Pitch Creation
Congratulations everyone! As we make it through the last stretch of the Holiday Game Jam, it’s just about time to prepare an offline presentation in order to compliment your Devpost submission, and maximize your chances of standing out!
In case you haven’t read through it already, it is highly recommended to take a look at our Devpost Info & Submission Requirements Document if you’re having any difficulty setting up your main submission.
Submission Requirements
For the Holiday Game Jam, there will be no strict rules for the format or composition of your submission! All projects have their own unique variety of ideas, and many teams may find some formats favourable over others. The instructions in this document serve as mostly a guideline / suggestion, rather than something you must follow with accuracy.
Although you are allowed to use whatever format you want, we highly recommend including a mix of a business-styled pitch, describing your project idea, along with a demo of your program itself, testing out the coolest parts of your program!
Program Demo Recommendations
A program demo is a way to effectively show off your project in action, usually in the form of a short video around the length of 1-3 minutes with an optional voiceover describing what’s going on in your demo. How you choose to create or display your project is entirely up to you! Demos are generally very open-ended, as what you will be showing off completely depends on what you and your team created.
Generally, you will want to showcase the most impressive features of your program, including the design / front-end of your game, usage of algorithms and libraries, as well as actually putting these features out to the test. Just like with project ideas in our Tips & Tricks document, we recommend looking at the demos shown on Past Hackathon Winners if you need inspiration on what you can include in your demo.
Alternatives
In case you may be unable to record a video for your demo, you can instead include instructions on how to run your program in the pitch! Make sure to list the key features of your program and where such features can be found on your program. If your program has specific requirements that may need to be met in order to be run, make sure to include them!
What if my game has bugs or isn’t complete?
If you were unable to fully finish up a working product, that’s okay! As an alternative to a program demo, feel free to talk more in depth in your pitch about functionality you may have been planning to add, with pictures of your program if possible, and you’ll still be able to get partial points for all of the categories.
Business Pitch Recommendations
A business pitch is essentially a way of presenting what your project is all about in an organized and effective manner. Although your pitch can be of whatever length of your choice and consist of however many ideas you like, here are some strongly recommended suggestions to include on your pitch!
Introduction
First and foremost, you want to introduce your main idea in your presentation. Write a brief explanation on what your game is about, and some of its core features!
Gameplay
As with every game you see and play, it is important to clearly showcase why your game stands out from the rest, what is unique about it and why others should play your game!
Inspiration
What actually inspired you to make your game? Quite often, even if you may not realize it at first, ideas come from situations you may experience or see others experience in your day-to-day life. Talk about what you’re really passionate about and wanted to create with your game!
Presentation Format
It is important to note that Devpost automatically includes a section where you can talk in detail about your project idea, including a nice template containing many of the key suggestions on what you should include. For the Holiday Game Jam, you are free to either write your pitch on a separate document, such as a Google Slides presentation, or include all the information directly on your Devpost submission details itself. If you plan on incorporating images along with your pitch, it is recommended to use a separate document rather than having all the information on your Devpost submission.