Birmingham City University (BCU) recently hosted Global Game Jam 2026, delivering a public, inclusive event that welcomed both BCU students and external participants from the wider games, digital, and creative communities across Birmingham and beyond. The weekend brought together 120 participants, reinforcing BCU’s commitment to employability, collaboration, and civic engagement.
Global Game Jam is the world’s largest game-creation event, taking place simultaneously at hundreds of locations worldwide. Participants form interdisciplinary teams and work intensively over a single weekend to design, build, and publish a playable video game in response to a shared global theme. This model embodies STEAM education, bringing together science, technology, engineering, the arts, and mathematics within a single collaborative creative process. The rapid, industry-aligned format mirrors professional development environments, encouraging innovation, teamwork, and problem-solving under real-world constraints.
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The 2026 theme, “Mask”, prompted creative exploration of identity, performance, and hidden systems through interactive design. Across the weekend, 25 original games were created and published to the official Global Game Jam platform, demonstrating both technical capability and creative ambition.
Following a competitive judging process, the overall winning game was Raccoon, Paper, Scissors, recognised for its strong art style and technical execution while clearly responding to the event theme. A number of runner-up prizes and honourable mentions were also awarded, celebrating excellence across a range of development disciplines.
Reflecting on the event, Nathan Dewell, Senior Lecturer and Course Leader for Game Technology at BCU, said:
"Global Game Jam is our flagship annual event. It brings together students and members of the public in a shared creative space that reflects how games are made professionally. It embodies STEAM education, encouraging collaboration across disciplines, while helping participants develop vital employability skills including communication, rapid prototyping, and creative problem-solving. Just as importantly, it’s a chance for students to step outside their usual routines, enjoy a creative weekend with friends, and remember why they love making games in the first place.”
Global Game Jam forms a key part of Birmingham City University’s approach to industry-aligned learning, offering students authentic development experiences while strengthening links between the university, local creative communities, and the global games industry.