itch.io

That was a wild ride of a game, good lord (that's a good thing). 

Solid d6 dice pool game, I like the roll tables, though your core game loop has a REALLY harsh death spiral. As in, chance of success goes: 4d6=51%, 3d6=42%, 2d6=30%, 1d6=16%

The player will die within something like 10 rolls. I know it's supposed to be punishing, but it's also essentially impossible. (Which is kind of cool in it's own right). Consider emphasizing that the game is a meat grinder or adding some kind of lateral character development to give things direction. 

I love the vibe, and giving the character a very specific win con is also nice for a short game. I really love the roll tables, though I might add one for the south tower, or otherwise expedite it's lore. It's not super important to the hero's journey, whereas the intro contained both the world and the game premise. 

This would be one hell of solo journaling game, so maybe lean into the inevitability of the hero's death and more guidance on what actions prompt a roll. 

I hope that didn't sound too critical, because this is a very very solid game, and I'll try it next time I have an afternoon. Nice work. :)

This game absolutely captures the Grant Howitt spirit. Fantastic work and drawings. 

Constructive criticism:

 - The wording is muddy in places. Avoid passive voice when possible. Especially in mechanically dense parts, like Evolving and Setting Difficulties. 

- From a rules perspective, trash only works as HP right now. Consider doing positional advantages for using your toolkit in a narratively interesting way. 

- Could be a strength or weakness for 1 shots, but a raccoon can max out their skills within a few hours of play.

Absolute bangers:

- The random gen tables are surprisingly robust. Including how efficiently they seed lore.

- Perfect drawings 10/10 no notes

- Giving a gun to something not typically gun wielding is the highest form of humor

- Mixes cute, funny, post apocalypse really well. 

My final thoughts: Tbh I think you should lean into the silliness even more. It's a good game, don't be afraid to make the rules as weird as the subject matter. Excellent overall. <3

This is profoundly good, and it also took me even longer than 6 years to get it. And like, I didn't even realize I was there until I read it just now. Strangely, a required reading for all designers. 

Ah, I thought I'd already submitted. Thanks for the reminder, I'll have it in soon! 

Review straight from the host of the jam lets G O!!
I was checking out your work literally an hour ago, phenomenal. Thanks for the read through.

Give it another shot before the deadline, I'll have a little more cohesive art (and a LOT more ink efficiency). c: 

Woah, thank you so much for detailed comment.

Using molt was more tenuous for sure. If I did a revision, I'd make it more clear that shedding the mask to become death knight was a more explicit metaphor for metamorphosis. Follow the project, I'll see what feels right.

The stress thing is a good point, cumulative would basically be a softlock lmao. Reset on new loops for sure.

Again, thank you for the pointers! Good luck on your game!

Thank you so much for reading! We really wanted to bake the lore into the mechanics (which helped with brevity).

This is the first comment I've received on itch, that means a lot to me. :) 

I'll do a game update post-jam, so follow the project for errata/art/other fun stuff.