Free or $1? Does that really make such a huge difference to people
Yes. This is Itch.
You are a developer and see it from a developer's perspective.
Let me give you a user's perspective. About Steam and Itch.
What do I think when I see a free game, paywhatyouwant game, a $ 1 game, a $ 10 game, a $ 20 game and a $ 50 game on these platforms? By price alone.
Steam
Free. Probably in-app purchases or selling my data
pwyw. Does not really exist beyond some dlcs like buy the dev a coffey dlc.
1$. Why. Is that a joke. Can't be good.
10$ Realistic price for an indie title. Let's have a look, should it fit into my usual games. Maybe there is good value.
20$ Indie game with higher expectations.
50$ Starting for aaa. Buy on a discount.
Itch
Free. Dev did not want to deal with money. Maybe links to other platforms like Patreon.
Pay What you want. Standard Itch scheme. If I like the description I might play it, if I like the game, I might spend on it.
1$. Why. Is that a joke. Can't be good. Seriously. That is barely paying the fees. Does the dev even know how Itch works?
10$ and 20$ Hmm. Either that is a good game or the dev is unrealistic. If there is a demo, I might try. If not, the dev seems to not understand Itch or is very famous and successful elsewhere.
50$ Suspicous.
My opinion is, that asking for 1 $ is not wise on Itch. Especially if you have no demo version. It is the minimum amount you can pay anyways and if people do take that at face value, the fees are hurting badly. There is no easy refunding on Itch, as it is on Steam. So I am very suspicious that the dev might have put out a shovelware game that is very bad and not giving a demo version, so people will not know, but asking 1 $, so some might buy it, and have little regrets and not ask for a refund.
Since you put your development activity on hold, you might try the standard Itch pricing scheme of pay what you want. It looks more inviting, at least to me, than having $ 1 games that are on 100% sale.
I would rather play a free game and maybe spend money on it, than download a $ 1 game that is on 100% sale. I would expect the $ 1 game to be a waste of my time, even if it were not on sale and someone had gifted it to me, so I would know: ohhh, that is a game worth 1 $. Also, my attitude of giving money to a free game would be shifted. I would have the attitude of having received a paid game for free. Business done. No more donations needed.