Demo competition rules

General rules

Each competition’s rules are regulated by the following general rules as well as specific rules as specified in the following pages. General rules always apply except if overriden by specific rules.

The rules are intended to be compact and precise. We advise you to read them carefully and use conservative planning with respect to deadlines and other limits. If in doubt, please contact CompoCrew for clarification.

• The author of an entry or his designated proxy must be present at the party to be eligible to participate in graphics or music compos and to receive any prizes the entry might win.

• Remote entries are accepted for real time compos. Purchase of a ticket is required to vote.

• Competition entries must be uploaded to the competition system before the given deadline.

• All deadlines are hard deadlines. There is no update deadline anymore. However, if you are in trouble and need more time, contact the compo organizer.

• All material constituting an entry must be previously unreleased. This means that the material in the demo (e.g. graphics, music) has not been used in any previously released production.

  • You may, however, include material in your realtime or development entries that participates at the same event in the music or graphics competitions.
  • Also, you can include some previously released components in your work if they do not constitute the main portion of the work. For example you can use previously released fonts and samples in creating your work if you have permission to use them.

• No purely AI generated content is allowed, unless it is specifically allowed by individual competition rules. While we do recognize that AI generated content can provide assistance or inspiration, the majority of the submitted entry must exist out of own/group work.

• You must own or have permission to use all the material present in your production. In case of a potential copyright infringement problem it is your duty to prove this. Please read the copyright FAQ.

• Don’t use trademark or copyrighted content such as logos without permission. If you believe your use of trademark of copyright content falls under fair use rules according to Finnish copyright law, contact us in advance to verify this.

• You must accept the competition contract when submitting your entry. This contract governs the rights and responsibilities of you and the event organizers.

• Organizers reserve the right to disqualify a production containing explicit sexual, racist, or disturbing material or breaking any rule applicable to the particular competition.

• Organizers reserve the right to change any and all prizes and prize principles in any competition. This applies especially to competitions where the quality or number of productions is too low to justify the full prize amount.

• Organizers reserve the right to augment or modify the competition rules if deemed necessary, especially to clarify ambiguities or resolve contradictions in the rules.

• Note that you MAY NOT use ANY music which you haven’t acquired necessary copyrights and permissions. This means that you have either composed the music by yourself or have got a permission from the original author, who is not a member of any copyright association such as Teosto or Gramex. If the music has been published on a record label it is then most probably controlled by Teosto and Gramex thus it is impossible for you to get any permission to use it in your work for free. You will be liable for any and all possible copyright infringements caused by your work.

• Shown entries are preselected by a jury and/or compo organizers. If your entry is not shown, it will not be released by Assembly.

General music rules

• There are no restrictions on composing techniques. Just make sure it’s an original piece and in a supported format.
• All entries must be 100% original and unreleased. No covers, no remixes, no copyrighted samples or other copyrighted material.
• If you are using Creative Commons or Public Domain material, state so in your entry form and cite the source! Do not forget to give credit where credit is due!
• Supported formats are 320kbps MP3, HQ OGG, WAV and FLAC
• A preselection jury will be held to comply with the time limit of each compo (typically 45 minutes). So do your best! If your entry is not shown, it will not be released by Assembly.
• It is up to you (not organisers) to submit to a suitable competition. Submitting to a wrong category (e.g. ambient music to the dance music competition) will simply result in a low jury score or disqualification.
• Volume control (ReplayGain or similar) will be applied. It is recommended to normalise the volume of your entry, but making it as loud as possible by excessive compression gives no advantage in the competition.
• Generative AI may not be used for significant portions of the song, such as entire vocal or instrument tracks.

No restrictions! Make the track you have always wanted to do with the platform of your choice.

• See general music rules.
• Listening Music is considered to be music that is not suited to the dance music competition.
• Entry must be no longer than 3 minutes 30 seconds. Substantially exceeding this limit will result in disqualification (not fade-out)!

Turn the main hall into a party arena!

• See general music rules.
• Your tune must have a danceable beat and character, no restrictions otherwise.
• Entry must be no longer than 3 minutes 30 seconds. Substantially exceeding this limit will result in disqualification (not fade-out)!
• The dance music competition might be presented as a DJ mix, where parts of your track may be crossfaded or mixed in with other compo tunes. The full track will still be released afterwards.

