Thank you so much for the feedback, Meru! As always, it's great to get your comments.
Regarding the scene where the protagonist opens the door, I had intended to add more animation in the background, even showing the protagonist’s hand shaking while holding the doorknob. However, time was a bit tight, so I decided to go for a more static impact, adding just the subtle animation of the darkness dissipating to reveal the body.
And yes! You understood the mushroom scene perfectly. It was an implicit representation of the protagonist’s failed attempts until he finally finds the cure.
It’s a shame that the audio issue occurred during export. It was working perfectly on my end, but it seems like it only played through the right channel for you. I really need to figure out what caused that bug, especially since I remember you mentioned something similar happened in my game Gastronoir as well (I actually tried a fix in that one because of your previous comment, but unfortunately, it seems it didn’t work).
I'm really glad you enjoyed the story. A fun but almost imperceptible detail is that the duration of the butterfly scene crossing the screen is exactly 5 seconds, and the animation of its wings flapping completes 5 cycles before it disappears completely.
A game that does a great job capturing the science fiction atmosphere it sets out to create. It’s clear that the entire game was designed with maximum immersion in mind, from the interfaces to the sound effects and dialogues, all of which are really well done, especially when experienced together.
The feeling of being a leader can be tense at times haha, especially for someone like me who’s never liked being in charge of anything in real life. However, the experience of leading the ship through space and completing the missions is truly rewarding.
Since we're limited to just one room, the sense of immersion the player feels from the environment is crucial to creating something satisfying to play. I’d say the game focuses more on emotion than action, even though we can control some aspects through the other crew members.
The scope is really ambitious, but in a great way because it gives us a glimpse of a game with a lot of potential for expansion. After all, in space, there’s so much more we could do.
You managed to make the environment feel alive with the communications with other ships, which shows a lot of care and attention to detail in the game itself, drawing the player in with those little touches.
One area that could be further improved is the visual atmosphere. I think the windows could have objects outside them, but they don't necessarily need to be 3D models like the rest of the game. Simple 2D drawings with parallax movement and some random animations could be enough to create a sense of depth and a constantly moving environment, without the complexity of 3D models.
The sound effects are also quite pleasant and blend harmoniously with the rest of the game. Honestly, great work! I hope that at some point you continue with the project and expand it further, with more missions, endings, and potential game-over scenarios (maybe instead of just exploding the ship, the crew could end up on an unknown planet and become prisoners? That would make for an interesting game over).
The game is truly very good and I’d say it has a unique atmosphere. In a way, the graphics brought me nostalgia — maybe because of the visual effects present in the game environment.
Speaking of the environment, it turned out great and very well organized. Even though it’s small, you can feel that everything was placed exactly where it should be, delivering a satisfying gameplay experience.
I really liked the audio design too, especially the narration. The radio-like style added a lot of life to the atmosphere, making the world much more immersive.
The mechanic of throwing the packages is pretty cool as well, although it’s a bit challenging to understand what needs to be done at first. A short tutorial would be essential so that as many players as possible can understand right from the start.
Great game — I found it really fun. Congratulations and I wish you good luck in the Jam!
The game has a decorating mechanic that can definitely be expanded even more (though it's already quite extensive). I really enjoyed designing my own little apartment, though it’s clear I have no talent for decoration—if I worked as an interior designer, I’d be fired on my first day, haha!
The possibilities are so wide that a tutorial would be essential to help players understand how everything works and which buttons trigger actions (and what each button actually does). At first, I knew what I was supposed to do, but I didn’t know how to do it, which made the experience a bit confusing in the beginning.
But once I got the hang of it, I was able to create some pretty cool things. I wouldn’t say it turned out super stylish, though—like I said, I'm terrible at decorating, haha—but I was still really happy with the results.
For some reason, my computer really struggled to run the game, even though other games that seemed more demanding ran a bit better. The FPS ranged between 13 and 15, so I suspect some memory leak might be going on. It’d be good to check that out later if you plan to continue with the project.
It’s a shame that downloadable games often get fewer reviews because yours is great. Congratulations on the game, and I wish you the best of luck in the jam!
The concept is really interesting and definitely fits the "one room" theme. The gameplay, though simple, has its charm. The fact that the door is random adds replayability, which is great. However, it’s good to do some extra checks to prevent the player from finding it too quickly haha.
Even though I was able to play your game, I encountered two main issues:
01. The game’s screen was excessively large. Even in fullscreen mode, there was still a significant portion of the side edges missing, which probably hurt the immersion a bit.
02. There were some texture bugs that I have no idea why they happened. Maybe incompatibility? They showed squares in lilac/purple/pink (not sure exactly which color, but it was close to one of these), almost like a visual glitch (or it was actually a visual glitch).
Even though I found the shooting a bit slow, I assume it was intentional to increase the sense of urgency and encourage the player to avoid the ghosts rather than fight multiple ones, right? If that's the case, it was a great move.
I also liked the easter egg, though I probably wouldn’t have found it without the instructions (but that might just be due to my own lack of skill).
The sounds matched the game well, and I’d say the overall aesthetic fits together nicely. I really liked the ghost designs; they’re fun (even though they’re killers haha).
Congrats on the game, and I wish you the best of luck in the jam!
The gameplay is actually quite different from what I imagined based on the images. I was thinking it would be something like rotating the environment to make the red ball land somewhere, but that wasn’t the case at all haha.
I admit that at first, I was a bit confused about what to do, even though I read the tutorial several times. It might be interesting to have an extremely basic level that introduces the player to the core mechanics, so they can understand what they’re supposed to do before jumping into the actual game.
