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A jam submission

The Wolf of DerevnyaView game page

A werewolf survival horror story in Kievan Rus'
Submitted by Nightwell Games (@nightwellgames), Nightwell Games (@nightwellgames) — 1 day, 12 hours before the deadline
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The Wolf of Derevnya's itch.io page

Results

CriteriaRankScore*Raw Score
Fun#254.4864.486
Monsterous!#324.3244.324
Overall#373.9893.989
Scariness...#393.9463.946
Halloweeny?#414.2434.243
Candy!!#962.9462.946

Ranked from 37 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.

Log Line
When you, a grizzled hero from an earlier age, stumble into a small village beset by a werewolf, you find yourself embroiled in suspicion--but to unravel the mystery, you must first confront your own past. Chapter 1 of a werewolf mystery set in Kievan Rus'.

Content Warnings
Injury, death, loss of a loved one, some graphic descriptions

Team Members
Gwen C. Katz, David Bowman, Anthony Ford

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Comments

Submitted(+1)

This game was an amazing experience, I loved the story book feel, and the writing was absolutely gorgeous. The artwork and the user interface were also beautiful and fitted the theme of the story perfectly.
I'm a bit behind on my commenting so I'll be back to leave a more detailed comment later, but just wanted to say at least something in case I'm further delayed! Also, really looking forward to the next part!!

Submitted(+1)

There is a good story here, but the pace is a bit slow. Some of the places in the village seems to be more sidetrack than story relevant, also it is easy to get a little lost. A bit sad that there are no character illustrations. It seems like the media is sparsely utilized. The good detailed description of the life in village compensate a bit for that.

Submitted(+1)

This was a cool game to play through, it all felt very well put together! I enjoyed being able to customize my character, exploring the world was interesting, and the descriptions were rich and effective and set the tone for the game nicely! I also really enjoyed the fairy tale quality of the UI and the art, it all worked super well with the story. Great job!

Submitted (1 edit) (+1)

I really liked the atmosphere in this game and overall format. It felt like a storybook with grayscale art (very pretty, I loved it!!) and beautiful music that fitted the mood of the scenes 💖. I also loved how you could go back and forth between the places with all the choices at the bottom, it gave me fond memories of Twine and choose your own adventure books ✨

I was a bit lost with some of the terms but that's probably because I'm not very familiar with Rus' history (though it'd be cool if there was a devlog or extra downloadable file explaining some of the words).

Really looking forward to the rest of the story, I want to know who the werewolf is 👀 Great work!! 



Submitted(+1)

Really interesting game, written well. Writer really captures a mood that made me nervous in a good way! Interested to see where the story goes. Art is good, really liked the setting, music was moody in a way that fit. Will play again, interested in the next chapter! 

Submitted(+1)

As the bookworm that I am, I loved this game. Great suspense that leaves you apprehensive with each choice. I also loved the break in expectation when I examined the chickens, lol. I'm looking forward to the next chapters! Let's pet the cat a little more! 🤩

Submitted(+1)

Really great story, a shame it's just chapter 1 lol, I really wanted to keep going. Loved the storytelling as well as the graphics and music! Very colourfull characters as well as the customizable main character. Hope there's chapter 2 soon!

(+1)

Hey, since you were excited about Chapter 2, I just wanted to let you know that the full game of The Wolf of Derevnya is out now on Steam and I'm giving out free keys to Spooktober people. Would you be interested? I really enjoyed Freakaversity a lot so I'd love to hear your thoughts on the full game!

Submitted(+1)

Hey! Sure thing, would love to play. Funny that you mention that one, it might get it's sequel not long from now lol

(+1)

Oh man, I'd be super excited for a Freakaversity sequel! It really felt like the first chapter of a longer saga.

Email me at ravenmaster@nightwellgames.com or DM me on Discord at gwenckatz#0062 and I can get you your key!

Submitted(+1)

I took a break and checked out your game! Wow, I have to say it was really really interesting. Your writing really drew me in even though I don't usually read stories with a medieval setting and I am quite unfamiliar with a lot of the terms and setting. But it was fun learning about the Eastern European landscape in the Middle Ages... this is definitely new for me! I really like the subtle BGM... it is a great accompaniment for the story without giving away too much of what's to come. I kind of went around in circles a little when I got to the part where I was supposed to explore the village, but I really appreciate how the choices change and they guide you back to where you are supposed to go. Are there different endings to Chapter 1? I got myself in trouble at the end! LOL! 

One thing I would prefer though is having the option to rollback to a previous choice, and a history log for the VN so that I can go back and refer to details that came up before. But other than that I really like the game and the format that you've chosen! The hand-drawn illustrations really add to the experience!! I can't wait to see what eventually happens in the story!!! 