Fast music competitions started off with trackers, and the entries were made with a strict time limit and the same set of samples for each contestant. Since then we’ve spiced things up by removing the use of samples, forcing specific chord changes, limiting the genre to italo and making people sing “Assembly 25 years” into their headphones, for example. What’s in store for this year will be revealed at the party!

• See general music rules.
• Fast Music is created at the party with additional rules and restrictions that will be revealed 1.5 hours before the deadline.
• Entry must be no longer than 3 minutes 30 seconds (3:30).
• No software restrictions (usually).
• Submit the finished tune into the compo system before the competition deadline.

8CH Tracked Music

The tracked music compo will be held at the Scene Lounge, and has different file formats than the other music competitions.

• Maximum size: 1 MB (1048576 bytes)
• Maximum length: 3 minutes, if your song is longer the song will be faded out after 3min.
• Maximum amount of channels you can use is eight (8).
• If your song loops, the song will be faded out after the first loop
• Allowed formats: MOD, S3M, XM and IT
• Please provide a recording of your entry in MP3 (256kbps or higher), OGG (256kbps or higher) or WAV format.
• Entries will be played in Trackmeister (https://www.pouet.net/prod.php?which=95663) with following settings:
• MOD: No Interpolation, No Ramping, 50% Stereo Separation, normal MOD playback mode.
• S3M/XM/IT: Sinc Interpolation, Sensitive Ramping, 50% Stereo Separation.
• All entries must be 100% original and unreleased.
• No remixes, no copyrighted material.
• If you are using Creative Commons or Public Domain material, state so in your entry form and cite the source! Do not forget to give credit where credit is due!!
• Remote entries are ALLOWED!

General graphics rules

READ THIS FIRST. The following file format rules apply to all graphics competitions except for pixeled graphics.

• The only supported image formats are PNG and JPG. Only RGB colour space allowed – no CMYK images.
• If the original image was in vector format you may include the image in the submission package also in SVG format. However, the PNG or JPEG image will be the primary submission and will be shown on the big screen.
• Pictures will be shown in 1920×1080 resolution with full 24bit color depth.
• Submit a version of the final image with NO visible signature. Name this file with “_nosig”prefix (e.g. “cool_image.png” for the final image and “cool_image_nosig.png” for unsigned version of the same image).
• You don’t have to submit an image with a signature, only an unsigned version is necessary.
• A text file named “readme.txt” stating used techniques and sources of any material used in the entry must be submitted. If possible, we will tell the information about the techniques when showing the pictures on the big screen and when voting for them in the entry/votesystem.
• Once more: entries without a no-signature version will be disqualified.

• The image resolution must be 1920×1080 and must be submitted in supported file formats, see Graphics formats above.
• You must submit clear evidence of the process of creating the fast graphics competition picture in the form of at least SIX versions of the unfinished picture that show the creation process.
• This means that the different steps of the process (e.g. outline, coloring, retouching) are shown in different files from different points in time when the picture is being created
• If you are using a modeler, it is not sufficient to submit six pictures of the final picture from different view points! If you are using a photograph, take few extra shots and include them as a proof.
• The resolution of the unfinished pictures must be at least the same as the resolution of the final picture, but you can submit also higher resolution pictures.
• Order the unfinished stages of the picture by renaming the files with appropriate prefixes (f.i. “stage1.png”, “stage2.png”) and put them into a subdirectory called “unfinished” in the ZIP archive.
• You can use any technique you want to produce the picture: you can draw on paper and scan that picture, take a photograph and retouch it, use a 3D modeller tool, draw pixel by pixel or do what ever you want
• Write the techniques used in the PMS while submitting the image, maximum of 5 words (i.e. “Scanned photo + editing”, “3DS Max + light photoshopping”, “completely vector based”, “Composition of multiple methods”)
• You may also include the image in source or vector format in the submission package, if the size of the package does not exceed 10 MB
• While you are allowed to use stock photos in your entry, clearly the major part of the entry must be result of your own creativity. Use only stock photos you have the rights to.
• See also must-follow guidelines on Graphics formats.

