Review time. It is a real shame I couldnt make the video this time, since I think you would have benefited greatly from it, especially on level 3 which was extremely frustrating to me.

So, you set to make the winning game this year, and you almost did it, or maybe you even did do so, since this years entries are in my opinion not as strong as usual. That It seems there was not a single complete game, but all ran out of time. Your game was actually only one I at least thought was about complete, although shorter than it was originally supposed to be, but based upon the bugs and problems i encountered, I guess you ran out of time too. Well, this might still end up being the winner. Or actually, right now any game can end up being a winner since it seems to me that You and Me are only ones voting, so if one of us happened to like some obscure game a lot, it might end up winning the whole thing, unless more votes start coming in.

But to game itself. Fame itself, the idea etc. was very good. I liked the puzzle nature, mood etc. in this game a lot. However, some bugs and flaws however downplayed this game surprisingly much actually.

One issue was about how to play the game. I first test accidentally picked the light saber and didnt even realise I did so (when i tested if it works without video recroder) then next I played for real and started looking for that light thing, then saw stick on floor and figured i need to pick it, but how? Well eventually i went on top of it and got it. I however wasnt sure how i got it, but at later in game I realised that everything worked automatically just by going close to them, which was a good choice by the way.

However, this issue was quite minimal issue, since you had chosen to use very small sized levels, so sooner or later the player will accindentally figure out how to do things. A very good choice in my opinion.

This small sized levels helped in future levels too, since while there was somewhat lot of confusion on things, like in second level I didnt at first even know to what I died for when I went close to first door, and this was naturally confusing, it didnt really matter much, since level was anyway small enough. They were small enough that this kind of confusion was affordable and it actually helped with building the real puzzle nature of the game that you actually had to discover what to do in them, and they could basically be pretty much anything, making it a very fun discovery.

You could even say that what you lost in confusion, you won in making the puzzles more puzzle nature, instead of straightforward puzzles with rules. So in the end they balanced each other out.

But then there were some real issues that would sometimes make even despite the small level size, puzzles be hard to figure out.

In first level if you went first to door, you saw the message of not enough light. But if you didnt, and even worse, didnt even check the sign, you could pick up the lightsaber and then hear sound of locked door when you go to door. Now what is there to do after that anymore? Well, in first level you would probably sooner or later try the door again and get through, but in second level this was much worse.

I saw the sign, and then I looked at floor in front of that wrong door being different, so i figured maybe I am supposed to walk at some right spot to that door. So i tried and "you chose wrong way". Well okay, "try again" and a new plan. hmm. Perhaps not by sight means one if these rocks are a fake rock. So i started going through rocks until I got to that beginning opening that I hadnt noticed before. Ah, heres another door. Now I found another door, ha, this must be the right one, this was clever. Except... locked sound. Hu?, it wasnt the right door, then what am i supposed to do.

After some time I come to conclusion that perhaps there is bug in this game that I actually need to read the sign first. So i read the sign first, then go to door, and voila. Now I got through. But this isnt something player should need to figure out. All player should need to figure out is to find that second door. Not that you need to read a sign too first.

From second level, we get to the most frustrating level in the game, the level 3. Oh boy, this was so frustrating it probably took one star out in many categories.

First of all, Dont put that many candles. Part of the frustration came from FPS being maybe only 3 or something at times when there were so many candles, especially since there was no use for that many candles, they actually created some extra confusion there, for first I didnt realise I was dieing for the chest, but it seemed to me like I died trying to lit those two candles right beside the sign. Not even sure how I ended up touching the chest in that.

