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professionals. They often participate at the event with their own equipment and supplies. Most attendees are adults, although some exceptions have been made for teenagers. Jammers enlist either solo or in teams. Some enlist as graphics or sound "floaters," lending their skills to a number of different teams, who sign up for their services on a waiting list. While the majority of participants attend the event in person, recent jams have accommodated virtual jammers, due to space limitations and geographical distance. Attendees are not limited to those from
Toronto and have included Americans and Finnish participants.
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A follow-up event, the TOJam Arcade, is scheduled a month or more after the main TOJam event. Unlike the Sunday night showcase that is mainly intended for the jammers themselves, this event is open to the public. Scheduling allows jammers to fine-tune their games before presenting them to consumers,
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Unlike other development events, TOJam is not a competition, but rather a period where game developers can focus their attention on a single project, with the goal of producing a finished, playable game by the end of the weekend. From the official kick-off Friday evening, jammers have 48 hours to
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TOJam is a live event that takes place over the course of a single weekend from Friday to Sunday, although some events have offered developers earlier access starting
Thursday. Participants are called "jammers" and come from a variety of backgrounds, including hobbyists, students, and
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standards. These "winning" games receive priority placement on the TOJam website, even though the goal of the event is to facilitate completed games and to encourage unity across the
Toronto game development community.
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In the second, third, and fourth TOJam, a vote was held after the arcade section to decide the winners of the People's Choice awards. This was discontinued after the fourth TOJam.
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each spring, usually the first weekend in May. The event is named for the common abbreviation for
Toronto ("T.O."), and the term for an impromptu performance ("
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103:" The first TOJam event was held in May 2006. Among the organizers/co-founders were Emilie McGinley, Jim McGinley, Rob Segal and Nelson Yu.
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community boards as a way to get more local game development, in an attempt to retain talent. The first TOJam occurred in 2006.
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Each year, TOJammers are strongly encouraged to include a number of elements into their games. These elements have included:
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When the
Toronto Game Jam began, Toronto was not a recognized city for game development, as it was overshadowed by
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complete their games before displaying them in an informal Sunday night showcase at the event's close.
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At each Arcade event, attendees vote for their favorite games, which are awarded Gold, Silver, and
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had settled. The event was first suggested by Nelson Yu, a developer-turned-writer, in the
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a picture of a goat on a pole, which may be rendered in a style of the developer's choosing
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697:"Ninth time's a charm: Toronto's Independent Game Jam closes in on a decade this weekend"
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rather than creators, and it's usually held at a bar or pub in downtown
Toronto.
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966:"Games 2010 | Toronto Game Jam 2010 2009 | Indie Game Independent | TOJam"
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674:"Game Developers Fight Deadlines and Fatigue at TOJam 7"
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BlogTO - TOJam #4: Not In Your Mom's
Basement (NIYMB))
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149:indicating that the game was made at TOJam
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944:"Games 2009 | Toronto Game Jam | TOJam"
915:"Games 2008 | Toronto Game Jam | TOJam"
618:"Games 2006 | Toronto Game Jam | TOJam"
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432:TOJam: Fourteen Favours the Bold (#14)
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747:"Toronto's Tastiest Homemade Game Jam"
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643:"Toronto's Tastiest Homemade Game Jam"
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886:"Games 2007: Toronto Game Jam: TOJam"
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563:Benny Hinn's Bible Blast for Cash
435:Planned for 2019, never occurred.
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415:TOJam: Flirteen with Danger (#13)
729:Torontoist - Ankle Deep in TOJam
695:Kaszor, Daniel (25 April 2014).
514:TOJam: Talk About Fourshadowing
672:Lissner, Rachel (14 May 2012).
398:TOJam: What Twelves Below (#12)
381:TOJam: Don't Stop Beleven (#11)
330:TOJam: Haters Gonna Eight' (#8)
770:RGB Filter - 2010 TOJam Arcade
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347:Party like it's 19TOJam9 (#9)
718:The Grid - Weekend Warriors
466:TOJam: Feels Like a Re-run
176:, where major studios like
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641:Woo, Jaime (20 May 2011).
498:TOJam 2023: We Lost Count
404:Prepare for Disappointment
387:There Will Be Consequences
745:Torontoist (2011-05-20).
520:It's supposed to do that
482:TOJam: All Twogether Now
449:TOJam: Hindsight is 2020
313:TOJam: The Sevening (#7)
549:People's Choice Silver
364:TOJam: Tentacular (#10)
574:a game about bouncing
319:The world's NOT ending
81:game development event
16:Game development event
552:People's Choice Puce
546:People's Choice Gold
421:Winning is for Losers
370:It's All Come to This
296:TOJam Sixy Times (#6)
976:on 28 December 2021.
954:on 28 December 2021.
156:subway doors closing
85:George Brown College
925:on 22 January 2022.
684:on 8 December 2021.
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302:What just happened?
152:a recording of the
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455:Together But Apart
95:"), borrowed from
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350:April 25–27, 2014
137:Required elements
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972:. Archived from
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649:. Archived from
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485:May 13–15, 2022
469:May 14–16, 2021
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120:The TOJam Arcade
77:Toronto Game Jam
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20:Toronto Game Jam
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316:May 11–13, 2012
299:May 13–15, 2011
206:Playable Games
178:Electronic Arts
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107:Event Structure
89:Toronto, Canada
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418:May 4–8, 2018
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401:May 5–7, 2017
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384:May 6–8, 2016
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367:May 1–3, 2015
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336:Uncooperative
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333:May 3–5, 2013
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147:splash screen
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79:is an annual
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861:. Retrieved
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622:www.tojam.ca
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60:Jim McGinley
863:4 September
657:29 February
588:Category 5
756:2020-02-29
751:Torontoist
678:Torontoist
647:Torontoist
627:2020-02-29
604:References
353:After YOU!
203:Attendance
50:Key people
1006:Game jams
854:"History"
585:TOJam #4
577:debugger
571:TOJam #3
557:TOJam #2
170:Vancouver
63:Rob Segal
1000:Category
705:Archived
591:Flock U
342:Unknown
325:Unknown
279:TOJam #5
262:TOJam #4
245:TOJam #3
228:TOJam #2
211:TOJam #1
174:Montreal
101:toe jam.
83:held at
25:Location
566:Quiver
285:Missing
182:Ubisoft
164:History
33:Toronto
543:Event
531:Awards
251:Cheese
39:Canada
970:TOJam
948:TOJam
919:TOJam
890:TOJam
858:TOJam
517:2024
501:2023
268:Scale
200:Theme
194:Event
73:TOJam
865:2024
659:2020
560:Xiq
506:321
490:298
474:432
458:470
444:N/A
441:N/A
438:N/A
427:139
424:625+
410:102
407:450+
390:450+
376:100
373:450+
359:105
356:450+
339:450+
322:400+
305:260+
197:Date
186:IGDA
180:and
172:and
130:Puce
97:jazz
509:62
493:65
477:93
461:94
393:89
308:57
291:57
288:196
274:37
257:34
254:125
240:26
234:N/A
223:10
217:N/A
154:TTC
93:jam
87:in
75:or
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220:35
145:a
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