• The image resolution must be 1920×1080 and must be submitted in supported file formats, see Graphics formats above.
• You have 1.5 hours time to complete your picture. Submit the finished picture by the competition deadline.
• Your picture must adhere to theme and contain a specific graphical element which will be published on the Assembly web site at the beginning of the competition
• Submit one version of the image without your signature (follow the link on supported image formats for details). No intermediate stages are required.
• See also must-follow guidelines on Graphics formats.

AI Wild

• The media must be fully generated by an AI tool via prompts without any post-processing or resizing.
• The media can be anything that can be shown on the screen; it may include just a picture but is not limited to that. Audio, video, and combinations are allowed as long as they are generated by AI without human intervention.
• AI upscaling is allowed as part of the generating process as long as it happens automatically and does not require human intervention.
• No starting media may be used – no white noise, no AI-generated pictures, nothing.
• No in-painting or out-painting on the image is allowed.
• The media must be previously unpublished before the competition.
• You may participate with one entry only.
• You must submit clear evidence of the process of creating the media in the form of at least some versions (an appropriate amount depending on the process and tool) of the unfinished media that demonstrate the creation process:
  • Create a folder with the title of the art piece (mytitle)
  • Place the art piece into the folder, in the format it came out of the AI tool. Do not remove any metadata from the file. Name it the same as the folder.
  • Place information about the system used (e.g., ComfyUI), model checkpoint, LoRA, LyCORIS, and any plugins used into a text file called “system_info.txt” (mytitle/system_info.txt)
  • Create another folder inside this folder called “process” (mytitle/process)
  • Place the prompt for the art into the process folder in a text file called “prompt.txt” (mytitle/process/prompt.txt)
  • Place screenshots or screen capture videos you have taken during the creation into the process folder.
  • Finally, compress the first folder (mytitle) into a zip file with the same title as before, so it becomes mytitle.zip, so you may submit it as a single file.

General real-time rules

• Entry must be in an executable form. Pure animation files are not allowed in real-time competitions. Also executables only including an animation and an animation player will not be accepted.
• Every competition has their own maximum duration shown but organizers may choose to stop the production before the end.
• The production must work from read-only media and must not modify system settings (for example: Windows registry). However, you may use the platform’s standard temporary directory during the execution of your entry for storing data if such a service is available.
• The demo must show in a similar manner every time executed.
• Entries which we cannot be run on the compo machines will be disqualified. To prevent this you can ask us to test your production on the compo machines. Do this early and you will even have time to fix any problems that might pop up.
• A screenshot image must be submitted with the entry to the competition management system.
• You must hide the mouse cursor.
• You do not have to be present at the party place to compete! Remote entries are welcome!
• Although not forbidden, we recommend not using import by ordinal for DLLs with non-fixed ordinals to ensure better compatibility.
• Entries will be recorded at 1080p60 (or possibly 1080p50) resolution.

Desktop platforms

• Kingston 32GB (2 x 16GB) Fury Beast DDR5 RGB, 5600MHz, CL36
• Kingston 2TB NV2 PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD-levy
•  AMD:
  • Asus Radeon RX 7900 XTX TUF Gaming – OC Edition
  • AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D
  • Asus TUF GAMING X670E-PLUS WIFI, ATX-emolevy
• Nvidia:
  • Asus GeForce RTX 4090 TUF Gaming OG – OC Edition
  • Intel Core i9-14900K, LGA1700
  • Asus TUF GAMING Z790-PRO WIFI, ATX-emolevy

• Demo may not last longer than 8 minutes.
• Entry must run on a Desktop platform.
• The user has to be able to exit at any time by pressing a key. On PC this key must be ESC.
• While there is no specified size limit, we still expect it to be reasonable (i.e. something that fits on an average USB stick). As long as you can deliver it to us either by uploading through the party system or on a physical medium.

• Maximum size in executable form is 1024 bytes.
• The file size of the intro will be shown on the screen before the entry is shown.
• Intro may not last longer than 3 minutes.
• The production must be a single file. Additional info files are fine but they will be deleted prior running the intro.
• Entry must run on a Desktop or Oldskool platform.
• The user has to be able to exit at any time by pressing a key. On PC this key must be ESC.
• For oldskool entries, check out the submitting instructions from the oldskool compos rules.

