JemsFrom January 30th to February 1st, 2026, the Global Game Jam was successfully held across three partner locations within the CBC GAIN project, marking a major milestone in cross-border cooperation in the creative and digital industries. Organized simultaneously by Regional Development Agency SIMORA (Croatia), ICT Cortex (Montenegro), and INTERA Technology Park (Bosnia and Herzegovina), the event brought together more than 200 participants for an intensive 48-hour game development challenge.
All three partner organizations hosted officially registered Global Game Jam sites as part of the CBC GAIN project collaboration. For ICT Cortex and INTERA Technology Park, this represented their first experience as GGJ organizers, making the achievement particularly significant. INTERA Technology Park successfully gathered 48 participants in Mostar, who developed a total of 10 original game prototypes, while ICT Cortex in Podgorica engaged 45 enthusiastic developers, designers, and creatives who worked together to create 15 innovative game prototypes.
SIMORA, which organized the event for the seventh consecutive year in Novska, once again hosted the largest site, welcoming around 120 participants from Croatia. Building on years of experience, SIMORA supported teams of students, professionals, and beginners in transforming creative ideas into functional game concepts.
The theme of this year’s Global Game Jam – “MASK OFF” – was revealed at the official opening of the event. All teams developed their games within this creative framework, interpreting the theme in diverse and imaginative ways through storytelling, visual design, and gameplay mechanics. At each location, participants competed for awards, and prizes were presented to the three best games in recognition of outstanding creativity, innovation, and technical execution.
Across all three sites, participants worked in multidisciplinary teams under the official Global Game Jam format, creating innovative digital games inspired by the shared global theme. The atmosphere at each location was dynamic and collaborative, highlighting the growing interest in game development within the region. Altogether, teams across Novska, Mostar, and Podgorica developed over 50 game prototypes during the 48-hour event.
The successful implementation of Global Game Jam 2026 at all partner locations represents a concrete outcome of the CBC GAIN project’s mission to strengthen capacities and cooperation in the video game development sector. By connecting local communities, encouraging knowledge exchange, and fostering creativity, the event contributed to the development of sustainable regional ecosystems for digital and creative industries.
Photos, videos, and game prototypes created during the event are available through the partners’ official communication channels, showcasing the talent and innovation generated over a single weekend.
The CBC GAIN project is implemented with the aim of strengthening capacities, collaboration and innovation in the video game development sector across the cross-border area of Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro, with financial support from the European Union through the Interreg IPA Programme Croatia – Bosnia and Herzegovina – Montenegro 2021.-2027.
