What i liked:
- Art and audio was high quality. The ambient looping track did get old after a while, and definitely could've used some variety in later sections, such as during the horse section or the axes section. Footsteps were great, and collecting sfx were perfect.
- UI was clear, pleasing and had no issues.
- The time slow mechanic worked as intended.
- I had no issues collecting anything, like potions or lockpicks
- I didn't find any bugs, save for the occasional instance of hugging a wall while airborne causing reduced fall speed, which didn't break anything
-The lockpicking being random every time (i think) is a nice touch
What I didn't like (nitpicks):
- Collecting individual coin piles lost meaning very quickly, especially since the goal switched from "make number go up" to "survive". Also, collecting the piles felt way less satisfying than collecting the huge gold heaps on the ground.
- The health system was unclear. It was unclear as to how much damage things would do unless you tested it.
- The horse, while interesting at first, lacked any challenge whatsoever, since the player is faster than it by default. After I realized that, the mild threat he possessed disappeared instantly. He also doesn't kill you instantly (which i think he should). I also think the horse sfx that plays should be more direction based rather than omnipotent, but that's just a personal opinion
- I found myself deliberately avoiding the slowdown mechanic unless it was absolutely required, which happened only once (swinging axes section towards the end, specifically the final narrow bridge). It took away any semblance of challenge. I don't think it's a bad mechanic, but I do think some sections should rely on it more.
- The lockpicking mechanic is extremely finicky, to the point where i would attempt to pick it, fail, go to seemingly the exact same spot, and then it would work. I think it would do better to have slightly more forgiveness in order to combat frustration.
- The lockpicking mechanic is required exactly one time, which is a shame because aside from the precision required it is executed really well. I found myself disappointed that more often than not the only thing behind the locked door was some coins and the occasional mana refresh.
- The board with the horse was too large and empty to me, I wandered around for a long time before finally finding the path forward. I think the game would benefit from some very minor hints at direction that the player can choose to ignore, rather than offering nothing at all.
Overall, this game is incredibly polished for how short of time you had to work on it. I think all it needs to be spotless is some minor tweaks to emphasize the use of the mechanics more, but the main concepts are all there.