Hello, I鈥檓 not trying to be rude here, but I hope you can understand my perspective. I saw this game jam posted on Reddit, and I was originally interested in it, but I鈥檓 a little hesitant on participating after learning the theme. I just wanted to ask why does this game jam need to involve around real life serial killers. I understand you want the game jam to be educational and bring light to real life tragedies, but this can still come off as glorification as it is still translating the real harm of a serial killer caused into a entertainment medium intended for people to play and review regardless if they are supposed to actually learn something from it. A game jam cannot provide the same nuances about a serial killer and their crimes the same way a documentary does it, and even most true crime documentaries fall flat because they can also sensationalize serial killers by making them into charismatic celebrities and tend to exploit victim鈥檚 trauma. And I understand that you are requesting people not to use the names or faces of actual victims, it is still gamifying the acts that a serial killer committed against someone.
But otherwise, I don鈥檛 think you should have to change your whole theme. You can base your game jam on just serial killers, it doesn鈥檛 have to be based in real life. Devs can take inspiration from horror movies, literature, etc. The theme of the jam can still work as its own thing without being advertised as based around real-life serial killers.
Again, I hope my message doesn鈥檛 come off as rude, and I wish you luck on your path forward.
