A well lit world with warm colors and friendly creatures.
To answer your inquiries and provide additional feedback:
If I didn't tell you the controls, would it have been obvious?
Not entirely. While some controls are intuitive to those who have previously played a video game, it is still favorable for special inputs to be explained. While “E” to interact or “shift” to accelerate movement are common binds, even experienced gamers occasionally get confused.
Even after being taught the controls, players can struggle to remember them without reinforcement. For example, a playtester of “Venue” was momentarily trapped in a menu immediately after learning the input to close it. Foregoing instruction and teaching nothing at all may enhance this issue because it adds an additional step where the player must first discover the control(s).
Is the direction of the game clear (like what to do)?
At times it can be confusing. Searching for “a specific berry bush in a ‘different’ part of the forest” is vague and somewhat misleading. Players might assume they need to traverse the land instead of just looking below them, and the small sparkle effect coming from the charm may be difficult to see. It’s also possible to kick the charm model away from its hitbox, which requires returning to the “sparkle” to pick it up.
Later on, when tasked with berry-picking, the requirement of a basket is slightly unclear. If a player is not paying attention to the Bear’s dialog, they may not realize what is being asked of them. The basket itself does not stand out very much, and the “sparkle” effect appears below the table. Having some sort of prompt display around interactable items can easily solve this and save players from potential confusion. Alternatively, interacting with the Bear again could remind the player that a basket is needed to fetch berries.
How would you enhance the art style?
The water shader has beauty in its realism, but the shimmering caustics and highly detailed normal mapping are unlike anything else in the game. A more stylized approach to water would fit this world better.
No changes to the models are necessary. The characters and structures have a cohesive style, blending together easily to create a simple and inviting atmosphere. Adding more details to the sky and terrain would further improve that, such as a cloudy, pink sky to complement the setting sun and more varied land elevation.
The voice acting is also quite nice, but the volume should be increased.