Brighton MET student talent proudly displayed during Global Game Jam 2026  

Games Animation & Special Effects students have recently been coding up a storm as they took part in the annual Global Game Jam 2026.

The Global Game Jam 2026 is a worldwide game creation event that involves around 40,000 game creators, taking place annually in over 100 countries.   

This year, the theme for the GGJ 2026 was ‘mask’, which allowed for the exploration of hidden identities, metaphorical masks or disguises.  

Involving 15 submissions from across the groups, the event is not designed to be a competition, but instead to drive innovation, experimentation, and collaboration.  

During the week, students were visited by a variety of industry mentors, including visitors from MAG Interactive, Unity Technology, Canteen Games and Pop Flow Media.  

Matthew Vaughan, Principal at Brighton MET College, said:     
“The Global Game Jam has truly highlighted the imagination and technical skill of our Games Animation & Special Effects students. It’s inspiring to see such bold ideas come to life in such a short space of time. 

“Bringing emerging talent together with seasoned professionals created a vibrant environment for experimentation, problem‑solving and innovation.” 

A big thank you to all the industry mentors who came to work with the students on this exciting project, including:  

Val Knight – Unity Technology, Florence Di Ruocco – Freelance PR & Communications, Harvey Lock – Indie Game Developer, Joe Shanahan from MAG Interactive, Harvey Lock – Indie Game Developer, Will Nightingale – Indie Game Developer, Vicki Tingle & Sam Tingle-Scaife –  Canteen Games, Hannah Flynn – Failbetter Games, and Seph Al Shaikh Indie game Developer 

To have a look at some of this year’s submissions from Brighton MET students, please click here.  

To learn more about the Games, Computing, and IT courses offered at the college, please click here.