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Who is the next chosen one!?'s itch.io pageResults
| Criteria | Rank | Score* | Raw Score |
| Presentation | #10 | 4.667 | 4.667 |
| Theme | #16 | 4.000 | 4.000 |
| Overall | #28 | 3.917 | 3.917 |
| Engagement | #58 | 3.667 | 3.667 |
| Gameplay | #63 | 3.333 | 3.333 |
Ranked from 3 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.
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Comments
Excellent visuals! They definitely steal the show! The gameplay is enjoyably subversive as well, especially since I had to fight against my own instinct of wanting to fight a conventional battle. The writing was fun, though I did notice a few typos which brought me out of the experience somewhat.
Something funny to note is that it seems like there is an autosave already in the downloadable game folder. It takes the player immediately to the end credits, so I guess I can boast that I technically beat the game in about 2 seconds!
I will mention that I would have liked more control over when I could save, though I do realize it isn't that difficult to make up lost time by simply holding Enter to speed through repeated text. Overall, it was a solid entry!
Hey! Iām Thomas, programmer, writer, and game designer.
Thanks so much for the compliments! Weāre really happy with what we managed to achieve in just about two weeks.
I know there are some typos, Iām so sorry about that! I also hope the intentional mistakes in Bubās dialogue give a non-native speaker vibe (like me, lmao).
As for the autosaveā¦ yeah, that was a dumb mistake on my part. Should I say it was intentional, to let people jump straight to the credits? Or for insane speedruns, maybe? š
And about the save system, youāre totally right. We (well, mostly me) didnāt think it through too deeply, since the entry was planned to last around 40 minutes to an hour of gameplay.
Thanks again for playing and sharing your thoughts! Weāll be sharing more about the game once the jam has ended.
So good its actually kind of obnoxious. Every single one of the 720 hours you spent working on the jam is on full display. The characters are as fun to interact with as they are stunning to look at, which is very.
Kind of difficult to come up with constructive criticism not gonna lie. I feel like the battles can drag sometimes but since the core gameplay loop is all about building up to them it seems appropriate, even if they can feel a bit tedious at times. I will say for a piece that is positively exploding with life and energy I do wish there could have been a bit more Juice put into some of the presentations. Mostly the character designs and text bubbles which feel much more static than they should, especially with such vibrant characters on display. Even a gentle float or squash and stretch animation would go a LONG way.
Other than that though its quite difficult to come up with anything I would change or add. Its a clear and concise vison executed almost perfectly. Great job, you and your team should feel proud.
Hi Julian (I guessed your name from the email, sorry if I got it wrong!), Thomas here!
Weāre so happy to hear your kind words! ā¤ļø
Youāre totally right, thereās almost no animation at the moment, and thatās definitely one of the most critical aspects of the project. We have a clear vision of how we want the game to look (animation included!), and our talented artists (including Antonio Amendolea!!) are currently exploring the best way to bring that to life.
Weāre putting our hearts into this project because we really believe it can become not only a fun game to play, but also a meaningful one, something that reflects our thoughts and feelings on certain themes (youāll see more of that in the full version!).
Iām responsible for the technical side, and yeahā¦ I shouldāve added things like squash-and-stretch on the text, and some more dynamic effects. Just like the party-heal after battle, a few things unfortunately slipped my mind due to the massive workload. Iām really sorry for forgetting those (and for not being efficient enough to squeeze them in on time). But donāt worry, theyāll definitely be there in the next version!
Thank you so much for your support, weāre really glad you enjoyed what you saw!
It should be noted just how much life and personality you are able to give to the characters and world WITHOUT animation, which already is a lot.
I hope you and your team is as confident in the quality of your full game as I currently am, which also is a lot.
Ok. First of all. Denny Minonne. Thank you for your character design. You are truly a professional character designer. Its sleek, charming, memorable and most of all very eye catching.
Serena Capezzuoli. Your background designs? Top tier. Absolute work done there.
Second. This game is fun if a bit clunky and gimmicky. Basically you have 2 options. You either talk your way out of the fight or you fight them and win using the party members you convince in the interim. Now. I don't know why you don't full heal in between battles. I literally lost because 2 of my party members who were KO'd on the previous battle were not fully healed in the interim matches. I hope there are more options/more recruitable characters/more unique designs eventually. Considering this is a prototype, I'm willing to let this issue slide.
The way you convince the characters and their personalities are vibrant. Character interaction seems to be the main selling point of the game and it shows. Each character has a level of spice, sugar and salt dependent on their designs. My favourite is the wolf fisherman. Never gets too close, prefers life of privacy above all else yet is willing to hear you out if you're patient with him. The sound effects are fine tbh. So I have no issues there.
Seriously though. Your artist should be given commendations. This has massive potential and I look forward to seeing if it'll improve past the current build if you ever develop the game past the jam period.
Hey Berry, Thomas here! (Programmer, Writer, and Game Designer)
Denny Minonne and Serena Capezzuoli are incredibly talented and professional artists! Serena worked on the concepts for John & Jenny, Smith, the Hub, and other high-concept stuff during the early stages of development. Denny handled the other ātalkā backgrounds (we did those super quickly lol), the remaining characters, and also polished everything for the Jam.
Iām really sorry that the party doesnāt heal after battlesā¦ It was supposed to, but I totally forgot to include it in the build. The workload was MASSIVE and that detail just slipped my mind. Iām genuinely sad about it.
As a writer, Iām really happy to hear that the characters gave off a good vibe! I try my best to do justice to the amazing visual designs.
Stefano also did a ton of work on the battle and UI side. Even if the mechanics arenāt fully fleshed out in this prototype, weāve studied a lot of systems to make the battles feel as vibrant and engaging as the visual novel sections.
Weāre definitely continuing development on this project, that was the plan all along. This Jam was a spontaneous opportunity we decided to grab. Before the Jam, we only had documents and high-concept ideas. Now, weāve got a slightly playable version of our vision, and thatās awesome.
So, thank you so much for your support, weāre really happy you enjoyed it!
Oh my, I completely forgot to mention Antonio Amendolea and the amazing work he did on the sound and music! Donāt underestimate how much his contributions added to the gameās atmosphere, the dialogues truly came to life thanks to his work as well! - Thomas
I am in love with that art style! Keep up the good work!
Thank you Giammi, we will as well!
The game core is so insanely cool! Love the fish as enemy character š
Loved the art direction ā¤ļø
Thank you very much Amendoleaa, we worked so hard to make everything look at best š