I know what you might be thinking: "SlugGirl, where is the Monthly Roundup?" It's on the way, I promise. The holiday season is well underway in the office at the moment, so it's going to take a few more days to get ready for you all. I wanted to post about this competition now though, to give you all some extra time to work on your submissions.
We had so much fun and success with our last competition, we wanted to run one more to round off the year. We’re hoping for even more amazing submissions this time around. We’ve taken on board the feedback from the Halloween competition and updated our submission guidelines to provide a bit more clarity on a few points that cropped up.
Once again you’re all invited to join our Festive Screen Archery Competition. It doesn’t matter if you’re a seasoned screen archer or dipping your toes in for the first time, no matter what games you play, we’d love to see your creative takes on our categories. There are three categories to choose from – Seasonal Celebrations, Winter Wonderland, and Festive Tales – with 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place prizes for each.
Don’t forget, you can only enter one screenshot per category, so make sure to choose wisely.
All the details are listed below, so get those creative juices flowing and, most importantly, have fun!
Supported Games
The competition will be open to all games and gaming communities on our site.
Categories
Category Guidelines
Seasonal Celebrations
This category is all about showcasing how people celebrate the festive season in different parts of the world. From Christmas and Hanukkah to Diwali, Kwanzaa and beyond, there are so many unique and beautiful traditions to explore. Screenshots in this category should capture the spirit of these celebrations, focusing on cultural traditions, decorations, and gatherings unique to different regions and holidays.
Examples might include:
- Cosy scenes with Christmas trees, Hanukkah menorahs, Diwali lamps, or kinaras for Kwanzaa.
- Characters enjoying festive traditions like sharing gifts, lighting candles, or gathering for a big holiday meal.
- Depictions of fun, vibrant celebrations like Yule feasts, Hogmanay fireworks, or dragon dances.
- Colourful, lively festival scenes that bring to life the global spirit of the season, something that gives the holiday vibe.
Basically, if it captures the spirit of celebration in any part of the world, it fits right here!
Winter Wonderland
Think dreamy, snow-covered scenes that make you want to grab a hot chocolate and a warm blanket. From breathtaking snowy landscapes to twinkling winter villages, we’re looking for screenshots that really capture the magic and beauty of the winter season.
Examples might include:
- Stunning snowy landscapes, such as icy forests, frozen lakes, or majestic mountain peaks.
- Festive outdoor settings like winter markets, ice skating rinks, or cosy snow-covered town squares.
- Animals and mythical creatures in wintry settings, such as reindeer, polar bears, snow spirits, or frost giants.
- Atmospheric moments capturing winter’s essence—sparkling frost, snowflakes gently falling, or moonlit winter nights.
If it makes you feel the chill and the wonder of winter, this is your category!
Festive Tales
Got a favourite festive tale? This category is all about bringing those stories, myths and fables to life in your screenshots. Whether it’s a classic Christmas story, a winter legend, or a festive fable or myth, we want to see your take on it!
Examples might include:
- Reinterpretations of classic Christmas tales like A Christmas Carol or The Nutcracker.
- Folklore figures like Krampus, the Yule Goat, or even the Snow Queen.
- Holiday icons like Santa Claus, the Three Wise Men, or St. Lucia.
- Unique takes on legends like the Christmas spider, or magical winter myths from different cultures.
This category is all about bringing stories, fables, and myths to life with your own creative and unique twist!
Submission Guidelines
- One entry is allowed per category, per account. This means you can submit up to three entries in total—one for each category.
- Complete the Google Form linked below and follow the instructions on there for your submission(s).
- Post-processing and the use of reshades are allowed.
- No use of AI-generated content.
- Images must be taken specifically for the competition, only images uploaded to the Nexus Mods media share from the announcement date till the competition closes will be valid.
- The original screenshot must have been taken in-game.
- Please submit images only for this competition.
- Images taken from game cutscenes will not be eligible to win, it must be a scene you’ve crafted yourself.
- Please follow the prompts and examples we provide, we do take this into consideration when deciding our winners.
- All entries must be SFW and adhere to our ToS.
- Submission deadline: 15th December, with the winners announced on the 16th December.
Judging
The Content Team will judge the entries. We’re not looking for the most technical screen archery; this is meant to be a fun competition that everyone can participate in. Winners will be chosen based on creativity, what stands out, follows our prompts, and overall enjoyment.
We encourage screen archers of all levels to join in, so don’t hesitate—give it a go!
Prizes
- 1st Place: Custom badge to display in your Nexus Mods profile ‘About Me’ section, a game key / gaming gift card of your choice (up to £50), and optionally be part of an interview to discuss your creative process.
- 2nd Place: Custom badge to display in your Nexus Mods profile ‘About Me’ section, a game key / gaming gift card of your choice (up to £25).
- 3rd Place: Custom badge to display in your Nexus Mods profile ‘About Me’ section, a game key / gaming gift card of your choice (up to £10).
14 comments
Raw/vanilla screenshot - no reshade, ENB or external image editor allowed (photoshop and alikes)
In-game effect enhanced screenshot - reshade and ENB allowed, external image editor not allowed
Cheated screenshot - reshade and ENB allowed, external image editor allowed
Not everyone has money or skills to edit the images with an external image editor, so this make things more fair and everyone can compete.
Reshade and ENB presets are accessible to everyone; you can just download one you like from the site. If you want to do image editing without buying expensive software, GIMP or Paint.net do a decent job.
anybody can just throw their ass to stardew valley festival and make screenshot around rando npces