I have completed the game (MOONFLOWER with all optional challenges), playing the PNG version first followed by 0.5PLAYER. I have immense respect for its difficulty; I enjoyed how clever the puzzles were, how well-designed the world felt, and how effectively the game taught me its internal logic (well maybe except the blue and purple zones).
The fact that it’s a static image lodged the game deep in my skull, forcing me to stare at it on my phone during every free second I had to think through new puzzles.
It is easily one of my favorite puzzle games to date. If you too enjoyed it, I highly recommend Linelith for the similar ways it plays with level boundaries and the world outside of them, cleverly teaching you and subverting what you think about the world.
That being said, I struggle to see why a static PNG file would be preferable to an actual playable game. The format does force you to be more focused to unequivocally deduce each element of the logic, and it does allow you to play whenever, wherever, but it also makes you fight against the medium. Since you can't simply draw on the image, some puzzles practically force you to cut, paste, or paint over existing blocks. It feels like you are role-playing the act of playing a game instead of actually playing it. It even features the mouse and arrow keys instructions in the corner. Unlike the classic pen and paper logic games like nonograms or sudoku, it feels like it wasn't designed for pen and paper, so it doesn't quite work by just scribbling on the image.
This didn't diminish my love for the game, but it did bring some frustration to my experience. I would happily pay full price for a fully playable version in the future.
💚💛💙🧡❤️💜🤍💟