This academic year, we decided to run two student game jams and we have been blown away by how high the bar has been set. For this second game jam of the academic year, Ukie Students partnered with Digital Schoolhouse and WaterAid by linking the theme to the recent international Mobo Game Jam.
With 150+ students participating in this game jam, it was always going to be very competitive. The jam, which took place during the London Games Festival on the 22nd and 23rd of March tasked Ukie’s student game jammers with creating compelling games to raise awareness and find a solution to a lack of clean water in developing countries.
Check out all of the entries from this student game jam here
Before the winning team is revealed, Ukie would like to take a moment to thank Epic Games, Hi-Rez Studios, WaterAid, and Digital Schoolhouse for supporting this year's game jam. We'd also like to thank EA, Konami, Codemasters, Glitchers, Team17, Mediatonic, Dovetail Games & Bungie Studios for providing amazing video game prizes for the winning team. Finally, Ukie would also like to say thank you to the mentors who took time out of their busy lives and schedules to guide student teams through this process. Ukie students are extremely grateful for your support.
So, who won?
Winners!
The judges had their work cut out for them yet again. Every team took a completely unique approach to the theme and there were some incredible final submissions. But, in the words of Highlander, "there can be only one". So, the winner of this year's jam is..
Team Name: Mischievous
Game Title: The Juniper and the Drought
Educational Institute: Norwich University of the Arts
Submissions Page: https://charlieclarkdev.itch.io/ukie-mobo-jam-mischievous
With their second win of the academic year, team Mischievous is certainly one to watch. The talent displayed is truly impressive and their consistency is to be applauded. Congratulations to Charlie Clark, Charlotte Beale, Ben Tyreman, Jordan Eady, Conor Cliffe & Beth Murcott.
Social Champion Award
But while there could be only one winner for the game jam itself, we wanted to create another prize to recognise the unique circumstances of this competition.
With the event taking place remotely across the country, Ukie created this award to ensure that students felt part of a collective and inclusive event. The Social Champion Award applauds the team that drives the most engagement on Twitter during the game jam. We were once again amazed at the levels of engagement #MoboJam received. The use of #MoboJam drove thousands of impressions, hundreds of engagements, and tweets directed at the event.
This year's Social Champion Award winners are Blink.inc from Staffordshire University, delivering some truly entertaining content whilst also looking to engage with other teams through likes, comments, and retweets. The sole purpose of this award is to make this feel like a collective event, which they truly encompassed.
The Ukie Student Game Jam will return in 2021/2022 academic year. Well done to everyone that took part in a student game jam this year. Follow Ukie Students for updates or get in contact with Leon to find out how your business can get involved.