• Maximum size in executable form is 4096 bytes.
• Intro may not last longer than 8 minutes.
• The production must be a single file. Additional info files are fine but they will be deleted prior running the intro.
• Entry must run on a Desktop or an Oldskool platform
• The user has to be able to exit at any time by pressing a key. On PC this key must be ESC.
• For oldskool entries, check out the submitting instructions from the oldskool compos rules.

Oldskool demo combined

This is a combined demo competition for oldskool hardware in the 8-bit & 16-bit & 32-bit & 64-bit era. So the point is to make a demo that runs on a legacy platform and shows & plays something interesting. Emulators or FPGA hardware can be used for development but the end-product should work and be tested on the real hardware. One goal for these rules was to accept a wide range of platforms and not only the demoscene classics like Commodore 64 or Amiga 500. Note that some hardware might be very oldskoolish but may not still fit the rules. In that case you can probably entry it to the Real Wild compo. Also any feedback on the division or which platforms should be included or removed are welcome with good argumentation.

• Demo may not last longer than 8 minutes.
• Demo must run on Oldskool 8-bit & 16-bit platform. or Oldskool 32-bit & 64-bit platform.
• Demo must be launchable using the standard procedure for that platform. If in doubt then please ask us.
• While there is no specified size limit, we still expect it to be reasonable in the context of the platform you’re releasing on.
• When submitting:
  • You must specify the applicable exact hardware configuration the entry is made for, e.g. type of machine, PAL/NTSC, memory requirements, possible required add-ons, SID model, etc.
  • You must provide Internet distributable version of the entry, e.g. disk image, CD-ROM image, ZIP containing executable and data files, etc.
  • If your machine isn’t listed in the supported compo machines then you must provide video capture from (preferably) real hardware. You can also request if we could accommodate you on the real hardware capture.

• Any oldskool home computer, home console or handheld console which has at most 16-bit data bus.
  • including and up to 4th generation of video game consoles http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_video_game_consoles_(fourth_generation
  • including and up to 5th generation of handhelds http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_video_game_consoles_(fifth_generation)
  • examples: C64, Atari 2600, VIC-20, ZX Spectrum, Amiga 500, Atari ST(e), NES, SNES, Mega Drive, Game Boy Color, etc.
• Modern mass storage devices are allowed however, but the production must run equally well when loaded from a period correct tape/disk drive if applicable to the platform.
• Vintage add-on devices which expand the standard configuration are allowed but must be clearly stated. E.g. turbo cards with vintage CPUs.
• FPGA based reimplementations of computers, FPGA CPUs and devices which are considerably newer than the ones listed here are not allowed. These can be submitted to Real Wild compo.
• Note that FPGA solutions for peripherals are OK (such as the Ultimate1541 cartridge) – we’re talking full computers here, not multi-cart or storage add-ons.
• We will provide captures from at least the following hardware:
  • Amiga 500 / PAL
    • OCS
    • 68000 / 7 MHz
    • 512 kB Chip RAM / 512 kB Trapdoor RAM
    • Kickstart 1.3
    • Rev 6a, Fat Agnus 8372A, regular Denise 8362R8
    • real floppies or HXC SD MAX floppy emulator
    • No hard disk
    • c0pperdragon & hoglet67 RGB2HDMI
  • Sharp X68000 XVI
    • 68000 / 10 or 16 MHz
    • 4 MB RAM
    • hard disk only, floppy drive has some issues
  • Atari STe / PAL
    • 68000 / 8 MHz
    • 4 MB RAM
    • TOS 1.62 or 2.06
    • real floppies or HXC SD MAX floppy emulator
    • possible Ultrasatan + HDDRIVER (untested at the time of writing)
  • Commodore 64 / PAL
    • SID 6581 and 8580 are available, please specify which SID you want to hear
    • Action Replay 6
    • 1541-II
    • or 1541 Ultimate II
  • Philips NMS-8245 / PAL
    • MSX 2
    • Z80 @ 3.59 MHz
    • 128kB RAM
    • real 720 kB floppy or hard disk via Carnivore 2 / MegaFlashROM
    • optional cartridges: Carnivore 2, MegaFlashROM SCC+ SD + 512 kB, Panasonic FM-PAC, real SCC, Moonsound
  • Panasonic FS-A1 WSX / NTSC-J
    • MSX 2+
    • Toshiba T9769C 3.59 MHz / 5.36 MHz (turbo mode)
    • 512 kB internal RAM
    • real 720 kB floppy or hard disk via Carnivore 2 / MegaFlashROM
    • optional cartridges: Carnivore 2, MegaFlashROM SCC+ SD + 512 kB, real SCC, Moonsound
  • NEC PC Engine / NTSC-J
    • Turbo Everdrive V2
• Capturing the entry
  • If you wish that we make the capture the please contact us preferably well before the deadline so we can check if the hardware is still working, bring the hardware to the compo base and make sure capturing actually works.
  • If your intended hardware isn’t listed in the capture hardware list then please ask preferably well before the deadline if we could provide the video capture from the hardware anyways.
  • Or bring the hardware yourself to us for recording. We can accommodate most kinds of video signal but if yours is really special, don’t hesitate to contact us in advance.
  • Or make your own real hardware capture.
  • Or make your own emulator or FPGA capture but this is discouraged and should be the last resort.
  • In any case you should make sure the entry works with the real oldskool hardware and not only with emulators or FPGA reimplementations.
• If you have questions about the oldskool compos, available hardware or you are unsure if your BYOD hardware is eligible to participate, please contact codise#1950 on Discord or codise on IRCnet or please send an email to: oldskool-contact@assembly.org

