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wow!! i love this!!! 🐉 🌙 ⭐ all of the art is super amazing, but the character designs in particular are incredibly interesting. i'm a huge fan of anthros, and the style you've used here for the auroran/umbran dragons just hits all the right buttons. unusual profiles, as well as strangely-colored schlera are top, top, TOP tier for me! ahhh i just eat it up. plus the idea of splitting creation into pure magic + consume magic = equilibrium and representing that with the two dragon types is really neat!

---(some spoilers)--- as far as the writing and characterization goes- full points there too! niceee pacing.

i really enjoyed the gradually-unraveling mystery of whether yoeli or nesune actually had atuan's best interests at heart. i think mystery is a pretty essential component of my favorite stories, and you've woven it in nicely here! within the lore, but also interpersonally, there's a lot to sift through and consider. among the considerations: just how evil IS yoeli, actually? haha... (decently, i think...but it looks good on her.) manipulative but formal characters with hidden passions like yoeli tend to be such fun to watch, she's really good. i love the joy she takes in seeing that atuan wanting to be bossed around by her. and their more domestic moments too.

but actually, i think i just slightly prefer the characters who enjoy being led around, like atuan, hehe. i thought she had a great balance of being thoughtful and brave, but also subservient and lost. and although i hate that she wasn't able to fully choose to be bound, it's interesting that it's left kind of dubious as to whether she's "in shock" at the double-binding, or just "actually relieved" at not having to think for herself anymore. i do worry that the three will have to outrun assassins from here on, unless they find whatever they're investigating and it gives them some kind of ultimate power... 😅

all-in-all, i thought it was incredible! i really loved it 💜

starting us off with some liszt first thing... now that is a yuri power move.....

i really liked this! smart, limited palette women in suits being passive-aggressive at each other... now that is a treat, hehe. also, those parallax cards were awesome. and- audrey's hair and suit are impeccable! i love that upper-lip-in-complete-shadow aesthetic.

i really appreciate the commitment to the poker tutorial, haha. very thorough! i had completely forgotten how to play, so i needed every bit of it... 😅 and it's nice to have the character dialogue integrated there to break it up a bit. (the other project i've been working on for a few years requires lots of tutorializing, so i empathize- it's really tough to balance this sort of thing! but ultimately a little gameplay like this adds a lot! great work on integrating that)

i got the toxic4toxic ending in my natural playthrough, and i really loved it. not feeling like a "loving" relationship is "enough" (but in a reasonable way)... it's a very romantic sort of love, that illogical magnetism. (also that their bond is explored through more of a shounen-type activity like cheating people at cards was really refreshing!) i played through the other endings as well, and i think this one feels the most right. when audrey picks up the bag at the end, that was just perfect! 👌 compromise...!

at first, i felt like i couldn't really get a grip on betty's place in everything. the opening makes you really wonder why audrey cares about her at all, which i suppose is sort of the point... i think i wished i had known about their past together sooner? about the starting as equals (and knowing that betty has an interest in- Something). but i can definitely understand leaving it as a surprise.

i really liked when betty said early on, "you didn't even notice i was missing" and then audrey says "yes i did, i just didn't find it fit to mention." it's a really nice foreshadowing for cora, and just a great encapsulation of their whole situation.

thank you for sharing! you both did a great job! 💘 handsome women forever...

p.s. i really liked these other things:

-when cora's lip quivered, and betty couldn't help but think she would make a terrible poker player

-when "fold" is the only option/audrey asks you to carry the bag instead

-"Nothing gets past this girl, except for the things I'd like her to pick up on."

that's very sweet of you to say... 🥺💚 thank you. it's certainly my most personal creation in a long time, maybe ever. i'm happy those layers of honesty, wrapped in fantasy and dreams, came through.