The search algorithm you implemented is really well done. It’s hard to get something that precise in games, especially considering you did everything in about 25-30 hours!
The game is pretty challenging if you don’t think strategically and have patience, which might turn away casual players. But that doesn’t mean the game is bad by any means—it’s just that its audience might be a bit more limited due to its complexity.
I think to expand it further, it would be essential to have a mechanic that allows you to remove blocks by spending some of the resources you earn from your score.
Really original and fun concept, I don’t remember seeing anything quite like it before, so it was a really pleasant surprise. I had a lot of fun while playing, and the challenge is just the right level. Congrats on the game, and best of luck in the jam!
P.S:
The name fits the game perfectly. Even though it’s a clear reference to the gameplay, I only understood it after giving it a try
Super addictive game! Although the gameplay is relatively simple, the core concept is engaging enough to keep players entertained for hours, as it falls into that "easy to understand, hard to master" category.
At times, it was pretty challenging to find an item that would match with another to free up space, but I felt like in those moments, I could just throw any random item on top of another, and it was almost guaranteed that the "solution" would come soon after.
The characters’ dialogues also add a really nice touch to the storyline. I think the fact that the robots have these little conversations during gameplay makes the game feel much more alive (by the way, I absolutely loved the robot designs—they look great).
The overall art style is very pleasant. You even added a parallax effect in the background with the moon slowly moving across the windows. These are small details that maybe only a few players will notice, but they make the experience much richer and more immersive. It's a clear sign of love for the game itself.
I really liked the fusion mechanic. I think we could take certain items to upgrade the attributes of the mechanical claw itself, making the game even more engaging—things like increasing movement speed, fusion speed, etc.
Congrats on the game, it’s really fun and enjoyable. Best of luck in the jam!
The animations are beautiful, and I really liked the models you used. The boss attacks fit perfectly with the character, giving a very satisfying feeling due to the particles that come out of the environment when he strikes, especially as they break the ground.
The attack indicator is also very intuitive, making it functional even for more casual players. The opacity change and the red color in the attack area clearly show that it’s a dangerous spot. The attack speed is just right—I didn’t feel like they were unfair or too hard to dodge.
One thing that could be adjusted is the speed at which the camera moves when the boss changes position. Personally, my computer isn’t very good, so the game inevitably slowed down a bit (not enough to be disruptive). However, I noticed that when the camera moved to where the boss was, I lost a few seconds getting reoriented, which could lead to me getting hit by one of his attacks as he burrows into the ground.
I can see a lot of potential for the game to expand, as the gameplay is already solid and responsive. If you plan to continue developing it, I wish you the best of luck. Congratulations on the game! Also, good luck to you in the jam.
Without a doubt, this was the game that used the theme the most creatively! I really liked the concept — genuinely a lot.
I’d say the difficulty is just right, especially because we don’t have to pick up all the boxes again. That was a great decision, since losing progress like that would be frustrating.
The wall-shifting mechanic was really cool and fit the theme perfectly, since we never actually leave a room — we just expand or contract the space we’re in.
It’s interesting that we can escape the holes if we move the wall subtly. However, it would be nice to also have a chance to avoid falling in when we’re pushing the wall quickly.
One idea I had is this: if the player holds the spacebar and happens to move the wall into a position where they’re about to fall into a hole, the character could cling to the wall for a short moment (2–3 seconds) while the key is held. That would give the player enough time to back up or move sideways to avoid falling.
I had a great time playing it — I genuinely enjoyed the game. The graphics are simple but functional. Congratulations, and I wish you good luck in the Jam!
What a satisfying game! I really loved the vibe it gives off — it's so cozy and relaxing. I’ll admit, scenario organization games aren’t usually my favorites, but this one is definitely the exception due to all the care that went into its production, from the dialogues and interactions to the way we play and progress.
It’s not just a game about tidying up a room and leveling up; it’s about advancing in your career through ratings, which makes everything so much more fun. I feel like some items are really much better than others, and I’d even say they’re almost universal, as they can fit nearly every client’s taste.
I really wish there was an option to stack items, as rugs take up quite a bit of space. While I’m not a great interior designer, I feel like I could’ve used the space much better if I could, for example, place tables or chairs on top of the rugs. Maybe a depth system could solve this, with each object having a depth value, and the game checking if one is “shallower” than another, allowing it to be placed on top of “deeper” objects.
A simple suggestion: in the menu, I noticed the tutorial button wasn’t very prominent. It would be helpful if it stood out as much as the other buttons, even if it's active by default. This would make it easier for players who want to replay the game and avoid going through the tutorial again. It may not be essential for your project right now, but it could definitely be useful in the future or for other projects.
Overall, it’s a very fun game to play. It was interesting to see my disastrous interior designer career finally take off and unlock new items and clients. Congratulations on the game, and good luck with the jam!
We have here a wonderful and fantastic action game! The constant frenetic chaos is undoubtedly a lot of fun, challenging, and engaging. The visual effects bring an incredible life to the game, providing a satisfying and eye-pleasing experience.
I must admit that at first, I thought it would be too visually chaotic to the point of overwhelming the gameplay at times, especially because of the heat distortion. But that wasn't the case. There were a few moments when I would charge into an attack on the ground thinking it was gold haha, but after some time and practice, you get the hang of distinguishing between what’s an attack and what’s gold.
The score system was a great addition, as it promotes a healthy sense of competition among players, and I really appreciate that. It’s something I plan to learn how to implement in my future games, and I hope I can do that at some point.
The grid movement makes the action feel very unique, as it’s not necessarily the type of movement we see most in games focused purely on action. I’d say it gives the game a lot of identity.
