I made it through to what appears to be the end, based on some comments below (got the air element).
My thoughts:
- The environments look really good, and the level design challenges are great; I enjoyed them.
- The element switching feels cool, and I like that we have some idea of what is still coming (water and earth, presumably), but that there's also different powers that can be unlocked per element (e.g. both the dash / walk in fire and the fire shot).
- My single biggest gripe with this game is that fire pillars instant kills you (or does so much damage that I just died instantly every time), especially in a game where checkpoints can be way off and a number of levers could be pulled that need to now be repulled.
- I also had a lot of trouble with the combat primarily the sluggish feel / long wind-up that doesn't feel/look deliberate, but also the short attack range). I basically never fought the little horned dudes that chase you when you're close because once I start I always take damage. And the flying enemies are just as bad, given how much damage it takes to kill them. It makes it feel like combat isn't generally worth it.
- The bosses were great, if a bit frustrating due to the combat things noted above. There were also a few attacks that felt a bit blindsiding; e.g. the first boss's arms up maneuver that summons the flame floor felt like it had no telegraph at all and just happened instantly, so when I was next to him I just instant took damage. (Though, to be fair, that's not necessarily a problem, since I did learn my lesson after that.)
- The fact that you can't use lanterns again after they're activated feels perhaps a bit too harsh, especially in a metroidvania, where you're likely to go one direction and then come back the other way past a lantern, unable to heal up. It feels like no-heal sections should be more closely curated by the level design.
- I never really used the heal until the last boss, because I couldn't figure out how to recover energy. (After my first heals, I assumed it would be attacking, and tested it, and found it didn't work, because I just did a single attack, not a combo, another feature I realised later than I should.) I might just have missed the tutorial for that, so potentially just a me thing.
That's about it. Sorry if it repeats some things other people have said.
Overall, I really enjoyed this, and it feels really solid. There's some rough edges in terms of the character controller, particularly with stuff related to combat, but also with some quality of life platforming stuff like coyote time and jump buffers, but all that can be attributed to jam timelines, especially with how much content there is in this. Fantastic stuff; well done!