, or not to draw a sketch because it's not encouraging them to create a painting.

The thing is that with doing sketches everyone (probably?) knows that it's just practice for something greater. While here we have this idea of "finishing anything for the sake of just finishing" that I feel is somehow wrong (why do people present their projects with "I know this is bad but I've done it in 3 hours" instead of doing something meaningful and being proud of it?). And yeah, that's just my personal opinion (and an unpopular one). Mostly I was just suggesting to think wouldn't it be nice to have a different type of event with a different goal (sure, easier said than done, I doubt just allowing more time is enough)

[Alte]

Well, I figure that I should host these short-term events in a thread from General Discussion. That way I'm not flooding entries into "new games list."

Perhaps having a different theme for each event would be nice, since it prevents participants from getting a head start.

[Hazel-Bun]

Yeah an optional theme would be nice. I don't agree short deadlines = bad work. And, who cares if no one else reads it? I doubt many have read the jam entries I've released (like White Fog which I made a full GUI for, bgs, a cg, tons of sprites, and has multiple endings along with Haze) but, they're my proudest accomplishments VN wise ! I like the naming scheme and yeah, one thread would be cool. We could all post in it and once the deadline was over, a "formal" list with links could be added to the first post? And, every year just keep adding to it?

[Alte]

I'll make this jam a bit laid-back like adding an extra week, I won't labeled them as late entries on the list.
The theme's made to be optional for those who couldn't think up an idea for their story. I like the idea of adding post links to main thread, if I heard correctly. Yep, every year adding on to it. That way it should be easy to navigate.

[fioricca]

Oh gosh, Nano Winter and Nano Summer are such cute ideas! They're like Natsucomi or Fuyucomi. I like the idea of shorter jams like this as month-long jams like NaNoRenO are beyond me -- I simply don't have the time for those anymore. But a fortnight (or maybe even a week, since most of the jams I participated in last year were pretty much week-long or weekend jams) sounds really good. I also like the idea of specific themes; perhaps we could even vote on themes the way Ludum Dare does it.

Where will the games submitted be hosted? Will there be a hosting place like other game jams such as Nar8 or the Public Domain Jam? You'd also ideally need to create a few threads -- one for recruitment (like how we find NaNo partners-in-crime) or brainstorming, one for WIP and one for formal submissions, right? Or am I misunderstanding the format?

January is always a bit of a busy month for me so I might not be able to make it, but July sounds awesome. Perhaps the date could be switched around each time so that we always start on a Friday/Saturday/Sunday and end on the exact same day? Starting a jam in the middle of the week is kinda hard.

Either way, best of luck with planning, and I look forward to seeing what comes out of this.