Hi! I just played your submission and here is some comments in case your interested:
- I liked the sand element of the game. I was excited to search for the secret paths and it was also great that you managed to use the same mechanics for making traps. This felt like a solid foundation for a game.
- Although, I didn't feel the connection with the theme. Maybe the idea was that the character is not meant to collect treasures in the temple? But that is not a feeling I get as a player. From the player's perspective, I know I am supposed to search through the temple. I don't feel like I am being discouraged for being there. Instead the opposite, I feel like I should continue searching the temple and I'm constantly rewarded with money for doing this.
- The graphics were overall nice for the aesthetic you chose and the 8-bit music + simple platformer type of game supported that as well. My only problem with the graphics were the sand blocks. It was not always clear whether they were on or off as it seemed I could jump on them when they are only vaguely visible. Sometimes it looked like I was running in the air! I would have needed this to be a lot clearer
- The gameplay was fun. Especially I enjoyed searching for the secrets. Most of the puzzles were interesting: non-trivial to find but not impossible.
- At first I was frustrated with starting from the beginning each time but after I realized I could memorize the map, that also became and fun part of the game as I needed to get back to where I died as fast as possible. It was a good choice that I can keep previously collected money. If that weren't the case I would have quickly lost interest in playing as it would have felt too punishing.
- The ending was both funny and clever. I enjoyed the boss fight.
- After the boss room, it was unclear to me at first what the rope was (was it even a rope?) and it took a long time to understand how to climb it. It was very weird that at the end of the game. I had to use a new keyboard button that I had never used before in the game and it was not instructed anywhere. All the other keys were easy to guess, but I don't know how I was supposed to figure this out. Luckily I managed to figure it out at the end.
- The gravity was super heavy.
Overall, the game was enjoyable and nicely executed short experience that fit well the game jam game genre, even though I didn't feel the connection to the theme of this jam. If there is anything else you would want to hear feedback on regarding your game, feel free to ask and I'll provide my opinion. I would also be very happy if you had an interest in trying my jam submission and leaving some feedback on it.