Superjammers motivations and experiences of exceptional game jammers in Finland

In this paper, we present the findings of a study on the motivations and experiences of exceptional game jam participants in Finland. These “superjammers” have had experience on jamming at over 20 game jam events online or with physical locations, such as Global Game Jam and Ludum Dare. The jammers in this study reported how game jams have been important platforms of learning for them: they have not only learned technical skills, but also reported improvements in their workflows and various specific issues. From the initial curiosity towards game jams as a challenge, these jammers have later discovered multiple benefits of the events ranging from general enjoyment of creating games to social factors and keeping up their competences as game developers. In this paper, the notion of “superjammers” as a short for exceptional game jam participants is further explored and the lessons of the study is used for planning the next steps of the research into exceptionality in game jam participation.