andsndnds help this was so silly XD
(SPOILERS)
i really loved the escalation from "awww this seems so cute!" to "woah looks like this girl is a prankster" to "holy shit she's a literal criminal" to "omfg she's getting brutally maimed" lol. it's such a fun progression and i was never sure how far the next part would go haha. and the general map design and story do a great job in guiding you to the next step; i usually get really stuck in puzzles like this, or parts that involve resetting the game and playing again, but the way everything is laid out made the progression really intuitive. and the plot was really fun! opening each present is goddamn hilarious, and the ending is surprisingly touching. i also really like how the plot integrates the myth trope of "if you do this one bad thing on this one time of the year, you'll be cursed", and it feels really natural in this world. i will admit i got a bit confused by the end; she got horrible presents because she opened them early, so does that mean when she travelled one day back in time, all the horrible things she did to the townspeople didn't happen? idk maybe i misinterpreted something.
the art was great!! tricky's design is super cute, and every picture that appears when she opens a present was really funny and brutal. and the ending where she gets actually good presents is adorable!! i also love how her appearance feeds into the subversion where she actually isn't as innocent as she seems, but from the beginning there's subtle signs that lead to it, like her name (tricksterra doucheberg is an A+++ name) or the pentagram on the christmas tree. it's extremely clever! also, the music that plays is great and gives perfect christmas vibes to the whole game (and i love how it cuts out with each present lol). i'm guessing it's intended, cuz of how the global switches in the game work, but i was a bit bummed out that i couldn't open the last three gifts again after i finished the game, cuz after opening the first three it only lets you open your mom's (though maybe saying that i want to see tricky get killed again is a sign that i'm insane. oh well :P).
this was really original and cute! and i don't know what universe this is set in, but if it's somewhere where a random wizard can make birds shit all over my home i am getting as far away from it as possible :D