Really clever mechanic! I couldn't go far though, mainly because of the camera that doesn't show much of what's ahead (I would see 3 tiles in front of me and 10 or 15 behind me.) I would recomand to add a target that's a bit ahead of the player in the direction they're facing, and aim the camera toward that.
It is still one of the most clever games I saw made for this jam, well done!