3D assets for a game jam: fill a scene in 48 hours

Rule zero: read the jam's rules

Jams differ a lot on assets:

• Some require everything to be made during the jam.
• Many allow pre-made or free assets if they're credited.
• Some ban AI-generated assets; some allow them with disclosure; some have a separate category.

Check the jam page (on itch.io, the rules are usually on the jam's main page) before you plan anything. If AI assets are banned, the rest of this guide still applies with free packs and quick modelling.

Hour 0–2: pick a style you can actually finish

The style decides how much art you can make. For 3D in a jam, the forgiving choices are:

• Low poly, flat-shaded, with a small colour palette.
• Toy-like or clay with simple, chunky shapes.
• Silhouettes and fog, where darkness hides missing detail.
• PS1-era low resolution, where crunchy textures are the point. PS1-style low poly horror assets.

Avoid realism. It shows every missing detail and every mismatched asset.

Hour 2: write the asset list

Sort by how much the game needs it:

1. Must have: the player (or the player's view), the core interactive objects, the main environment pieces.
2. Should have: enemies, pickups, a few props that sell the setting.
3. Nice to have: clutter, variety, decoration.

Keep the "must have" list under ten items. Everything after that is a bonus.

Hours 2–20: make the must-haves

Use whichever is fastest per item:

• Primitives. Many jam games ship with cubes and capsules styled well. The player character can be a capsule with a hat.
• Generated props. For solid objects such as chests, crates, statues and furniture, generating from a quick sketch or prompt is often faster than modelling. In Vi3W, reuse the same style words for every prop so they match. Consistent art style.
• Modular kits for environments. A few wall, floor and corner pieces build every room. Free modular assets.
• CC0 packs from sources like Kenney ("public domain licensed (CC0)… even in commercial projects").

Don't generate characters that need animation unless you've rigged a generated mesh before. In a jam, a rigging problem can eat a day. A pre-rigged CC0 character or a simple capsule is safer.

Unify everything

Mixed sources look mixed. Quick fixes:

• One palette texture for everything you can re-texture.
• One lighting set-up and one post-processing profile.
• Fog to soften differences at distance.
• Consistent scale. Import everything at real-world size.

Hour 36 onwards: stop making art

The most common jam failure isn't bad art; it's no time left to build levels, fix bugs and upload. Set a hard stop for new assets. After that, only fix what's broken.

Credit and disclose

List every asset source in the game description: packs, authors, licences, and how generated assets were made if the rules allow them. It's good practice and often a rule. If the game later goes to Steam, you'll need that list for the content survey anyway; see Steam AI disclosure for 3D assets.

A sample 48-hour asset budget

• Hours 0–2: rules, style, asset list.
• Hours 2–8: greybox the level with primitives.
• Hours 8–20: must-have assets (generated, kit, or primitives).
• Hours 20–30: should-have assets, unify materials.
• Hours 30–36: nice-to-haves, only if the game works.
• Hours 36–48: no new art. Build, test, upload.

Jam starts Friday? Make sure AI assets are allowed, then line up your props in Vi3W before the clock gets loud.