I really enjoyed it in every aspect, keep up the great work! Congratulations on the game, and I wish you good luck in the jam!
The game is really engaging, but also quite difficult haha. I've lost count of how many times I died without even reaching the blue room (though that might just be due to my lack of skills when it comes to having quick reflexes).
The controls were responsive, which made gameplay a lot easier. The only thing that really got in my way was, in fact, my own abilities. However, there was just one moment where the game itself felt unfair. It's clear that obstacles are randomly generated, and in one instance, within the first 15 seconds, I found myself in a spot completely surrounded by pipes that crushed me without any chance of doing anything about it.
I saw you were quite concerned about the yellow room, but don’t worry—it’s definitely there haha. However, it’s much harder than the red phase. One thing I felt was missing in the yellow phase was some kind of indication of when the blades would be launched. In the red phase, the pipes have a slight tremor that signals when they’ll collide. But in the yellow phase, the blades are simply thrown without any warning, making it much harder than intended and significantly steepening the difficulty curve quickly.
The blue room was a nice touch for the game, giving players a moment to breathe without the risk of dying, and allowing them to prepare both physically and mentally for the next challenges.
The gray room... That was my final room because I just couldn’t get past it at all. I felt the spheres were considerably faster than the player, and since it turns into a fixed square after a while, I think it would be interesting if its speed was reduced, considering that the player also depends on luck to avoid getting hit by them.
Despite being minimalist, the graphics worked really well, largely due to the particle effects and the squash-and-stretch animation for jumps and falls. However, I did feel that sometimes the collision area was bigger than expected, causing some elements to hit me in a way that initially seemed a bit unfair.
The fact that you included random music was also a nice touch; I really enjoyed it, and I’ve even heard one of the tracks on another site while searching for music for my own games.
Overall, it’s a really fun and solid game, congratulations! Wishing you the best of luck in the jam!
The atmosphere of the game is disturbingly scary. You did a great job with the environment, especially the lighting, the room’s composition, and the texture of the objects. In a way, it even reminded me of some titles like Outlast, probably because of the feeling of helplessness it conveys.
The game’s main concept reminded me of the Backrooms, mainly because of the hostile creature (Slenderman?) that appeared right behind me when I tried a number combination on the lock.
The room’s puzzle is quite interesting, but the way it’s laid out makes it seem like all the clues are on the walls. Thanks to the gameplay footage, I was able to figure out the correct order and finally reach the ending (I assume we die in every outcome, right?).
While playing, the only thing that broke the immersion a little was the mouse sensitivity. In a horror game like yours, it’s essential for it to be smooth or even subtly slow, depending on the pacing you want. In the current version, whenever I touched the mouse, the screen moved abruptly and very quickly.
The game is short, but it has a very strong concept. You managed to explore horror really well, especially for something made in just 20 hours. Congratulations on your effort—you did a great job. I wish you success as a developer and good luck in the jam!
Unfortunately, for some reason, your game wouldn’t open on my computer, which is really disappointing because the idea seems cool, and I really liked the images you used to showcase it.
If you manage to upload a web version, I’d love to try it out—that way I could evaluate it properly. I’ll leave it without a rating so I don’t negatively affect you, since I think it would be unfair to rate a game I wasn’t able to play.
Either way, I wish you good luck in the jam, and congratulations on finishing your game!
I’d say the theme was quite peculiar and very interesting—it actually reminded me of the time I had sleep paralysis and man… the feeling really is awful haha.
The artwork is spectacular. I really liked the blue tone you used for everything; it fits perfectly with dark, nighttime moods and adds a heavy feeling to the atmosphere, which definitely matches the intended horror. The apparitions also stood out well, with an interesting variety of anomalies happening around us.
However, I felt that the game’s difficulty is quite high right from the start. I’m not necessarily referring to the buttons we have to press based on the text instructions (since most of it is pretty clear), but rather the speed at which we need to switch from one place to another. Sometimes the distance is too big, and that becomes a bit confusing, and the transitions are almost instantaneous, so we have to adapt very quickly.
I believe a small delay between pressing one button and the next would be enough to reduce the steep difficulty curve the game currently has. Additionally, a success sound effect would help players reinforce which buttons to press and when.
An interesting mechanic to add could be some sort of “focus” system. While the player is experiencing sleep paralysis, there could be moments where they close their eyes to try to calm down, reducing their anxiety level. But this would come with disadvantages, such as not being able to see which key they need to press (meaning they’d have to read it before closing their eyes) and also not seeing how much time is left until the next key appears after successfully pressing one.
It’s a very unique and intriguing concept—I really enjoyed it, and it’s amazing that you managed to make this on your first time using Godot. It’s a clear sign that you adapt well, and with more practice, you can create even better games with this engine.
Congratulations on the game, and I wish you good luck in the jam!
P.S.: The Easter Egg is also really cool—basically the opposite of the game’s mood, since it has a comedic touch.
Unfortunately, the file is broken, and it’s not possible to play, which is a shame.
But from reading your description of the game, the concept sounds really fun and challenging. I would have loved to try clearing the room under the time challenge—sounds tense and satisfying, especially if a good particle system was used, cleaning would definitely be extremely gratifying.
Your Easter Egg also seems really creative. Using the colorful space to clean the entire environment sounds like a very intriguing and crazy idea (in the best possible way).
The cover art is also very beautiful—I really like your artistic style. It has a very pleasant, stylized look.
I think that’s all I can assess for now. I hope this doesn’t discourage you from participating in other jams, because mistakes happen, and you’ve probably learned a lot from it, as well as from the time you spent creating your game.
