Build in Godot
Every submission runs in the same open-source engine. Any genre, any art style, any weird idea.
Applications opening soon Online · 72 hours
Same tools.
Same budget.
Wildly different games.
A Godot game jam where every developer gets the same AI stack and the same hard spending limit. What you make—and what you choose not to generate—is the game.
BUILT INGODOTBUDGET CAPPED
01 / THE PREMISE
Not a race to generate the most.
A test of what you choose to make.
Everyone starts with the same engine, approved tools, and a fixed pool of API credit. Your budget becomes a creative material—like time, pixels, or memory.
Spend on code help. Chase one more visual variation. Add a voice. Or hold a reserve for the bug you haven’t met yet.
02
THE RULES
One level
playing field.
The constraints are transparent by design. No mystery metering. No surprise bill. No secret advantage.
Use the jam stack
Code, images, and audio flow through one approved gateway. The playing field stays comparable.
Share one hard cap
Every builder gets the exact same credit. You always see what each request costs.
Ship the receipt
Your public AI build receipt travels with the game—an honest artifact of how it got made.
03
THE TRADEOFF
Your budget is
part of the design.
There’s no optimal split. That’s the point.
Interactive budget lab
Where would you spend your $25?
Pull the sliders. Every choice changes the build receipt—and what makes it into your game.
$16.40 used$8.60 left
Live previewAI BUILD RECEIPT
VerifiedPROJECTUntitled Tiny AdventureGodot 4.x
GPT / Claude20.2 requests$8.40
GPT Image7 generations$5.60
ElevenLabs1.3 minutes$2.40
TOTAL AI SPEND$16.40
Remaining budget$8.60
04 / THE STACK
Powerful tools.
Same access.
Participants get one jam token—not raw provider keys. The gateway meters every request and turns off cleanly at the cap.
Keys stay private. Usage stays visible.
CODE · DESIGN · DEBUG
GPT + Claude
Pair program, reason through systems, tune dialogue, and hunt the last stubborn bug.
ART · UI · TEXTURE
GPT Image
Create source art, explore directions, and make those final missing assets.
VOICE · SFX · AUDIO
ElevenLabs
Give a character a voice—or spend those credits somewhere the player can see.
ENGINE · REQUIRED
Godot
The shared canvas. Open source, capable, and pleasantly opinionated.
05 / THE CATEGORIES
Make something
worth playing.
Best overall game
The strongest complete experience—idea, craft, and play.
Best game under $10
Maximum charm from a beautifully tiny receipt.
Best use of AI budget
The smartest tradeoffs, not simply the most generations.
Best AI-assisted workflow
A process other developers will want to borrow.
Best AI-native mechanic
A mechanic that could only exist with the tool stack.
No. Newcomers and experienced developers compete on the same footing. The approved AI stack can help you learn, but the game and final decisions are yours.
No. Every request flows through the jam gateway using your individual jam token. Provider keys stay server-side, while your usage and remaining credit update live.
The gateway stops billable requests—cleanly and predictably. Your Godot project remains yours, and you can keep working without AI calls until submission.
Not for the submitted build. The point is a level tool-and-budget playing field, so only requests on the official receipt count during the jam window.
SAVE YOUR CREDITS
Ready to make
the hard choices?
Get the jam dates, complete rulebook, approved model list, and the first invite to register.
Your email is stored privately in AWS. No provider keys or third-party ad trackers.