(+1)

Wow! What a huge story you've created. By far the most immersive storyline I've played in the jam so far with so many options playing through! I love that you actually feel you have to explore to progress and the sense of time going through the day is ace. Great work ! 

Submitted(+1)

I really enjoyed the story and your writing style, I'm excited to see what happens in the next chapters! :)

Since you were excited about the next chapters, I thought you'd like to know that the full game of The Wolf of Derevnya is out now on Steam! I'm giving out free keys to Spooktober people. I'd be happy to send you one!

Submitted(+1)

You had us at 'werewolf.'

Awesome little game. Really has the feel of an old-school choose-your-own adventure, which is what got our team into visual novels in the first place. Loved that little wave of nostalgia! Lovely but simple visuals, and a captivating story. Very atmospheric. Looking forward to future chapters as we learn more and more about the beast stalking the forest.

...We pet the cat a lot.

Submitted(+1)

This absolutely brought me back all the best kinds of nostalgia from my childhood when this sort of thing only existed in the form of choose-your-own-adventure books (at least as far as I knew when I was a kid with no laptop, haha.) Only this is even better because the sheer number of choices is a delight :3 As are the drawings that accompany the pages and the atmospheric music too.

I really enjoyed how many different things I could do. From the bigger choices to the smaller ones. And I especially loved being able to describe myself not just by picking a gender for reference, but also things about the character's past and how the people around them perceive them because of that.

I've only played the one time so far, and while I made sure to do a lot of digging around and interacting, I certainly haven't exhausted all the choices that are available. I generally chose to be as polite as possible. I don't want to spoil too much, but I started out making the sorts of choices I would make myself, such as attempting not to bother people with my problems. I was a little concerned that may wind up with my demise, haha. So I was pleasantly surprised when I discovered I was able to make those decisions and continue playing rather than being punished for being timid.

I definitely found myself wanting more once I reached the end, so I hope that development goes smoothly! :3 I'll be back for more in the future. I have a feeling that I may be wishing for the option of cheating like I used to with those books by putting my thumb on the choice page in case I make a decision that leads to my death because everything built up to be rather foreboding :D

Submitted(+1)

I truly enjoyed playing this one and was enthralled by the number of choices and branching paths!

Despite this being such an enticing mystery, I enjoyed being in the village, especially the Inn! The environments are charming and the game has a cozy feeling despite it being a mystery. The music fits well with each setting. Also...cat!

On the art, it fit very well in my opinion. Added to the cozy yet ancient and rustic feel. Like I cracked open an old age Goosebumps book and just got sucked in.

Zvezdana is also fun character, I love how she talks in her own puzzling way!

Hey, I just wanted to let you know that the complete game of The Wolf of Derevnya is out now on Steam and I'm giving out free keys to people who reviewed Chapter 1 during Spooktober. Would you like one? I'd love to hear your thoughts on the full game since Good Help was such a fun Spooktober entry!

Submitted(+1)

So much writing!  I love the whole world you've created here.

Submitted(+1)

I love the black and white theme, a bit of abstract art style and it fits the game perfectly. The UI really complicated the game by giving that old grim vibe from times when storys were still meant to scare people and warn them about the dangers.

Just wanted to let you know that the full game of The Wolf of Derevnya is out now on Steam and I'm giving away free keys to people who played Chapter 1 on Itch. Would you like me to send you one?

Submitted(+1)

An incredibly beautiful game! Combining it with the InkJam was a really great approach, and it really makes everything shine - from the backgrounds to even the UI.
I also greatly appreciate the sheer number of times you're able to pet the cat - best possible design choice.

Just letting you know that the full game is out now on Steam and I'm giving out free keys to people from Spooktober! Would you like one? Blue Thistle Ghosts was so gorgeous, I'd really like to hear your thoughts on the full game. (And yes, there's more cat-petting.)

Submitted(+1)

Congrats!! I'd definitely be interested - I'll dm you through the DevTalk server, if that works for you?

Submitted(+3)

I don't know how many times I PET THE CAT but I enjoyed it every time. uwu
Doing the world a favor by including a petting option when introducing an animal haha

This was fun. I love how it's different from most other VNs I've played in this jam - it's more like a choose your own adventure sort of game. Reminds me of those old text-only adventures but heightened with music, sfx, and some visuals for the settings on the right side. Nicely done! 👍

Submitted(+2)

I PET THE CAT!

The art style was minimalistic and very nice to look at. I enjoyed the story and the choices I made were fun.  Good job y'all.

Just letting you know that the full game of the Wolf of Derevnya is out now on Steam and I'm giving out free keys to Spooktober people. Would you like one?