With this very slow speed, trying to lit the right candles was very difficult, since there were dozens of candles, and only one of them would lit. Especially at beginning when I thought most candles were there to kill me this was specially frustrating. On top of that, you had some really strange movement system I couldnt quite figure out even in the end. I guess idea was to prevent player from moving too far in to darkness, that you had to have light to get there. But at statrt this invisible wall was simply confusing, and on top of that, it seemed to move the player real strangely and I could never make sense to it. At some point it looked like it would automatically move me towards that chest, but that wasnt true. Then it seemed like there were some blocks. Like first candle need to be lit on left side of chest. then second and third on right side. THe fourth would be on left side, but you could get there from front of chest, but had to go from behind the chest, and all this starnge restriction.

When I finally got way to door open, I go open the door, and I am stuck behind the open door, on left side of it, and I simply cant move. At this time I quit and go check your playtrhough instructions, which says I can open the chest in the end, but actually I dont think I can, or at least I didnt, but got finally through the door after lot of struggle and frustration again, even I already knew what I had to do. This level really failed your game badly since I liked that levels idea, but its execution was simply single most terrible experience in all of these speedgames, and that is a real shame, since this level too was actually good in its design etc. just its execution was horribly frustrating experience.

4th level was somewhat funny idea. I also first missed that money graphcis, thought they were some bricks, so i figured, apples or bricks, well, i guess it is bricks. But cleverly it was actually the apples. I first thought you sort of made mistake there, until i realised the other one was money and this was a clever playing with our imagery, that basically we think apples as bad (although it was actually unmentioned fruit in reality), but here we see that here we have like God giving instruction on you can take these, so this direct command goes above the idea that something is bad. Like Dont kill, but when going to promised land, kill them all.

5th level didnt feel very natural. It was important from storywise point of view that you had to choose cross. But main problem was that you never really thought about them locusts as a bad thing. It also felt very much glued into game to get the Joel verse there to justify it as basis for the game. 5th level was definitely the least clever of all the levels and only one that didnt quite seem worthy of being in the game.

From this I get in to the christian message part. This was basically A great example on how to put christian message in game and mechanics. Great implementation basically, however, I am going to rate only 3 or 4 in this case, not because the message part wasnt grat, I actually think you made best implementation of christian teaching this year, but there is one problem competition wise. As we were supposed to use at least one of those given verses as basis of our game, then while I think you had great implementation of teaching, it was actually teaching something else than any of those verses, and for that I need to punish you a bit. If we had had one of those light verses that you are already using, I might have given you 5 stars actually. But understand, only reason you are not getting that many stars from me, is because you sort of didnt get it done in competition rules so to say.

I really liked how those levels played out, that there was mechanic and allegorical sense in them. You need more light (scripture) to see the door(way).

Second level you dont pick the obvious and easy road, but you have to search for the scriptures for the right road which might not seem natural to flesh and you might not see the goal until you reach it.

Third one you shouldnt go for earthly riches, but light your way with scruipture, and more light/scripture you have, further you can go and finally reach the door.

Then at fourth came the idea that apple which we generally thought bad was okay, since you are clearly said you are free to take it. On the other hand, money on the ground we were not told we can take.

In fifth you go to christ even when it is scary and you get there.

Great teaching in mechanics and game itself. Really great one, and bit of a shame having to punish you on that, since this was such a brilliant christian teaching implementation, just from wrong verses.

I almost forgot to mention one thing, there was some responsiveness issue with clicking "yes" or "no" after dieing, which also affected the fun a bit, especially after already being frustrated not figuring out what even killed you, then having to click several times or for long to make sure it reacts to it, makes you frustrated even more.

All in all, if this game had worked better, this had been a clear winner in my mind. Right now these bugs are actually affecting the game a lot. Thanks to this years entries all being very unfinished, you might still end up winning. But man, had this been bug free, I would have very much enjoyed playing this, such nice little puzzles that i enjoyed every single one (even the last one despite it not being that good compared to rest), only frustrating bugs destroying the fun, especially on level 3. Having this good puzzles alone is a rarity in games, especially with such a variety and in combination with supporting scriptures. Graphics, music all working well together. I do think this is worth fixing, since this will be nice little game for christians to play out as a snack even in future.