Participation, Registration & General Information
No. You do not have to have participated in GGJ or any previous game jam to join.
Yes. As long as the submissions window has not closed, you can still join the jam. You will need to register here.
You do not need a team to join. Many jammers join without a team and find one through the jam Discord channel(s) and/or the jam’s itch.io community board. Solo devs are also allowed.
Yes.
Yes. Submissions submitted by jammers who do not meet the minimum age requirement (18 by Nov. 15, 2026) will be disqualified.
While the annual Global Game Jam in January is an in-person event, this partner jam is fully virtual. The jam will be hosted on itch.io and the Global Game Jam Discord.
Complete the jam registration form here.
Join the itch.io page here to submit your game.
Yes. Each jammer must complete a jam registration form to participate in the jam. itch.io submissions that do not have accompanying jammer registration form may be disqualified.
As part of their entry, jammers who want to be considered for the development funding should include:
- Your Game
- Concept Doc / Initial Game Design Document
- 2-Minute Video
- This should be footage of actual gameplay in your submitted game
- Game Budget
All of this will be shared via the submission via the jam itch.io page.
Pre-Jam Resource and Programming
No. The pre-jam training and resources curated by GGJ and Zoud team are meant to serve as tools to help jammers prepare and be best positioned for success in the jam.
It is expected that teams that choose to engage with pre-event support will be better equipped to create games aligned with the jam goals; however, interaction with these resources/content will not be factored into determining the winning games.
You can access resources on the jam website: https://www.zoud.ae/gamelab/ under the Resources tab or by clicking Resources in the header on this page.
You can find the webinar schedule on the Global Game Jam calendar, the Global Game Jam Discord, the jam’s itch.io community board and the GGJ Luma page. We will also send registered jam participants a weekly email to let you know about new resources and upcoming sessions.
You can find the webinars on the GGJ YouTube channel under the past livestreams. If you want to attend a webinar but the time in not convenient, we recommend registering via the GGJ Luma page as a recording of the session will be sent to all registered participants after the livestream.
Game Development & Asset Policies
Jammers can submit a project the was started outside of the scope of this jam only if the following two conditions are both met:
- The game has been adapted during the jam to fit the financial literacy focus,
- The game has not been submitted to any other previous jams nor otherwise previously released (even for beta testing or early access).
Because a game’s aesthetic is a core part of its brand identity, we encourage using original assets where possible. But recognizing that this is a game jam, the use of free resources and assets is allowed. As with any assets/resources, please ensure that any use is clearly credited and that your use is allowed under the asset license.
Global Game Jam’s general organizational AI policy can be found here. Specific to this partner jam, we will allow the use of AI tools, provided that their use is disclosed as part of the submission.
Participants remain responsible for ensuring that anything they submit complies with intellectual property requirements and that they have the appropriate rights to all assets, code and content used within their game.
When submitting, participants who use generative AI will be asked to indicate whether AI tools were used and which tools were used. The answers to these questions will only be viewable to the judges. GameLab does not want to unnecessarily restrict participants from using tools that are being deployed in the professional games industry, but transparency is important.
All intellectual property rights, title, and ownership in and to the game remain solely with the game’s creator(s).
However, in participating in the partner jam, you create GGJ and Zoud non-exclusive, royalty-free, non-commercial, worldwide license, in perpetuity, to use, display, and promote the submitted game solely in the form in which it was submitted during the jam. This license does not extend to any subsequent versions, updates, or further development of the game beyond the version of the game submitted in relation to this jam. The submitting entrant represents and warrants that, where the game has more than one creator, they have obtained the necessary approval from all creators to grant this license on behalf of the full team.
Submission & Technical Requirements
Yes, as the jam is using itch.io as the submission platform, you will need to create an itch.io page for your game to submit to the jam.
There are no hard and fast rules as to the level of playability required from a submission. However, gameplay will account for a percent of the overall assessment. (The full jam rubric will be made available when the jam launches on Oct. 15.)
Schedule
Oct. 15 at 5 p.m. UTC, following the Zoud GameLab FinLit Jam Kick-Off Livestream, where the jam theme, awards categories and scoring criteria will be announced.
Nov. 15 at 11:59 p.m. AOE. (Please note: The jam officially closes on Nov. 15 at 11:59 p.m. anywhere on earth. Depending on your time zone/where you are based, you may see the jam closure date on the itch.io countdown as Nov. 16.)
Judging & Prizes
The jam scoring criteria and judging rubric will be released on Oct. 15, when the jam officially kicks off.
The jam has a prize pool of up to $140,000 USD that will be shared among the top teams. These funds will be awarded as a combination of cash prizes and milestone-based development funding.
Zoud GameLab will recognize a best overall game, runner-up and third place alongside additional awards recognizing standout financial literacy impact, regional perspective, and compelling gameplay. There will also be a Best Game from the UAE awarded.
More details on the award categories will be unveiled when the jam kicks off on Oct. 15.
Zoud GameLab is open to eligible participants worldwide, subject to the published rules and applicable law. Monetary awards are administered by Global Game Jam (GGJ), a U.S.-based nonprofit, on ZOUD’s behalf. A monetary payment is subject to identity and compliance checks and to applicable U.S., UAE and UN sanctions restrictions and payment-provider requirements. We cannot make a payment where prohibited by law; further verification may delay a payment. Participation or winner selection does not waive these requirements.
Additionally, as stated in the jam terms and conditions, prize recipients are solely responsible for compliance with all applicable legal requirements related to their participation in the Zoud GameLab, and the jam, including the award of any prize or grant, is void where prohibited or restricted by applicable law.
GGJ will administer payments on ZOUD’s behalf, after verification and the required written approvals. Subject to the recipient’s jurisdiction and the provider’s acceptance, payment may be made by eligible bank transfer, ACH or Wise. PayPal may be available for awards of USD 5,000 or less. The stated award is inclusive of applicable bank, transfer and conversion costs as stated in the published terms, so the actual net receipt may be lower. No gift-card or alternative method will be used. Development awards are paid against milestones; Category Prizes are single payments.
You can view the agreement here. As it says on the agreement, please note, this is an advance, near-final draft shared for information only. It may be subject to minor amendments
and becomes binding only upon signature by both parties.
The jam winners will be announced in December 2026.
An overview of the GGJ competitive partner jam judging process can be found here.
The full jam rubric and judging criteria can be viewed here.
No. Each winning team must nominate one verified payee. For an incorporated studio, payment may be made to its verified company account with evidence of authorised signatory. Otherwise, the team must nominate an adult payee by written consent signed by all members entitled to the award, stating the allocation and confirming the payee’s distribution responsibility. GGJ makes one payment after checks and ZOUD’s written disbursement approval.
Proof of age and identity will be required to be able to send funds. We have a secure portal we can use for sharing this documentation.
Proof of age and identity will be required to be able to send funds. We do have a secure portal we can use for sharing this documentation for anyone not comfortable sharing via email. For US citizens, we will require a W-9. For other nationalities, we will require a W8BEN.
More
No. Your submission will be judged based on what you submitted before the jam closed.
In fairness to other jammers, we cannot accept late submissions. We encourage you to build in a buffer to submit before the end of the jam in case you encounter any last-minute issues.
You can ask on the jam Discord channel or reach out to [email protected].