Hi Aleksandar,
thank you for the detailed feedback and for establishing your rules of radical candor. I highly appreciate structured, thoughtful critiques, and I will gladly take a look at your submission in return!
1) The Positives:
Thank you for the kind words regarding the research, the neutral tone, and the generational loop. It means a lot that the uplifting intention of the game resonated with you.
2) The Mechanics:
You touch upon a fascinating design challenge. You are completely right that in real life, failing to regulate isn't about choosing a bad option, but a failure of capacity—lacking the mental clarity or energy in that specific moment.
In this game, that "capacity" is represented by the Battery and Pulse variables. Because you played very efficiently and reached the Flourishing ending, you likely missed the core "fail-state" mechanic: If your Battery drains too low or your Pulse spikes too high, the empathetic options actually lock and become unclickable (greyed out). The game physically removes your ability to "do the right thing," simulating that exact loss of capacity you described. It only feels easy if you manage your resources perfectly!
That being said, I really appreciate your suggestion of using mini-games in future projects to make that internal struggle even more visceral and mechanically complex. It’s a great idea.
3) Language Note:
Thank you for the proofreading! Just as a quick language note in return: while "next door" definitely refers to adjacent houses, in everyday conversational English it is also widely used to mean "the adjacent room" within the same house (short for "the room next door"). But I appreciate the keen eye.
Thanks again for your time, your effort, and the great review.