THE 2006 GAME CHEF PROJECT

Just a few important notices before we continue:

1) The Rules: Make sure that you click on the "Rules" section above and are familiar with your responsibilities. This year everyone who participates will be required to read, review and score 4-5 games within two weeks of assignment. If you cannot meet this obligation your entry will be disqualified. You may make more than one game, but for every game you "submit for judging", you will have to review that many more games.

2) The Tools: The Game Chef Mailing List is for important announcements related to the competition. The Game Chef Forums at 1KM1KT are "the place" for discussing your games, ideas, offering feedback, etc. Please log in and make use of them! The information here on this page will not change much during the course of the competition.

3) Can't Play? If you can't participate this year, but you've participated in previous Game Chef events, and just want to help judge, please email me at gamechef ATMARK gmail DOT com and say "I want to help judge!". You'll be asked to review 5 or so games once all submissions have been received. But hey, if you have even a little time free, why not give it a shot anyway?

OK, having said that, here's the Themes and Ingredients for the this Game Chef 2006:

The Theme is TIME.

That is not to say that your game will actually involve any time-travel, history or anything like that. No, rather your game must be completely playable within a certain time limit. Pick up a board game or a computer game and they tend to tell you how long it takes to finish "one game". How long does it take to finish a "campaign" of your game? That's what you'll have to decide. And you will have to build a game that plays out with that time limit in mind.

Time will be represented by SESSIONS and HOURS. You will choose one (and only one) of the following ranges for your game:

1. Your Game is completely playable in 4 Sessions of 2 Hours each.
2. Your Game is completely playable in just 1 Session of 2 Hours.
3. Your Game is completely playable in 3 Sessions of 3 Hours each.
4. Your Game is completely playable in 10 Sessions of 1 Hour each.
5. Your Game is completely playable over any number of sessions, but lasts exactly 8 Hours total.
6. Your Game is completely playable in 2 Sessions of 6 Hours, with exactly two weeks passing between the first and second session.

Decide your time range from the list of six above. Build the game so that it takes both session count into meaningful consideration, and build it so that it's a completely playable experience (from 'character generation' to 'campaign end') within that timeframe.

STEP ONE IS TO CHOSE YOUR TIME RANGE.

 

:

This year's Ingredients are in two "packages". Choose the package that you want to work with. Within that package, pick THREE of the ingredients listed. You must use these ingredients somehow in your game.

PACKAGE ONE:

GLASS

COMMITTEE

ANCIENT

EMOTION

PACKAGE TWO:

LAW

ACTOR

STEEL

TEAM

Again, simply choose one of the packages above, and from that package choose three ingredients.

STEP TWO IS TO CHOSE YOUR THREE INGREDIENTS.

 

 

There is no registration required for your participation. However, please do drop by the forums at 1KM1KT to let us know what you're working on.

Submit your finished game no later than Sunday 19th, 11:59PM EST to gamechef ATMARK gmail DOT com. I'll keep a running total of submissions received at the 1KM1KT forums.

IMPORTANT: When you submit the game, make sure that you put the Timescale and ingredients you used clearly somewhere on the first page of your game (think "Report Cover"). This is a requirement, and it greatly helps the judges determine quickly what they should be looking for.

In the meantime, work on your game, tell us what you're working on, give feedback to others, and get ready to review your peers after the deadline.

STEP THREE IS TO GO! GO! GO!