The Role of Slowing Down in Fast-Paced Game Jams

This paper explores the role of "slowing down"on participant well-being, creativity and productivity during game jams. While the intense and short format of game jams can facilitate creativity by accelerating decision-making, it can also lead stressful participation. To counteract these stressful effects and explore alternative forms of participation, this paper presents a pilot study designed to facilitate relaxation and well-being during an intense 48-hour game jam. The intervention is motivated by the understanding that creativity and productivity are not solely driven by accelerated decision-making. Indeed, relaxation can lead to an incubation effect which is a key part of the creative process, and well-being have been linked to increased productivity. We discuss preliminary findings from the study while acknowledging the limitations of the early-stage research. The paper concludes by outlining promising future research directions, emphasizing the potential benefits of enhancing well-being and supporting relaxation in game jam and hackathon formats to increase creativity, productivity, and accessibility.