---(spoilers ahead)--- a monster who gets a certain idea in her head, and won't rest until she's had enough of the pursuit of it...but she can't ever get enough of it, and so, she drives her tool of choice to the point of breaking. such a dramatic story of obsession!

i think the idea of a monster who yearns to be human - but has a very warped view of what it means to be human - is a very interesting (and dangerous!) thing. particularly when that kind of single-minded desire is supported by a hard-to-kill power source, as the void outside the temporal fabrication here seems to do. and when reaching her goal requires the ignorance of the other participant... you just know that's going to end up with someone going insane. (even if it takes over 1,000 killings to get there.) but of course, it's interesting that rae is the one who wants to be the victim here, as it puts her in the role of the "desired."

in this kind of story, it feels more like rae is simply using hua as a tool, and repeating that she loves her as a mantra of power, a kind of chant that will manifest her real desire, which is to be a "real human." it's uncertain whether she actually has "real feelings" toward hua, or is just mimicking what she thinks will make her wish (and identity) become true. also uncertain is why rae wishes so fervently to become human in the first place. is it a frivolous feeling, born after seeing hua, much like "love at first sight?" and i wonder, has this monstrosity been living inside rae hidden until she met hua in school, and only then awoke, due to this "love?" after going through all 3 repeats, rae is striking me as the frivolous sort of yandere type who doesn't have any reasonable basis for the extremes to which she goes to, so i wonder if there might actually be something deeper?

thanks for sharing! i enjoyed going through and trying to determine rae's motivations. monsters who flirt by trapping their would-be lovers into time-stopped killing games are quite something...

thank you! 💜 the "choices" were the thing i decided about the game first, so i'm always excited when anyone brings them up.

thank you so much!! you're too kind about the art! 😵‍💫💚

i'm really sensitive to audio in terms of immersion, so i worked hard to make sure there was a variety of sfx that blended together. when i gave the song prompts to my composer friend septimus, he came back with all this pretty music and i was just like ".....ok but can you make it nasty" 😂 

i'm glad to hear you mention their "love." for as much as elpis is an indecipherable, manipulative person... and as much as deimos struggles with quantifying her feelings on being drawn to them despite the friction... they help each other. not beautifully! but deimos wants what happens at the end.

(a review with spoilers)

wow...i really loved this!! 😇🐶

honestly, i could tell just from looking at the emotions in the art on your page that i would love this game. so i'll start with that... i really love your art style. it is a great balance of cute and broken. i felt many times that both laura and sun make really complex expressions. vulnerable, and genuine. i like that laura's is a bit softer and rounder though, it feels like it reflects her healthier relationship with self-love and caring for others. but her bangs covering one eye and red irises also make her seem to have a dark side too. (sorry, i love thinking about design choices haha)

in general, i really enjoyed all the lore about the angels (and demons)! including the different powers and hierarchies. in one way i like thinking about those kinds of places being full of annoying bureaucrats, because it's amusing...but in another way it's really depressing!! lol... to think they'd be just the same as humans, or worse. but the idea of angels/demons blending into human society for various purposes is always really compelling. and a holy god which makes her angels stronger through pain.

i thought you did a really good job expressing the difficulties of "both sides" in a relationship where one person is better equipped to support the other emotionally, and it ends up causing lots of strain on both sides for different reasons. i was happy (in ending 2) that laura and sun were able to commit to each other to try to work together- more openly, and fairly. meeting someone eye-to-eye truly and honestly is exhausting work, even runa knows! haha... and, it was refreshing how runa wasn't just "the evil person trying to mess with sun," but actually seemed to care a little bit about them, and offered useful advice. their character has a very nice ambiguity. eventually, i do think it could be cool if sun and laura could someday become demons together (safely!) and have fewer human worries, too...

there were a lot of specific moments that touched me, i'll list some of them!

-sun eating the food laura made them, and crying while saying "no...i really love it. thank you." and just being overstimulated to hell (positive)

-reflecting on their possible lives together with a pet, sun says "in that moment, i really wanted to have a future."

