Students from across the country to compete in Chillennium game jam starting Friday

Chillennium, known as the world’s largest student-run collegiate game jam, returns Friday through Sunday at the Hildebrand Equine Center on the Texas A&M University campus.

Students from across the country will compete to create a fully functioning and playable video game based on a single prompt in just 48 hours. The event is sponsored by the Texas A&M College of Performance, Visualization and Fine Arts, which includes game design and development in the Visualization program.

Chillennium earned “most participants in a collegiate in-person game jam” recognition in 2017 from Guinness World Records with 311 participants. Last year’s event drew 256 students from 23 schools. Participants have registered this year from in state (Amarillo College, University of Houston-Victoria, Tyler Junior College) and out (Michigan State University and Louisiana State University).

Bobby Garza, Chillennium president and a second-year Master of Science in Visualization student, said the event’s focus on collaboration strengthens students’ drive to create a compelling game concept.

“Each student works with their team and builds trust to get it done, all while working with industry mentors, which is a deeply enriching experience,” he said. “No matter who they are or what experience they have, it’s a pretty big step to attend this event at all.”

Mentors and industry leaders will be on hand — some to advise the students and some to judge the entries — including representatives from Bluepoint Games, EA Sports, Epic Games, Insomniac Games, Cloud Imperium Games, New Blood Interactive and Aspyr Media.

“With access to industry mentors, students have the opportunity to meet them and get help from them at any point,” Garza said. “They get to learn from these leaders while networking at the same time, which is a really awesome opportunity.”

Texas A&M students earned first-, second- and third-place honors in 2025 with the prompt “In Plain Sight.” “Spectral Sight,” created by Arjun Kurkal, Joseph Nuccitelli, Jenna Plute and Alexander Nuccitelli, took the top prize.

A successful game is one that is scoped realistically, Garza said, which can be challenging for students to gauge from the start. Having each person work within their own specialization will allow the team to navigate their game plan to the end, he said.

“Once everyone’s roles are figured out, it’s best to focus on completing the game as quickly as possible with the time they have,” Garza said. “Then everyone puts in as much work as they can, and by the end, everyone will have contributed to their own piece of the game.”

Students compete in groups of four and use their own computers and equipment. Awards are also given for best in visuals, originality, programming, sound and audience choice. Prizes include keyboards, monitors, a PlayStation 5 and an Xbox Series X.

Garza said he hopes that students feel supported and rewarded for their efforts, regardless of what they create.

“Whether they win or complete a game at all, I want everyone to leave satisfied either way,” he said. “Especially knowing that they gave it their all, and more so that they learned as much as they could from it.”

Chillennium begins Friday, Feb. 20, at 6 p.m., with opening introductions and the prompt reveal. Winners will be announced at the end of the closing ceremony, which starts Sunday, Feb. 22, at 6 p.m.

Registration is $25 and ends on Thursday, Feb. 19. Visit the Chillennium website for more information.