• Any oldskool home computer, home console or handheld console which has 32-bit or 64-bit CPU and with the following limits:
  • On Amiga & PC platform it should run on the provided compo machines or machine you provide which do not exceed the compo machine capabilities.
  • On home consoles it should be part of fifth generation of game consoles https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fifth_generation_of_video_game_consoles.
  • On handhelds the platform should be about similarly specced as the other machines in this compo. e.g. Virtual Boy, Gameboy Advance, N-Gage or Nintendo DS. Please ask for verification if in doubt for other platforms.
  • On other type of vintage home computers it should be about similarly specced as the other machines listed here. Please ask for verification if in doubt.
  • examples: Pentium 133 MHz, Amiga AGA/060, Atari Falcon, Playstation 1, Sega Saturn, 3DO, Nintendo 64, Nintendo DS, etc.
• Modern mass storage devices are allowed however, but the production must run equally well when loaded from a period correct storage media.
• Vintage add-on devices which expand the standard configuration are allowed but must be clearly stated. E.g. turbo cards with vintage CPUs.
  • On PC platform 3D accelerator cards are not allowed as they would exceed the compo machine specification.
• FPGA based reimplementations of computers, FPGA CPUs and devices which are considerably newer than the ones listed here are not allowed. These can be submitted to Real Wild compo.
  • Note that FPGA solutions for peripherals are OK (such as the PSIO flash cartridge) – we’re talking full computers here, not multi-cart or storage add-ons.
• We will provide captures from at least the following hardware:
  • Pentium 133 MHz
    • S3 86C775 graphics card
    • Gravis Ultrasound Extreme (SB Pro compatible)
    • 32 MB RAM
    • MS-DOS 6.22
  • Pentium MMX 233 MHz
    • Not fully tested at the time of writing: small changes are possible!
    • S3 Trio64V2/DX (or some very similarly compatible)
    • Voodoo 1 (4 MB)
    • SB AWE 64 Gold (or at least SB16)
    • Gravis Ultrasound PnP (or some GUS)
    • 32 MB RAM
    • Windows 95 / MS-DOS 7
  • NEC PC-9821 Ap/U7
    • CPU switchable: AMD 5×86 @ 66 MHz (full RAM) / AMD 486SX 16Mhz (full RAM) / NEC V30 10MHz (only 640 kB RAM)
    • ~15.3 MB RAM
    • Integrated PEGC graphics (EGC + 256 color mode), no Window Accelerator
    • Built in PC-9821-86 YM2608 + PCM + added Chibioto
    • hard disk or 3.5″ 1.2 MB real floppy
    • NEC MS-DOS 6.2
  • Amiga 1200 (AGA) / PAL
    • Blizzard 1260: 68060 @ 50 MHz
    • 2MB Chip RAM / 80 MB Fast RAM
    • no RTG or AHI
    • Kickstart 3.1
• Capturing the entry
  • If you wish that we make the capture the please contact us preferably well before the deadline so we can check if the hardware is working, bring the hardware to the compo base and make sure capturing actually works.
  • If your intended hardware isn’t listed in the capture hardware list then please ask preferably well before the deadline if we could provide the video capture from the hardware anyways.
  • Or bring the hardware yourself to us for recording. We can accommodate most kinds of video signal but if yours is really special, don’t hesitate to contact us in advance.
  • Or make your own real hardware capture.
  • Or make your own emulator or FPGA capture but this is discouraged and should be the last resort.
  • In any case you should make sure the entry works with the real oldskool hardware and not only with emulators or FPGA reimplementations.
• If you have questions about the oldskool compos, available hardware or you are unsure if your BYOD hardware is eligible to participate, please contact codise#1950 on Discord or codise on IRCnet or please send an email to: oldskool-contact@assembly.org

