Thank you very much for this very detailed comment.
I'm glad you liked the vibe of the game, its weirdness and presentation, and the "instructions manual" mechanic (but I can't take credit for the idea, though, because it's something I took from Tunic).
I greatly appreciate that despite all the bugs you tried more than once. I'll have to check the disappearing characters (because it should happen only to those you can control when you left a room (and there is still a lack of feedback on that action)). The backpack shouldn't be single-use, that's something I have to fix too.
I agree that the characters' abilities should be better exploited. Maybe I can include some of that in the post-jam version, but I feel that will be something I can better accomplish in a later game set in the same world. And the kissing mechanic is something I thought I would have the time to implement but couldn't in the end (and forgot to remove the thing from the manual). As for the "strong gating", I'll have to evaluate if the game experience is not greatly affected by allowing to control all the characters from the beginning, but it's an interesting analysis you make about it.
No one had mentioned the dialogue options, but I'll take your suggestions to make them more noticeable, and fit the aesthetics of everything else.
I'll try to play your game before the voting period ends.