Global Game Jam
This weekend was the Global Game Jam, where people all over the world made games in 48 hours which fit a common theme. Previous years’ themes have been words or short phrases, but this year they took a different approach. This year’s theme was an image, specifically, the Ouroboros. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, and it’s true. The Ouroboros is an ancient symbol from the dawn of civilization, and therefore has many connotations and uses. It is found in alchemy, fiction, and several religions with all sorts of meanings. The Ouroboros can inspire a much wider variety of ideas than a single word like last year’s theme ‘Extinction.’ In my game, Roll, I used the theme twice. In Roll, you play a snake that’s biting its own tail, and you must roll down a hill five times. After the first roll, there is an opponent to defeat. The behavior of the opponent is the second use of the theme, but the specifics are left as an exercise for the player.