A great team effort. Initially, I must admit, I thought the human’s abilities were extremely limited, but when I reached the part where everything goes dark, he became essential for guiding the spider through the maze you created.
The map design really turned out interesting, and I imagine it took a lot of work to make something on this scale, especially since the collisions would need to be carefully adjusted for both the human and the spider.
I understand your idea of “one room,” but I think it would fit even better if the ant nest the spider is invading were a box placed by the scientist, as if it were an experiment to see how the ants are behaving, how they’re reproducing, etc.
The sound effects and music are quite pleasant, although I think the music was a bit too intense for the situation, which might break the tension for some players. I really liked the detail of the spider’s eye following the direction we’re heading—it gave her a really cool touch of life. The way you designed the levels and distributed the powers was also effective, as the paths connected well, and it was easy to tell when we needed a new power or not. Plus, all of them were really creative and fit the spider perfectly.
The only major issue I encountered while playing was with the final boss. When I reached it, the spider just started falling endlessly. It’s a shame that this bug happened because I was really curious to see how the battle would play out (I even tried a few more times, but the same thing kept happening. It was as if the floor or the boss didn’t have the proper collision to support the spider).
But despite that, it was a fun game overall. Congratulations on the project, and I wish you the best of luck in the jam!
The concept of filling the room with new challenges is really interesting, and I’d say the level design as a whole is very well thought out. The difficulty curve progressed in a satisfying way, as it not only brought familiarity but also introduced new elements, which kept the engagement steady.
I really enjoy exploring menus, and without meaning to, I ended up clicking on the option with the most levels first haha. Some of them are insanely difficult, but in the beginner mode, I was able to get through it easily.
The controls are very responsive, and I’d say the feedback is great, especially the squash and stretch effect. To take it even further, maybe some small dust particles could be added at moments of impact or even a speed line during the dash—this would really enhance the experience.
For something made in just 16 hours, I’d say you really did a fantastic job, congratulations on that. I wish you the best of luck in the jam—it's a very fun and challenging game!
P.S. I forgot to mention earlier, but a small square or explanatory text appearing when hovering over options, before clicking on them, briefly explaining what each option is, would be really helpful in informing the player about what they’re about to do. It might not have much impact in the current form of the game, but it would be a great addition for future projects.
As people have mentioned in some comments, you shouldn’t be so hard on yourself, because the game you made definitely has several elements that deserve recognition and prove your skills as a developer.
The first thing I notice as an artist and dev is that even though you may not have advanced knowledge of art, you managed to maintain a harmonious atmosphere between the larger areas and the more zoomed-in ones. It really felt like everything was part of the same environment, and even better, it gave the impression that it was the object in the environment being viewed from a closer perspective. Sure, there’s room for improvement in composition, like the toilet water, but I don’t think you should worry about that right now.
The second point, and the most important, is that I’m terrible at escape room games, but in your game, I was able to easily figure out what needed to be done to get each item and progress a bit. Of course, some things were slightly confusing for me (maybe it’s my amateur escape room side), like the correct order of symbols to open the small box on the table. I noticed that you made the symbols on the walls stand out, which is great, but you could add more complexity, like randomizing the order of the symbols and indicating to the player whether it's the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, or 4th digit through another object in the room (like plaques, for example). I hope that example doesn’t sound confusing haha.
And third, but not least, you managed to deliver a good game even without sound effects and background music. That’s really impressive because sound is a fundamental part of the user experience, but even with its absence in your game, we can still feel the atmosphere through the interactions.
Yes, maybe there were time management issues, but that happens to everyone, even the most experienced. So, take that as a lesson, and next time you’ll be able to better decide what to cut or keep in the game, being aware of your own pace and adapting the idea accordingly based on the time left.
Congratulations on the game! Keep up your effort, and you’ll undoubtedly create amazing things. Good luck in the jam!
The game may have been "inside the box," but the concept definitely wasn’t haha. What an original and unique idea! It was really fun to see what you managed to do with the spinning-and-clicking mechanic. It added a nice variety of challenges that, despite being short, were perfectly capable of keeping me engaged until the end.
I really liked the animation you used to switch from one wall to another. Even though it doesn’t move the environment like in a 3D space, the start and end of the animation connect with the walls, which makes the spin to the left and right feel believable.
The art was minimalistic and gave the game a distinct identity. I'd even say it adds a certain sense of melancholy with the unstable lines, which, combined with the darkness around, creates a subtly eerie atmosphere. Maybe a background track with just one instrument would make the game even more immersive, though I think something soft to match the rest of the elements would work best.
Doing all of this in 6-8 hours must have been really challenging—congratulations on your dedication. With such little time, you managed to deliver something memorable and with its own identity. Even the most "outside the box" ideas can make a positive impact when executed well, like this one.
If I may offer an artistic suggestion to enhance the mood of the game, in case you plan to work more on it, the farther the box is from the player, the darker it could become. Maybe even a gradient effect would be enough to convey a sense of depth, making the environment feel more three-dimensional and elevating the user experience.
The Game Maker gang strikes again! Congratulations on the game, keep up the great work, and I wish you the best of luck in the jam!
I've noticed from your recent games that you're diving deeply into a world of narratives involving the glorious Dick Storm. That's perfect! I love the way you describe the situations, the setting, and the charisma of the characters. And of course, this game was no different. It's clear how much care went into every dialogue, which really grabs the player's attention until the story's conclusion.
The branching dialogues were excellent, without a doubt. It was interesting to see how explorative the game is, even though it’s just one room. The amount of books, stories, and the interactions with Dick are done exceptionally well.
