Nintendo’s GameBoy may not seem like much today in terms of functionality, but you better believe that 25 years ago, it was a technical marvel. Oh, and it had some amazing titles too, like Super Mario Land and Tetris; the latter of which I’m sure you’re familiar with. Where am I going with all this Well… it’s time to craft a brand new GameBoy-themed game, for the third GBJam!
So for those not familiar with its design, we’re talking about a 4-color 160×144 device here, meaning that your creation must fit within those parameters. That said, making the game run at x2 or x3 scaling is not only allowed but highly recommended, so players won’t have a hard time telling objects apart (most sit at a comfortable distance from the screen, after all).
You can use a different set of 4 colors when moving to another screen, similar to Pokemon R/B/Y. Alpha transparency, anti-alias, fading and gradients create unwanted colors, and so are not allowed.
While the original mostly utilized greenish shades of grey, you have a bit more freedom for this jam, as stated in the above quote (from the GBJam 3 FAQ). Not entirely sure what retrostark (organizer) means by that Pokemon bit though, as it’s been too long. But I doubt anyone’s gonna be discontent, should you choose to simply use a green-ish palette. That is after all how the early games on the system looked – that much I do remember!
So if you feel like participating, well, head on over to the website for a quick “what’s what” and… get to game-making! Jam’s well underway, but there’s plenty of time as the deadline isn’t until August 10th. Ain’t no blast like a blast from the past.
