i'm not sure i've ever played a puzzle game quite like this before (which is a plus from me!). it's action-oriented, in some sense, with the HP systems requiring micromanagement of the combat, but it's also very surely discretized to a grid and turn system like many other puzzle games. this is an interesting combo, and it definitely took some getting used to! i found in some of the later puzzles i was a bit annoyed at how finicky it could be, especially when i needed Val to attack higher-health enemies without losing all her HP. i think the map i won on may have had a somewhat lucky/convenient layout.
still, i did manage to get through all the puzzles, and ultimately i think i enjoyed them. there is something satisfying about completing these tasks indirectly as a ghost. it feels good to make efficient use of the abilities that you currently have available, and it's neat how you can dynamically choose from several strategies based on the current layout + your current ability set.
of course, with the combat, you do have to wait until you get "possess" sometimes as you really need the healing ability. i actually think when the tension got higher is when i started enjoying the end-game puzzles more--once i actually had some progress nailed down, it became critical to keep away all the scary enemies while i stalled for the possess ability, and making use of the less controllable haunt and spook abilities was engaging! i suppose it was more the perceived tedium that annoyed me at the beginning of the puzzle but not once i was actually playing it.
the way that the HP system does not actually kill anyone but just undresses them was nice. it gives the game a definite kinky twist, where suddenly i have the power to, like, undress these folks if i so wish.
a couple nitpicks:
- i have to change the resolution on my screen for the UI elements to appear at a more reasonable scale.
- i find the candle system slightly frustrating sometimes. specifically, the way that you can click an ability multiple times but it doesn't appear to actually do anything. for example, sometimes i wanted to try to use "possess" several times just to boost the HP several times but it didn't work. i think maybe the abilities should get grayed out if they can't be activated again.
- like some other commenters, i also would have liked some kind of thing to check what an ability did before using it.
- i also had the issue where objects sometimes wouldn't appear. i think one puzzle was something like "activated 3 bookshelves" and 3 never generated--is this intentional? i did eventually realize i could just re-use one of them for multiple activations, so it does make sense to me, but i thought i should mention it.
to end on a positive note, i quite like the art & animations! the candle art especially is super fun including the little swinging animations from turn to turn.