Annual Edition 2026

About the Jam

RPG Maker has spawned many great horror games and now it's time to create games in the style of these classics! You are welcome to join this jam no matter if you are a beginner or an experienced developer, so long as you want to create a game inspired by traditional RPG Maker horror games. Hopefully, at the end of the game jam you will have something playable you can be proud of!

You can also join the jam'sDiscord server! (https://discord.gg/Fdeh3hBtYu)

For this game jam, you can select one of the following three Themes, with associated optional Bonus Challenges:

Theme 1:Heaven's Wrath

_There are many stories of mortals falling afoul of the divine and having to face its wrath, be this for an act of great evil they committed, or whatever else the divinity in question deems as sacrilege. The protagonist of your game will likely be in the role of one such 'sinner' marked for punishment, being hunted by celestial beings such as angelic avengers wielding flaming swords or similar._

_It does not matter if they are truly guilty of the crimes they are being hunted for or not. Heaven's Wrath is upon them, in whatever form you imagine it. And it's up to them to deal with it!_

Bonus Challenges

**1)****Fall from Grace:**The game's story features a formerly revered person or being that many used to look up to, having since fallen from grace and been cast down due to their failures and/or misdeeds.

**2)****Avenging Angel:**The protagonist is hunted by some angelic entity that wants to punish them for something.

**3)****Seeking Forgiveness:**There's a scene in the game where the protagonist asks someone to forgive them for something.

Theme 2: Dark Streets

Night falls upon the city and darkness fills its narrow alleys and various abandoned places which people tend to avoid. Behind every corner, there lurk many dangers, both mundane and supernatural. And people who wander in there after dark tend to end up going missing under suspicious circumstances.

It seems like it's time for someone to investigate just what is happening there. And the protagonist of your game will be just the person for the job at hand. They could be a police officer who stumbles upon something strange during a routine patrol, a detective whose latest case leads them to the darkest parts of the city, a private investigator hired to locate a missing person, an investigative reporter chasing a story or just an ordinary resident who wound up in trouble through bad luck or their own curiosity. Even someone entirely different.

The exact details are up to you, as you begin working on a game set on the Dark Streets!

Bonus Challenges

**1)****Urban Horror:**The game takes place in some urban area, for example within a big city or a large town.

**2)****Serve And Protect:**The protagonist is a police officer or a detective.

**3)****Chains That Bind You:**There's a part in the game where the protagonist has to escape from some kind of restraints (being tied to a chair, handcuffed etc.)

Theme 3: Family Secret

Every family has their secrets, but this particular one might be better off left buried. Still, the protagonist of your game has decided to uncover it and dove deep in search of clues that will lead towards finding out what their family is hiding. A secret so horrific that they'd most likely be better off not knowing. Worse yet, their search for the truth might even prove to be dangerous, as other family members might be willing to do anything to ensure this secret stays hidden.

As for you, your task is to create a game about the protagonist's efforts to uncover this dreadful Family Secret!

Bonus Challenges

**1)**Home Video: There's a part in the game where the protagonist watches some kind of footage/video about past events that relate to their family. This segment may or may not be playable.

**2)**Lost And Forgotten: At some point in the game, the protagonist finds something they lost a long time ago.

**3)****Combination Lock Puzzle:**The game includes some kind of puzzle where the player has to find the right combination to open something.

RULES AND FAQ:

When can I start working on my game? You can only start working on the actual game project after the jam's submission period starts, but you can start planning and creating/gathering assets and other resources before that time.

The only exception is if you want to submit a finished/expanded version of a game which was previously submitted to another one of our RPG Maker Horror Game Jams. In that case, you can start working on it even before this game jam starts, but these games still have to fit at least one of the three themes chosen for the current annual jam. When you submit a previous jam entry to this jam, make sure to make a note on the game page which other RPG Maker Horror Game Jam the game was originally submitted to.

Is it allowed to use premade assets? This is a casual game jam, so premade assets are allowed and you can reuse some code from past projects if you want. However, don't go overboard with it. In order to comply with the spirit of the jam, the bulk of the work on your game should be done during the game jam itself.

Can I use engines other than RPG Maker to make my game? Games made in any version of RPG Maker or similar engines are preferred, but you can use other game engines. However, in that case, additional limitations apply.

What does that mean? If you use RPG Maker or an engine similar to it (such as WOLF RPG Editor) to make your game, then you are free to just make a horror game. It doesn't matter if it's a puzzle game, a dark fantasy RPG or a Visual Novel made with a ton of custom plugins. All is fine and well, so long as it's a horror game or at least features significant horror elements.

If you use a more "heavy-duty" engine such as Unity, Godot or Unreal Engine, then you need to make sure your game "keeps to the spirit of RPG Maker Horror Games". This is very open to interpretation and is judged on a case-by-case basis. Your game should most likely be 2D and top-down/side-view at the very least. The assumption is that if you are using a different engine, you are already familiar with RPG Maker-style Horror Games and how they normally are. We tend to give people the benefit of the doubt when it comes to this.

Are AI-generated assets allowed? AI-generated assets are allowed, if you disclose their use on the game's project page. This applies even if these originally AI-generated assets are later edited by you.

That said, this is only a requirement if there are any AI-generated assets in your game. It doesn't apply if you've used AI-generated images as inspiration or if you've simply asked ChatGPT for coding advice, for example.

Can I team up with other people for the jam? Yes, you can form a team. There's no limit to the amount of team members your team can have. You can also work on multiple games or be a part of multiple different teams.

Does my game jam submission have to be a horror game? Your game has to be a horror game or at least contain significant horror elements. It doesn't need to be outright scary, so long as it can even remotely be considered one.

We tend to give games the benefit of the doubt when it comes to this, so don't worry about it too much.

Can I submit an incomplete game? This is a game jam, incomplete games are totally fine and expected. You are encouraged to work on your game even during the Rating Period.

Can my game contain depictions of brutal violence, gore etc.? Follow itch.io's Terms of Service (https://itch.io/docs/legal/terms)and tag your game appropriately. We also advise all jam submitters to include content warnings in their games whenever it seems necessary.

Does my game have to follow the Theme I chose out of the three possible ones? You need to incorporate one of the three Themes from the current jam into your game in some way. It's completely up to you how you interpret the Theme, so long as it's obvious that you've at least made an effort to follow it. We aren't too strict with it and creative interpretations are encouraged.

Are the Bonus Challenges optional? Yes, the Bonus Challenges are totally optional and serve mostly to guide people who need that extra guidance. It's up to you if you decide to implement them or not.

Does my game jam submission have to be free? There has to be some kind of free version of your game made available for the duration of the both this game jam's submission period and also its rating period. It could be a free demo version or the game itself being made free for a limited time. This requirement no longer applies after the game jam ends.

Is it possible to submit a game to the jam after the Submission Period ends? This jam accepts late submissions during the Rating Period. A Late Submission Thread will be set up in the jam's Community tab once the submission period ends. Anyone who wants to submit their game to the jam after the submission period ends will have to put a link to their game's project page in said thread and will receive a reply with a Submission Link that will allow them to submit their game to the jam.

After the Rating Period ends, the Community tab will be closed and no further late submissions will be accepted.

Are there any other rules I should know about?

1. Follow itch.io's Terms of Service (https://itch.io/docs/legal/terms).
2. Follow the Terms of Use of any assets you use in your game.
3. Have fun!

Art by:Broody Gaming (https://broodygaming.itch.io/)