Prove the fun in a prototype
No design document tells you how a game feels in your hands. We build the core rule first with placeholder art, and if it is not fun in that state, we do not pile content on top.
We want to make the game someone still brings up ten years later, saying “that one was really good.”
New games come out every day. Most are forgotten within a month, and only a few stay in someone’s memory. We aim for that memory more than for the sales charts. The game you played with a friend after school. The game you opened every night during a hard stretch. JELLYPORTAL exists to make at least one game that earns a place like that.
A big goal does not need a big game. Small teams that imitate large productions usually never finish. So we cut the scope first, check whether the game is fun, and polish only what has proven itself. The principles below are the rules we set for ourselves along the way.
Six things we reread when a game begins, and whenever its direction wavers.
No design document tells you how a game feels in your hands. We build the core rule first with placeholder art, and if it is not fun in that state, we do not pile content on top.
Good ideas are common and finished games are rare. We fix a scope our people and schedule can carry, then look for the best game inside it.
We check balance with simulations, and after launch we judge by metrics chosen in advance. The conditions for continuing and for stopping are written down before we start.
We do not sell loot boxes, and we do not sell power. A single run should feel complete even in a short session.
A silhouette you can recognize from one screenshot, and one consistent art style. We do not copy the art of other games.
We use AI tools in production. We disclose that inside the game, and a person chooses what goes in and takes responsibility for it.
For collaboration, contract work, or publishing, please write to us by email.