I think the loop is a double edged sword in this as a hard fail, forcing the full reset is probably too harsh a penalty given that using a word that's later on in the loop just isn't allowed. On the flip side that it does eventually need to complete a loop it does provide some hint as word in this direction. Which is very neat.
Viewing post in Words In The Loop jam comments
Thanks for your feedback and I agree that a complete retry and having to remember the proper directions on a reattempt is a bit harsh.
Perhaps after the rating time is over I'll put in some more time and effort - I could probably just penalize with time and undo the latest word quite easily in the case of missing the loop. I put in almost a continuous 24 hours at the start of the Jam, but I had to work over the weekend so my effort slowed after a fully playable version was ready.
Thanks for your comment again. I've quickly modified the behavior and now the game offers an Undo for your most recent word. As you stated, the hard fail forcing a full reset was too harsh. With this undo, you can simply retry the most recent word to keep you in the loop!
https://lostwords.itch.io/loop/devlog/1009043/improvements
I'm please to announce that I've submitted to another Game Jam! This time I spent one week building a game with the chosen theme: "Risk it for the Biscuit" with Brackey's Game Jam hosted at Itch.
“Crumb Quest” is a first-person puzzle-shooter where every move counts as you collect the ingredients to make different traditional British 'Biscuits'.
There are 5 fully playable levels as well as a short tutorial level.
Please play and submit a fair rating when you can.
Rate it here: https://itch.io/jam/brackeys-14/rate/3842322