I'm going to add to my review later as I'm still playing it since yesterday, but this is 100% my favorite game of the entire Jam. I also loved seeing the shop and character from your last game as an easter egg.
The atmosphere and setting was incredible. You had a great use of sound and effects used and music that fit in all the right places..
But god are you an amazing writer and good at immersion. You also make a good use of funny serious and dramatic/scary and eerie elements in one. Also if anyone hurts Ratsby I am coming after them I stg.
You're characters are fun and interesting and it really sets you into the story and what's going on around you. The type of story and the garbage collecting and the incinerator was unique and creative. It feels like you perfectly thought of each voting aspect and area and contributed evenly. The pacing is good. The mechanics feel nice.
I love the battlers, and the fact you were able to make a game this good at this length is really freaking incredible. I'm seriously impressed. It would be my pick to win, personally. There were a lot of games I loved in this Jam but this one captured me the most. I can't wait to keep playing, it's SO sooo good.
Viewing post in The Recycler jam comments
Thank you so much for playing! I'm really glad you enjoyed it so much. I wasn't really sure where the concept for the game would go at first; the very first idea was for it to be a collectathon game where you find more and more unusual items as you go on, but I decided that it needed more than that if I wanted to make a good story. I'm glad you love the battlers. I loved making them! I'm not a pixel artist, but I definitely want to contribute something to make my games stand out so it's not just a mash of rtp and edits. My battlers are how I'm doing it.
I'm glad you found everything. I really decided to see how much I could throw into this game, especially since one of the challenges I chose was Infinity. I almost made the garbage piles endlessly lootable, but that would've made the game too easy and I wanted some challenge to it. I'm also really happy with how the story came out. Bobert was originally supposed to be silent, but after a few lines, I really loved how his personality was coming out and I thought he'd be the most interesting hero I could make. Near the end, I wasn't sure how well he'd be liked because he wasn't afraid of what he was facing until he started seeing how it'd affect his entire world. I also wanted the incinerator to be important because Bobert's the central character. Recycling and garbage collecting were a must for him!
I genuinely think this was the most ambitious game from the jam. You completed a full game from start to finish with side quests and collectables and everything felt right. Nothing felt rushed and the pacing was really good. I loved Boberts personality! You are fantastic at making characters. Such an awesome game. I always look forward to your games Dora! Thank you for making this ^^