I'm exited to take part in the next Ludem Dare in two weeks time, and so thought I'd give myself a mini-challenge to make a game within 2 days as practice. I often find that even projects I intend to be short often end up being stretched out and unfinished, so setting myself such a short goal really helped get the project done.

Here are my 3 best tips I could give from what I learn that I think are vital to ensure you can successfully finish a game jam on time:

1. Gamemaker is bad at GUIs. I had essentially finished the 'game' part of my development before I realised I needed a menu so my game didn't just immediately start on-boot. GM is not great at GUIs, and so simpler is better in my opinion. I think you could pre-plan a very simple menu that would apply to 99% of game jam entries, that don't require a mid-jam panic when you realise you need one. Have a plan!
2. Cover your weaknesses. I am a programmer by nature so I did that to the best of my ability and then used royalty free assets for music and art. Whilst I can make some mediocre art and music, I am still a beginner and so it takes me far too long to produces theses assets in the timeframe of a game jam but comparatively little time to program! Or be a part of a team if you can!
3. Keep the scope small. I used a rule of 3. 3 difficulties. 3 enemy types. 3 weapon types. A game jam entry can always be expanded afterwards if you wish, but its a good chance to get your core ideas down, see if people enjoy them. If people really like it - it may be a good idea to carry on the project. If not, learn from the feedback and move onto the next iteration or project!

Here's a link to my little challenge project. If you would like to give me some feedback, it would be highly appreciated as it will help me improve for ludem dare 46!