As I mentioned, even though it’s just one room, you’ve managed to capture a unique identity for the narrative, making the graphics and music blend seamlessly together. I noticed this time you added a transparent black background, which definitely made reading much easier.
I imagine it would be quite challenging, and while it's not something that significantly impacts gameplay, it would be interesting if there were some extra animations when flipping through the books. This could bring a lot more immersion, without losing the original essence you intended for the game.
One thing I’ve been wondering, more out of personal curiosity, is: how did Dick Storm come to be? I mean, clearly, he’s an amazing character that you love dearly, but was there any external inspiration for creating him and for him to start adventuring in the worlds of your games?
Great game, and I really liked the way you interpreted the theme. The idea of contact with the outside world was well thought out and makes the narrative very believable. Keep up the fantastic work, and I wish you the best of luck in the jam!
Thank you so much for the feedback, Meru — I’m really glad you enjoyed it!
And yeah haha, the animations were made with the environment in mind, which is why his walk looks a bit “weird” at first glance, almost like he’s leaning or tilted in some way.
About the audio, I had no idea it was only coming from the right side during the cutscenes. For some people it worked normally, but for others (especially those using mono audio) it only played on the right. I designed the effect for stereo audio, and my own setup is mono, so I had to trust the documentation blindly. Something must have gone wrong… sorry about that.
As for the theme, it’s more connected to the story itself, since the demon’s stomach is “a single place,” but I admit it ended up a bit subtle.
Again, thank you so much for the kind words! Your comments are always great to see.
Wow, that was an incredibly detailed review. Thank you so much for the feedback — I’m really glad you enjoyed it.
I’ll explain a lot of the design choices in the devlog, but yeah, the simple floor texture was intentional. Since the game throws a ton of particles at the player, I wanted the player to fill in the empty space of the environment through destruction.
The 3D audio effect was a total gamble — it could have worked perfectly or blown up in my face, especially because my own setup is mono and the effect only works in stereo. I had to trust the documentation blindly. So I’m glad to hear it landed the way I hoped.
Unfortunately, HTML export in Game Maker is terrible. I found out that to make something like this work, I’d have to write a JavaScript script directly on the game page, and I don’t know how to do that yet. I’ll try to learn it for the next project (fullscreen).
The theme was tied more to the story than to the gameplay itself, and that probably caused that feeling of disconnect. Sorry about that.
Again, truly amazing words. I appreciate them a lot.
(By the way, I played your game yesterday but couldn’t vote at the time — I did that recently, and I’ll be leaving a comment soon.)
Thank you so much for the feedback! I’m really glad you liked it.
The hearts are guided by their pulses — I decided to use 3D audio for that. If your sound setup is mono, it can make locating them a bit harder, since the effect relies on stereo audio to work properly.
As for the theme, sorry about that. I chose to tie it into the story’s context rather than the gameplay itself.
Thank you so much for the feedback! I’m really glad you enjoyed it.
The game has two endings: one you get after finding the easter egg and destroying all the hearts, and another one without the easter egg. If you manage to unlock it, I’m sure destroying all five hearts will feel a lot easier if you decide to give it another run.
Really, I’m genuinely grateful for your words!
The game concept is really interesting, and I really liked how you interpreted the theme. Although I think, from a broader perspective, it strays a little since we can use multiple rooms equally, even though it’s just one at a time.
From the start, the game is very eye-catching and immersive, both due to the chosen colors and the animations, as well as the dynamic text presentations that move in an interesting way on the screen.
The game is already quite engaging right from the menu, thanks to the interactions and animations you've included. It didn’t interfere with the gameplay or anything like that, but if there was a more visible hierarchy of elements in the menu (with some having fewer animations and others more), the player would be more easily guided through navigation and would feel that some options are much more important than others. As it stands, all options have the same level of detail (and again, I want to emphasize that this is not a negative point at all, just an observation).
As others mentioned, the animation is indeed a little slow considering the pace of the gameplay, which creates a slight awkwardness, but in my view, it doesn't really harm the gameplay experience.
The variations and upgrades were also very interesting. It's fun to think of strategies to overcome the challenges that arise as you progress through the game’s levels.
Overall, I had fun playing. The art is really beautiful, and if I’m not mistaken, you’re the person who recently got back into game development, right? It’s an excellent comeback! Congratulations on the project, and I wish you the best of luck in the jam.
P.S. One thing I remembered—when you upload the Windows version, it would be great if the app didn’t require installation and could just run directly. I know you don’t have any bad intentions with that, but many people are suspicious of files from jams and might end up passing it over to avoid any risks.
Without a doubt, it’s a really interesting take on the jam theme. Being a bartender who can find love (or chaos) is intriguing enough to make the player want to explore all possible paths.
The writing, as always, is fantastic! I really love that you always focus on stories in your games. Once again, excellent work on the narrative and the branching system that changes the outcomes based on our actions. The mini-games break the monotony and add that special touch to keep the player engaged.
The atmosphere compositions were excellent. When it comes to audio, you’re the best person I know for that. I really enjoyed the music, especially the second ambient track after we talk to the DJ.
The way the story unfolds is interesting. The visuals were pleasant, and the effects too. I can imagine how much work this must’ve been during those development days, but you learned a lot. I hope you enjoyed using the engine (RPG Maker), since I believe it’s your first time working with it.
Another cool thing I liked is that you added lots of interactions with the tiles, which makes the environment feel very alive and significantly increases the possibility of exploration. It makes the player wonder what’s coming next and want to see all the details you put into the game.
Honestly, the AI art didn’t bother me at all. I think it fit well with the story, and I hope others feel the same way. After all, you worked hard on the whole development, and it wouldn’t be fair if people judged your game as “bad” just because AI was used to generate the images.
