[Poll] Extending the 2021 Jam Deadline

[AlexKay]

@maxdigital

I remember pretty early on when thinking about that, it occurred to me that not having direct control would mean certain types of games just wouldn’t work or wouldn’t be very fun. Like, I imagined how any sort of action game requiring the player to quickly react to things onscreen would be inherently less fun to play if you always had to manipulate the characters indirectly.

With all due respect to yourself, this is a misread of the theme I am sorry to say. You can have direct control of a character, just not have them be the only character in the game. To quote Grot:

@grotlover2

1. If there is a character that represents the player they can directly control that. This exception does not apply if that is the only character in the game.

When you think of games in where you are guiding or protecting an NPC, like in an escort mission, I’m sure you can appreciate that the action game genre can indeed fit the theme.

Unfortunately this hasn’t been the first instance of a misinterpretation of this theme, and yet the rules do make it clear, so it’s tricky to draw a clear fault here. Some post-Jam feedback about the theme and developer expectations when entering the Jam will hopefully be illuminating.