YES! This is why I make games - wall texts <3
> About the art in general - I'll have to agree. My main focus was always the storytelling. I consider myself good at "concepts" but not so at "execution". Everything that you've pointed out was a concern during the development period, but we decided to focus on the core and let the result of the contest decide for us, whether or not we're going to spend time (and possibly money hiring someone) to improve the visuals.
> The portraits' color, yeah, we sometimes try to keep the "VideoGame" look to keep the player's guard down. In other words, a serious story can hit even harder when the player doesn't expect it from a colorful and simple game. But sometimes it can be bad to try getting the best from both worlds - we'll definitely make some changes adjusting the visuals to fit in the game's tone. Thanks a lot for pointing it out.
> Audio: I was kinda afraid to use music and SEs, due to the dangers of copyright infringement (Most of the SE sites make it hard to understand their policies about the use of resources) - I really thought the contest would reward original resources, that's why I didn't use Scripts or SEs that I use in my main project. Making music was painful and the result wasn't satisfactory at all. Improvements on sound in general are definitely a priority for the future.
> I'll have to go into Spoiler territory, but don't worry: You're right, I focused on story and only one type of mechanic per Stage, thanks to the fact that every Stage will be revisited when Dr. Laura "joins the team". She, as a psychiatrist, will be the one solving puzzles to help Elisa understand the real meaning of every clue/character that she had interacted with.
Color clues: well, the Red Moon is Laura, so that kinda emplies that she already went through all the drawing with Elisa before.
Blue Moon is Elisa's Denial mechanism giving you health so you can keep your delusions - unfortunately, the story process didn't allow me to show these details so early in the game. I could do it, but it would be forced, so I decided to wait for the right timing.
> Gawd damn those candles... I'm gonna put a thousand arrows pointing to the basement =D
> Characters: They were inspired by real people. I think this is the best way to connect with the player. We all went through similar paths in our lives, I guess, and I'm glad to know some of the characters managed to bring you memories from real people - it's always my goal.
>The mother is... basically my mother =D It's really hard to flesh out a "binary" character, as I call it. Every conversation has its goal, but it's easy to get off the rails when portraying a complex character in simple dialogue. I'll definitely study her persona and try to show her colors in a more effective way to the player.
> You're absolutely right about Dr. Laura. The Psychology element wasn't well portrayed at all, but there's a reason. Think about it this way: Laura is not talking to Elisa, she's trying to break her delusions created by Denial, guilt and defence mechanisms. After the last scene, she'll calm down and talk to the real Elisa, because they've been through all that before.
BUT, yeah, I'll study/read a little bit more when the time comes to portray an actual psychiatrist. I've tried to watch movies about it, but they too tend to exaggerate things a bit for the purpose of entertainment.
> Short scenes: they'll be revisited from Laura's point of view, don't worry o/
> Water Stage: the mysterious NPC is the Red Moon =D The stage was shorter given the fact that Elisa was running against time, also... I was running against time in the game development - kinda meta, one could say, tee hee - But yeah, I agree it was a shallow stage...
> You got it right about the Ending. It' more like "Elisa was twisting some of the clues and interpretations in order to fit in her own version of the story". There was a discarded scene in which the player sees Elisa going to the basement and picking up the box - I'm gonna add it as soon as I return to the Dev process.
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Abso-f*cking-lutely. That's exactly how one develops, and I really appreciate true criticism. I'll definetely read your text along the Dev process to make sure everything is receiving the attention it needs.
Thanks a LOT for your comment! And I'm glad you enjoyed the game despite its flaws.