Congrats, Meru! It’s awesome to see one of your games and experience your stories in such an immersive way. I wish you the best of luck in the jam!
2233 full laps! Can I already consider myself an expert at being a goldfish?
The game's atmosphere is incredibly pleasant. As I mentioned on Discord, I really like the visual style, and I think it fits perfectly with the overall concept.
The gameplay is simple, but there's something fun about going around in circles, especially when the fish starts losing speed control and spins insanely fast (at one point it got so fast that the fish’s 3D model bugged out and started spinning backward, haha).
The point score system is undoubtedly the heart of the game, adding another reason to keep looping around and creating a healthy sense of competition.
The references in the game were well-placed, and they’re all visually appealing, fitting nicely with the room’s theme. There’s never a feeling that something was added just to fill space or was there by accident.
The addition of the PC fish mini-game was also interesting. There was a moment when I kept looping around while focusing on the mini-game. The experience remained smooth since I used the mouse, so I could easily keep spinning without any issue.
Overall, it’s a very enjoyable game. It’s amazing what you managed to do in 30 hours. The environment feels very alive, and the day-night cycle really enhances the immersion.
Congrats on the project, and best of luck in the jam!
The idea of the game is quite promising and interesting, but I found the game to be really difficult haha (I died in the tutorial).
The mechanics are definitely creative, considering the possibilities we have with the monster in both its small and large forms (which, by the way, looks amazing. I really liked the design of that form).
I believe the main difficulty factor comes from the enemies’ shots, which almost always hit our protagonist during moments of vulnerability. I think if there was a way to deflect the bullets or a temporary shield using something like earth or even the pumpkin's own roots, it would make the game fairer and more accessible to casual players.
The sound effects and music fit well with the overall atmosphere, although personally, I think it would be better if the music were continuous and didn’t reset every time we restart the game. Since the game is quite difficult, we’ll likely be going back to replay it several times, and hearing the same part of the music over and over could get tiresome.
I think this is the first game where, instead of being able to start from the levels, we are forced to begin with the tutorial haha. I really liked that little detail. It’s like you’re saying, “Hey, buddy, learn how to play first, or you’re going to have a bad time.”
The theme is definitely present, since we are extremely unwanted (I personally wouldn’t want to see a killer pumpkin in my backyard).
The game was fun, and with these extra tweaks, it could definitely raise the overall quality even more. Congratulations on finishing the game in such a short time, and I wish you the best of luck with the jam!
The visual effects in this game are extremely stylish. I really liked the visual feedback for every action we perform, especially when defeating enemies (the blood-splatter effect is incredibly satisfying).
I assume the "unwanted guests" are the monsters we defeat, which makes sense, although it doesn’t have as strong a connection to the theme as it could. Maybe a backstory could strengthen that link, making the theme more present in the game.
The game isn’t difficult; on the contrary, it’s well-balanced and easy to learn the controls, which is great because it’s intuitive and allows the player to figure out how to play without needing a complex tutorial.
I’d say the main factor that stopped me from continuing was performance haha. At one point, the optimization starts to fail a bit, causing the FPS to drop drastically, making it almost impossible to continue the gameplay.
I also liked the sound effects—they definitely enhance the visual effects and make everything feel very satisfying. Great job on that!
Despite the performance issues mentioned, the game does its job of providing entertainment and is a lot of fun to pass the time. With some optimization tweaks, I’d say you have a very promising project here.
Good luck with the jam, and congratulations on completing a game using Java (it’s been a while since I’ve used that language, and given how complex it is, completing a game with it makes you a superhero haha).
An interesting concept, but a bit challenging haha. I really liked the visual style you adopted. A top-down camera view allows for many shooting games to be both fun and fluid, which is exactly what happened here.
One thing I found a bit odd at first, and something that could improve the overall aesthetic of the game, is adjusting the player’s sprite based on the mouse direction. Since we have a top-down camera view, this would give the feeling that the player is looking around, while also making the shooting direction more harmonious (which is not happening in this version, as we can look in one direction and shoot in the other).
Aesthetically, I’d say the enemies work very well for signaling danger. However, since they don’t have complex animations and are just skulls, I think it would be interesting to keep their original sprite angle, instead of having them constantly rotate to follow the player's direction. This way, the skull silhouette would be more recognizable and striking, as right now, their teeth give the illusion of tails when moving diagonally or horizontally.
The sounds work well, but something more upbeat and energetic would fit better for a game where action is the main focus. This doesn't really affect the gameplay experience, but it would be something to consider in future projects, as sound often plays a big role in overall immersion.
The upgrades in the game are interesting, though I feel they take a bit too long to appear. Also, the addition of just one extra shot didn’t seem like a very enticing upgrade haha. Enemies generally die with two shots, so it would be better if that was the bonus from picking up this upgrade.
This game has a lot of potential, and creating it in Python was quite a challenge (I’m not familiar with this language, so I assume you didn’t use a game engine).
Great job with what you had available—delivering something playable is already a big achievement, and it surely helped you learn a lot. I wish you success as a developer and good luck with the jam!
Incredible how much you've managed to include in just 24 hours! As someone who appreciates and creates narratives for games, I must say the story here is quite intriguing and engaging. I really wanted to see what would happen at the end, which was a bit of a shame (but I completely understand the time constraints, we had only a few days to develop our games).
I have to say, the pixel art is simply beautiful. It creates such a nostalgic atmosphere, and the use of a limited color palette is great for highlighting elements like blood, which inevitably adds more drama, tension, and adrenaline.
