The opening immediately pulled me in. The retro art style, typography, and overall presentation feel really cohesive, and I especially liked the music. It created a very strong first impression.
I’m currently stuck at the second monster and have died about five times so far. I’m definitely not an experienced action-game player, so I think we may be mutually torturing each other with our preferred genres, haha. For players like me, a slightly smaller danger range—or a clearer indication of when and where the monster can hit you—might make this section a little easier to understand.
The potion tutorial also took me quite a while to figure out. Because of the pixel font, I initially couldn’t clearly identify which buttons the character was referring to. I eventually understood that it was LMB to pick up the potion, RMB to drink it, and SPACE to transform, but having all three controls inside one long sentence made them difficult to spot quickly. I was also playing on a trackpad without a mouse, so the right-click requirement made the whole sequence even harder for me.
It might help to show the controls on separate lines, use clearer key icons, or introduce each action one step at a time. Also, unless the player can choose when to transform or repeatedly switch between forms, pressing SPACE after already drinking the potion feels a little unnecessary. Having the transformation happen immediately after drinking might make the interaction smoother.
One other small thing: I really liked the music, but after clicking around for a while, it suddenly stopped completely. I’m not sure what triggered it, but it may be worth checking.
Even with all my deaths, the visual style and atmosphere made me want to keep trying. This is a really great submission!
P.S. I also love how you designed the itch.io page itself—it makes the whole project feel like a complete visual world.