My name is Malik Altun, and I am a 9th-grade student at 15 Temmuz Şehitler Science High School in Türkiye.
We have a game development club at our school, and my friends and I are very excited about the opportunity to participate in the 2026 Epic AI MegaJam.
We noticed that the official rules require participants to be at least 18 years old. As high school students under 18, we would like to ask whether there is any possibility of participating with parental consent or under the supervision of a teacher.
If official competition entry is not possible, would we be allowed to submit our game outside the prize competition?
We would also appreciate clarification on whether teams based in Türkiye are eligible to participate.
Our main goal is to gain experience, improve our game development skills, and collaborate with other developers.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
Best regards,
Malik Altun
15 Temmuz Şehitler Science High School
Türkiye
You can join from Türkiye and you’re eligible for prizes, as long as you meet the other eligibility requirements in Section 5 of the Official Rules. You can find the latest Official Rules, including a Turkish translation here: Box
You can join from Türkiye and you’re eligible for prizes, as long as you meet the other eligibility requirements in Section 5 of the Official Rules. You can find the latest Official Rules, including a Turkish translation here: Box
Unfortunately, the 2026 Epic AI MegaJam is open only to participants who are 18 or older, and we can’t make exceptions. That includes entering with parental consent, as part of a team with an adult, or without being eligible for prizes.
Thanks again for your interest, and we hope to see your work in the future!
I’ve got a question! In the Itch.io page for the jam, one of the perks listed for the jammers are free AI credits. How does this work? I looked for a “Partners” section in the page but found none. How can we apply for the free credits or are they given after the jam as a prize? Asking just so I could use them during the jam.
Same situation here. Our team joined the jam on itch.io on November 10 and we haven’t received the partner perks email with the codes and claim links. We’ve checked spam.
Could you let us know whether the email will be sent again to people who joined on or after November 10, or how we can request the codes? A few of the offers have close deadlines (SpaceXSI by Nov 15, Hyper3D by Nov 16), so we’d like to claim them before the jam is over.
I joined the jam on itch.io on Nov 11 and didn’t get the Nov 10 partner perk email. Can I still get the codes and claim links (PBRgen, Hyper3D, fal, Anthropic)? Thanks!
Those who signed up today will get an email later today.
Those who signed up before the email was sent, please double-check the email associated with your itch.io account. We did have a few bounces. We will be sending the next email later today.
Russian citizens are eligible to take part in the 2026 Epic AI MegaJam. Neither Russia nor Uzbekistan is a Restricted Jurisdiction, so you can participate from Uzbekistan as long as you meet the other eligibility requirements in Section 5 of the Official Rules.
To receive a cash prize, additional eligibility requirements may apply.
Please use your own discretion to determine which category is correct for you, as the criteria you explained are acceptable for both categories per our rules.
Unfortunately, the 2026 Epic AI MegaJam is open only to participants who are 18 or older, and we can’t make exceptions. That includes entering with parental consent, as part of a team with an adult, or without being eligible for prizes. Thanks again for your interest, and we hope to see your work in the future!
Unfortunately, the 2026 Epic AI MegaJam is open only to participants who are 18 or older, and we can’t make exceptions. That includes entering with parental consent, as part of a team with an adult, or without being eligible for prizes. Thanks again for your interest, and we hope to see your work in the future!
@rhyan.smith will it be ok to use high paced action and gunfights (John Wick style, and fistfights) in the game’s content for this competition or will it take it out of the teen rating?
kindly confirm ASAP
I’m a solo Unreal Engine entrant. Before the jam I made a large library of original, stylized character models that are made from interchangable trash. Trashformers – Welcome to the Trashyverse
I read posts 42 and 57: art I made myself before the jam isn’t a sourced asset, and all art must be made during the jam. I’d like to ask for an exception, not assume one. I don’t need the models scored; I only need to know whether they may appear in my entry.
Is there any exception for an entrant’s own pre-existing original characters (declared, possibly unscored)?
May I use my pre-made pipeline scripts (conversion, mesh optimization, distance models, packaging) as tooling?
I have a non-gameplay data format and loader for saving a character and its history. Tooling, or must I rewrite it during the jam? Same for open-source libraries by others (declared as sourced).
Until you answer, nothing pre-made goes into my project. I have dated SHA-256 checksums of the files from before the start.
Thank you for taking the time to read carefully through the rules.
1. A blank .uproject with only plugins and project settings (no gameplay, levels or assets) is setup, in line with the FAQ’s “set up your tools, agents, and MCP ahead of time.” Declare it in your submission. Creating it on Nov 12 with a pre-written script removes any doubt.
Yes. Content a pre-jam script generates on or after Nov 12 is created during the Contest Period. Declare the script; Epic may ask for it or its version history (§7(h)).
§7(h) says all game content other than the listed tooling, including gameplay, must be made during the jam. Menus, input mappings and save systems are game code, so build them during the jam.
§7(h) lets you prepare AI tools before the jam, so a custom style model or voice setup can likely be prepared ahead and declared. Make sure you have the rights to any reference images or voice data used to train it (§15(a)).
List sourced assets and pre-jam declarations on your itch.io submission page. You can repeat them in the dev log and credits.
Yes. Starter templates and Starter Content are non-original, so list them as sourced assets. Your game also needs custom gameplay beyond the starter templates (§7(e)).
Yes for libraries like Mixamo: they’re non-original and must be listed. Content you generate with AI tools isn’t a sourced asset (§15(c)), but a generator’s pre-made motion library isn’t something you generated, so list it.
Yes. A third-party code plugin is non-original, so list it as a sourced asset.
Yes. The rules don’t set a format; an itch.io devlog post linked from the submission works. It must be submitted with your game during the Contest Period (§10) and be in English (§7(i)).
The rules restrict creating game content before 12:00 AM ET on Nov 12. Thinking and brainstorming after the 2 PM ET theme reveal isn’t building, but keep written design work and AI-generated output to the Contest Period to avoid questions.
Please submit a development build. Package your game for Windows. It must be playable on Windows 10 or 11, macOS, Android, or iOS.
§15(d) bars trademarks, including logos, in Submissions other than the UE logo.
1. You may prepare your AI tools, agent configs, MCP settings, prompt libraries and scripts before Nov 12, while all gameplay, levels and art must be created during the jam.
If you are not a team during the Mega Jam, then you are a Solo Driver.
You may prepare your AI tools, agent configs, MCP settings, prompt libraries and scripts before Nov 12, while all gameplay, levels and art must be created during the jam.