I’ll admit, I was a bit confused about what to do at the start. While the icons are really helpful for exploration, it might be interesting to make the path (at least the initial one) a bit more “visible” to help the player dive deeper into the game’s world.
I saw that you plan to add more to your game after the jam, which will be awesome to see. I’m sure it will turn out to be an amazing piece of work. The music and overall atmosphere were also really good. Although I feel that if there were more interactive effects with the objects and environment, it could make the experience even more immersive.
The theme is definitely present in the game, but I’m curious—who exactly would the “unwanted guest(s)” be? Haha.
Great work overall, I wish you the best of luck with your game and in the jam!
The atmosphere of this game is eerily creepy — which is great, because it perfectly fits the Halloween vibe and the “uninvited guest” theme! I really appreciate attention to detail in games, and this one got me right from the start. You could’ve just had the player begin standing up and exploring the area, but starting off lying down and having to get up makes you feel subtly more vulnerable. It’s also a great and natural way to teach the player how to enter and exit hiding spots.
The deliberately slow movement works well to create tension, but in this final version it ends up making the game quite hard — especially since, as you mentioned, some hiding spots aren’t working. Of course, I understand that time is short and those kinds of issues can happen in a jam. It would be nice if there were some way for the player to move a little faster, even if only for a few seconds. I don’t think you’d even need an extra running animation — just slightly increasing the movement and sprite speed would probably be enough.
It’s really interesting to see the natural sense of progression, since we have to explore certain areas before unlocking others. But in exploration games where there’s always an enemy lurking around, it can be helpful to give the player a bit more guidance on where to go next if they take too long to find their objective — just to avoid frustration or feeling stuck.
I’d say this game has a lot of potential — it’s clear that you put a lot of care into it, especially in such a short time. The backstory also seems really intriguing, even if we don’t get too many details along the way.
At first, the controls felt a bit strange to me, but over time I got used to them, so I wouldn’t call that a negative. It was really fun exploring the rooms, and I’d love to know what happens at the end! If you could give me a hint about the second and last digit, I’d be happy to give it another try.
Congratulations on the game, and best of luck in the jam!
I can see that the game has a lot of potential. I really liked the introduction and the small backstory it has. However, I’m curious to understand more deeply how everything fits into the theme in a coherent way, because I feel like I missed some details, or at least not enough to make the theme stand out more strongly.
The visuals are simple, effective, cute, and very beautiful. I really liked the art direction; it gave me a sense of nostalgia for some reason. However, one thing I noticed is that the text box stands out a lot compared to the other elements in the game, which gives it excessive visibility, overshadowing the other elements in the scenes. I think this happens for two main reasons:
01. It seems like the text box is completely black, or at least on my monitor it appeared that way. Pure black or pure white colors tend to be quite harsh on the eyes when used in large areas. Ideally, it would be better to add some hue to the black to blend it with another color, keeping it dark but not pure black. Personally, I really like to pull black towards a blue or purple to create a sense of mystery, but this depends on the taste and intention of the creator.
02. I noticed that, out of all the elements in the game, the text box is the only one with borders. This makes it draw more attention than it should, because if it were softened like the other elements, without the border to highlight it from the other objects, it would blend in more visually with the rest of the environment.
The sound effects are effective and fit well with the overall atmosphere you’ve decided to create. It really feels tense, and it’s tough to get through all the challenges haha. I believe the player’s collision mask is too large, which made even the smallest hit fatal, as the large collision area combined with the relatively low movement speed of the character created a difficult experience.
With these adjustments, it’s almost certain the game will feel much more polished and accessible. Even if you don’t plan to continue with this project, I hope these tips will be helpful for your future games. I wish you success as a developer and good luck in the jam!
Taking into account that the game was developed in just 2 days, this is a great project. I think you did a good job of capturing the concept you had in mind, as you managed to turn the mechanics into something playable in such a short amount of time, and you also included a backstory to provide context (even though it’s simple and short).
I believe someone may have already mentioned the bug with the door: when we start the game and stand still, the ghosts are unable to attack us (I went out to grab a drink and when I came back, I discovered this haha). I'm not sure how you implemented the enemy pursuit system, but this has happened to me in a few of my previous projects as well, and I strongly believe it’s related to the player’s collision area size and the useful collision area of the objects the ghosts avoid. I assume you’ve set them to avoid walls and other solid objects, but since the player’s collision mask is likely much smaller than the collision grid of the objects the ghost avoids, it’s as if the collision system works perfectly for the player by keeping them from going into the wall, but for the ghost, the player is "inside" the wall, leaving the ghost unsure of what to do. A more practical example: let’s say the ghost’s collision grid is 32x32, meaning if the object takes up one extra pixel, say 33x32, it’s as if two 32x32 blocks are "blocked", preventing the ghost from passing through. Maybe you already know this, but if not, I hope this explanation makes sense.
Another thing: in the gameplay, having to press the left mouse button constantly to shoot can get a bit tiring on the finger. It would be much better if we could simply hold down the button and have a delay between shots, making the controls feel more comfortable.
Still talking about delays, I noticed there’s none when we take damage, which would be really useful because, as it stands, the ghosts kill us very quickly haha.
While playing, I also noticed that when I went fullscreen, the screen would always revert to its default windowed size every time a new level started. I have no idea why this happened, it just did for no apparent reason.
I really liked the art and sound effects, although I do feel like the ghosts are a bit out of place compared to the overall environment. I wouldn’t say it harms the immersion, since we can imagine that this is exactly because they don’t belong in that world haha, but it’s something to keep in mind for future projects.
