This year’s University of Malta Faculty of ICT Game Jam brought together more than 50 students for a focused weekend of collaboration and hands-on development. Running between 5 and 7 December, the event created a live production setting where participants worked under tight timelines, tested ideas quickly, and translated concepts into working prototypes. The theme centred on road safety and good driving habits, giving students a clear brief while still allowing space for creative interpretation.
Teams built their projects using Unity and Unreal Engine, two key tools in the faculty’s teaching programme. The pace was constant, with students moving from early sketches to functional builds in a matter of hours. You could see ideas shift as teams refined mechanics, solved problems, and responded to real production pressures.
GamingMalta supported the Game Jam as part of its ongoing commitment to strengthening Malta’s talent base and widening access to practical learning opportunities. Each edition helps emerging creators gain experience that matches the expectations of the digital gaming sector while building stronger links within the community.
The winning project, Look Both Ways, used a fox-rescue concept to highlight road safety, asking players to navigate busy streets while guiding lost animals to safety. It captured the theme clearly while showing thoughtful design choices and teamwork.
Events like this speak to the direction of Malta’s growing ecosystem. Students walk away with new skills, new contacts, and a sharper understanding of how different disciplines come together in game development. GamingMalta is proud to support this work and looks forward to seeing how these experiences shape the next steps for the participants and for the wider sector.
