I gotta hop on a plane in the morning but I didn't want to leave without wrapping up Stencyl Jam 2014, which has been HARD because there are so many great and deserving entries this year! I enlisted AdventureIslands to help out since he's a Stencyl Master and didn't make a game this time around.

1st Place - $500 + Stencyl Studio License

Spiderling is downright beautiful, with a slick web mechanic that takes some practic but it's worth it to see all this game has to offer.



2nd Place - $300 + Stencyl Studio License

Koan has a great zen vibe and fresh mechanics. Felt like a different sort of platforming experience overall.



3rd Place - $200 + Stencyl Studio License

In this gravity platformer, you don't jump but you can change gravity between four directions at any time. I've played a number of gravity-themed games but this one felt different from the rest. I really enjoyed the level design, the art, and little touches of game feel as I moved about. Can be frustrating as hell but people who like a challenge will love this, especially trying to get all three stars in each stage.



4th Place - $100

D-Pression has an effective visual and aural presentation. The darkness truly feels like a malevolent force that must be avoided, and the level design makes it all the more sinister. The music also works really well, with a seamless segue whenever you fail.



Congrats to the winners!

If any of you guys have a Studio License already and want to pass it along, you can PM me with the user you'd like to gift it to, or let me know if I should try and pick someone from the jam myself.

Some personal notes from the jam:

It was awesome to see Dylan go from animator to straight up game developer when he grabbed Stencyl and made ALZ for the jam.



He then followed it with Pine, a really ambitious game inspired by Endeavor, both worth playing.

It was cool to see Wiesi of Miami Shark fame pick up Stencyl, fall in love and immediately find his groove:



I loved seeing Art Portal regular TurkeyOnAStick get involved in two different games:



I also want to give a shout out to the Famous Paintings Parodies games by Munguia. While they didn't end up winning, they were big crowd favorites and the vast amount of parody art he has created is beyond compare. These games are a great way to brush up on your art knowledge, too.



And so many cool games, several of which I still need to front page!



I wrote positive notes about a bunch of others but I'm getting long-winded. Check out the collection!

Thank you everyone who participated, more events on the way! Best of March will be announced on Monday.