In any case, it’s a great game! I had a lot of fun, and you managed to create something really cool in just 2 days. Congratulations on the effort and the game! I wish you good luck in the jam and much success as a developer!
I must say this is an excellent game, and it's really cool that you're trying new things, as you mentioned in your words. I believe it's a very rewarding experience and also quite useful for developing our artistic side.
The atmosphere is very well-crafted. Even with few elements and rooms in the setting, it feels large enough to be believable. The fact that the crazy dentist keeps bothering us, constantly trying to get into our workplace, is undoubtedly bizarrely scary haha (I’d even say he’s scarier than the monsters that pop up every now and then).
The sound of rain fits perfectly with tense atmospheres, so it was a great choice to make the atmosphere more melancholic this way. The rain, combined with ambient sound effects during interactions, makes the game very immersive.
I must say, as usual, the design with a cartoonish style is very charming. It’s always nice to see that visual in a mix of 3D with 2D elements.
I honestly don't see anything to criticize here—everything works very well in a harmonious way. The only thing that could be improved without losing the essence might be using small translucent boxes behind the text to make reading easier. As it is, it's completely understandable, but I think this detail would instinctively guide the player’s eyes to where they need to focus, without missing any details of the story.
And the ending? Ah... The ending. The grand Dick shows up again to save the day! (Or rather, the night). It had been a while since I last saw him, and it's great to see him strong and hunting monstrous creatures while saving innocents. Luckily, it was the first ending I got. Then I played again to get the bad ending, and poor protagonist...
In summary, another great game! I would love to see more games from you in this style, as it is really engaging. Wishing you success and good luck in the jam!
Although I'm terrible at Minesweeper, I must say: this game has surprisingly managed to innovate the mechanics to a point where the gameplay feels both familiar and unfamiliar at the same time, making it very engaging.
The interface is extremely clean and polished, which really helped in understanding how things worked. The score counter is, without a doubt, a great addition to promote healthy competition (despite the issues you mentioned with the online scoreboard tool).
The art and overall atmosphere fit perfectly with the Halloween theme, and the ghosts really do become VERY unwanted haha.
I confess I found the tutorial quite difficult, but I wouldn’t say it’s poorly explained—rather, the game is just really tough to progress in. However, since the levels are short, it’s easy to keep playing again and again until you finally manage to finish one.
One thing I noticed is that there are many elements designed to make life harder for the player, like the shrinking light and the limited number of ghosts we can "release".
This, in itself, makes the game excessively difficult. One small change that could improve the balancing—though simple—would be adding a brief delay before the player takes damage from the ghosts again. I know the floors activate when the player steps on them, and adding a delay could potentially give the player an unfair advantage. However, the fact that stepping on the wrong tile already traps the player should be enough to balance this, since, in theory, the chances of a player finishing the level by randomly stepping on tiles would be incredibly low (unless, of course, they have all the luck in the world on their side haha).
As always, another great game, just like the ones from previous jams. I remember your games from past jams, and the quality is still high. Great job! Congratulations on the game, and best of luck in the jam!
Edit 1:
I almost forgot to mention this, sorry about that, but the music also fits the overall atmosphere very well. However, one thing I noticed is that the sound effects are a bit too loud compared to the music, which makes them subtly "overpowering" when we activate many tiles at once.
The gameplay is really interesting; I liked the concept of having to run away from the killer to survive (well, I wouldn’t say we escape haha, I think surviving for as long as possible would be the right term).
Although I expected at some point to encounter a game with the premise of an infiltrated killer, the gameplay really surprised me. It’s simple and effective, creating the necessary tension to keep us on edge at all times.
Even though I’m terrible at fast-paced games like this, surprisingly, I managed to score an incredible 4692 points. I was even surprised by how long I managed to outrun the killer.
If I may offer a tip regarding the menu—although it’s a subtle detail that doesn’t interfere with gameplay or affect the game in general—if the text color changed based on mouse hover, it would add a more polished feel to the menu. This indicator would be particularly useful if you plan to expand the menus and add more options.
I was going to try and beat my high score, but unfortunately, I won’t be able to. The blur effect during the run caused me a bit of dizziness. I think it would be interesting to add an option to disable it, especially for players who are more sensitive to this kind of effect. I know it’s meant to enhance the feeling of running and speed, but it’s used quite heavily, considering we’re practically running the whole time.
Another interesting idea would be to at least add a power-up, like a stick, so that if we get caught by the killer, we could prevent them from killing us if they catch us at least once, giving the player another chance to escape without losing their current score.
The game is really engaging because of the scoring system. I’d say it’s a great job overall. Congratulations on the game, and good luck in the jam!
Edit 1:
Speaking about immersion and atmosphere, I really liked the sounds used. As for the art, although it was clearly AI-generated, everything somehow felt harmonious. However, it would be interesting to see a more unique identity used in future projects to help differentiate your game.
Your pixel art style is definitely very cute, beautiful, and cohesive. I love the simplified way you presented things with silhouettes and general designs that convey exactly the essence of the drawing without the need for long explanations.
Although I feel that the theme wasn’t as well represented due to the short time in the game, the introduction worked effectively to introduce us to the universe, which is great because it creates the necessary immersion for the player to understand that what they’re doing has a purpose, thereby increasing engagement.
I saw that this is your first game jam, and I must say it was a bold move to participate in two at the same time. It’s impressive that you managed to incorporate both themes simultaneously, even though the one from our jam isn't as present. When I say bold move, I mean it in the best sense of the word, because it’s through taking risks that we evolve, and I’m sure this was a great experience for you as a developer.
Welcome to the world of jams haha. I hope to see you again next time, and I wish you the best of luck with this one. Congratulations on your game!
