Game developers with a passion for cats are being invited to take part in a Game Jam this Autumn.
Organised by leading feline welfare charity Cats Protection and Payload Studios via its Tentacle Zone initiative, the Game Jam takes place from 9th – 19th October and challenges developers to come up with a cat welfare-themed game following one of multiple themes to be announced on October 9th.
Entrants will receive free resources containing further details and game developers will be available via Discord to give feedback and discuss progress on games.
After the event finishes, the games will be shared with streamers fundraising on behalf of Cats Protection and they will help a panel of judges to select the best games, which will then be made available as free-to-play games on itch.io.
The streamers belong to Cats Protection’s online community, Pawsome Players, which has raised around £37,000 so far to help unwanted cats through gaming marathons and streaming live content.
“This Game Jam is a great opportunity to reach the UK’s cat lovers with a fun and educational game that hopefully they will want to play again and again”, said Donna Forster, Cats Protection’s Senior Direct Marketing Officer.
“Around one in four adults owns a cat, so a good game which catches the imagination could help game developers to make a name for themselves and grow their online communities.
“The successful games will also help to improve the welfare of the nation’s 10.9 million pet cats, which is one of Cats Protection’s charitable aims, so we hope developers see it as a cause that is worth supporting and get their thinking caps on to devise a successful game.”
“We welcome working with a charity that is as impactful and dedicated as Cats Protection, says Russ Clarke, CEO of Payload Studios. “We are happy to offer our support and provide feedback to help game developers aid a cause that might be close to them.”
• For further details and to register, please visit https://www.cats.org.uk/support-us/pawsome-players/gamejam
Cats Protection is the UK’s leading cat charity, helping around 200,000 cats every year through a network of around 230 volunteer-run branches and 37 centres.
The founder of downthetubes, which he established in 1998. John works as a comics and magazine editor, writer, and on promotional work for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He is currently editor of Star Trek Explorer, published by Titan – his third tour of duty on the title originally titled Star Trek Magazine.
Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine, Babylon 5 Magazine, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics. He has also edited several comic collections, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”.
He’s the writer of “Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies” for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs” with Dave Hailwood.
Categories: downthetubes News, Games, Other Worlds
Ark: The Animated Series debuts in North America on Paramount+, ahead of international release 
Comic artist Vivian Truong is this year’s World Book Day illustrator 
RapidEyeMovers announce brand-new games festival, ‘Humanise’, in Kendal 
Tintin Reporter – Cigars of the Pharaoh game launched