Fantasy console

• Allowed platforms: TIC-80, PICO-8, Picotron, quadplay, Voxatron & IBNIZ
• Entry can run on any number of cartridges (please specify the size in the entry form notes)
• Production may not last longer than 3 minutes.

Game development

• Please note that Gamedev deadline is already on Friday, 26. July, 18:00 EEST
• All entries must be previously unreleased (This also means no previous Game Jams, Steam page, App Store page, youtube trailer etc.).
• Entry must run on a Desktop, Oldskool, or Mobile platform.
• Presentation:
  • Showing time is maximum 3 minutes per entry – the game itself can naturally be longer.
  • Game presentation video options: A recommended way of presenting the game to the audience is to submit a presentation video of the game in the short film delivery format.
• The entry must be playable!
• The user has to be able to exit at any time. This may be executed by pressing ESC or other applicable method (e.g. game menu).
• The game can save high scores and user settings on the hard drive or in the system registry.
• The game may utilize a network connection.
• The PC desktop version must be playable with 1080p resolution.
• A screenshot must be submitted along the entry.
• The game may support multiple platforms: you can make your game to work on Windows, Java, Linux, Mac, 3DS, Android, iPhone/iPad, etc. at the same time.
• For oldskool entries, check out the submitting instructions from the oldskool compos rules.

Real wild

• Platform can be anything that can run real-time graphics! You can have here any hardware (including iPods, oscilloscopes, LCD displays, basically anything that can produce real-time moving images) or software platforms/interpreters/emulators running on modern hardware.
• If your demo can be run on both real hardware and on an emulator on PC, of course it is preferred to run it in a real hardware. For avoidance of doubt, all real-time rendered graphics demos that don’t fit in the demo competition or the oldskool demo competition will fit here in terms of the platform.
• The demo must be delivered in both executable (if possible) and a video file – see the file rules about allowed formats.
• If you don’t have the necessary hardware to record the video on your own, contact the organizers to set up a recording session. Do this one week prior to the party. We will be glad to help!
• If you bring your entry to be recorded at the party place and the device/platform doesn’t have an external audio output, the soundtrack of the entry must be delivered separately.
• Demo may not last longer than 5 minutes.
• The device/components/platform have to be publicly available (or have been available in the past) for anyone to purchase.
• You must provide specific instructions to build, configure, install, and run the entry on the platform. If the platform/device is your own specific hack, the instructions to do such a hardware hack must be included.
• To prove your entry really runs on the platform, you must either:
  • bring the hardware to the party place and show your demo to the organizers / the jury, or
  • in case of remote entries, record a proof video if the actual competition video does not provide enough proof. Organizers/jury judge the proof. If in doubt, contact the organizers.
• Pure animation files are not allowed in real-time competitions. Also executables only including an animation and an animation player will not be accepted.
• The demo must show in a similar manner every time executed
• Remote entries are allowed

• The production must be submitted in a supported video format.
• The film may not last longer than 5 minutes
• Computer generated pieces of art (e.g. animations, machinima, …) are preferred over plain home video types of entries. From now on, you can submit any videos of real-time generated graphics on odd devices to the Real Wild demo competition.
• Remote entries are allowed