-laura saying, "that's...so cute! you're so cute! you're my cutie!!" out of unbridled affection

-sun wanting others to "look at me and not see a girl" rather than feeling one gender or another (relatable)

-the idea of "choosing to be genderless" as a holy privilege

-earth being beautiful in comparison with sterility of heaven

-laura asking "can i touch your halo? it won't kill me or something, right?" was adorably hilarious. also, erotic halo-touching... hehe.

lastly, i really loved the idea that sun isn't the only one "pretending to be a human," but that laura is also pretending (as a puppy). they both have this as a hurdle...not feeling right in their own skins and roles.

it was a really beautiful story, thank you for sharing! (ending 1's memory stuff was also good drama, despite being Sad 😢)

DO IT!! the flirty truckboi enby thinks it's a good idea...! (thanks so much ☺️💜)

thank you so much for that very thoughtful response!! it's clear that you've engaged with it deeply, and i couldn't be happier about that 💜 and for your compliments on the writing, as well! i worked very hard on the style as you describe- aiming to invoke a particular vibe, without going full word-salad-soup. so it's a relief to see that you think it came off well 📜  i especially enjoyed your summary of the connection between deimos's feelings of aimlessness during/about sex, and how it is reflected through the lack of agency in her choices, as well as later in the merging of the gods, as well... you got it exactly. i'm gonna cry haha

you make fair points about everything, and especially the bit about the emotional points all seeming to have about the same intensity. while i was working on it, i did often feel "mm...the middle part needs more energy." because even though it's the "climax," it does still feel more or less like the rest of the game, haha... i don't mind it so much, since i like to think of the game as more of the deimos-struggles-with-emotions-simulator, and i did try to make up for that with an increase in flashing/sounds during that section...as well as the CGs being more fully rendered. but you're absolutely right that it could've felt more intense! 🫡

thank you again, i'm so appreciative of your careful reading!! and i'm so happy you enjoyed it 💚

kyou- thank you so much!! i really appreciate you taking the time to leave such a thoughtful comment. i'm overwhelmed, really... the composer is also elated to hear you praise the music so nicely 💜 he worked so hard despite his discomfort with the subject material lol

i'm so, so happy to hear that you felt everything "locked into place by the end." it's certainly a gamble, writing cryptically... and doing so was definitely a "push my boundaries" moment, personally. but readers who care to try and connect the lines- to any degree of "success"- make it all worth the while! so, thank you. 💚 inspiring the desire to pry it open. that was what i wanted. i'm just as happy when folks are confused but intrigued by the story, as i am when i hear that someone feels they've more fully grasped those worldbuilding pathways i've done my best to lay out.

the characters, and the world, and the things deimos thinks to herself especially, mean so much to me. thank you for prying- and seeing! and of course, for all your lovely comments on the art and presentation.

absolutely! when i said the art was simple, it was not a criticism, but rather- the simpleness of how it looks should not make anyone think it is not complex or heartfelt (and like you said, it allows the story to be read clearly and directly). i have edited my previous comment to reflect that 🙂

i did notice the clothes changing, that was a nice touch! and yes, i think the ending did seem uplifting ultimately! i was happy vara was able to express her identity, regardless of the aftermath.

i did also see that vara must have cared about leah, in her smile, as you said. and in the jokes and teasing they shared, although it sometimes devolved into fighting. i thought that was a very realistic portrayal, that lots of friendships that start at a young age especially can end up like this. but yes, i agree showing more of the softness between them would have strengthened it even more!

thanks so much for sharing your thoughts, and i hope you enjoyed your time creating for the jam.

i really liked this! lucky's design was awesome 💜 she's super cool and has a great color scheme. i'm obsessed with women like her who don't smile!! 😂 also, it was cute that she fought tina over calling her survival skills "luck," but still introduces herself as "lucky" anyway. love that she has "777" in her serial number.

overall, i thought your story was very focused and expressed its ideas clearly! it felt like it was just the right length. all the elements seemed really genuine too, like lucky bristling at tina during the maintenance because she felt like she was being "seen" too clearly, storming out cause she doesn't want to have to talk about her emotions, and the sex with ix being frustrating and confusing...even though she thought it was what she wanted.

most of all, i really liked the last scene with tina, where lucky thinks, "I think I'm supposed to be angry, or maybe there isn't a right way to feel after something like this." it really hit the nail on the head! dealing with sex and identity make you feel weird, and it sucks lol. but i found it very refreshing to see her think that thought- that she wasn't "wrong" for finding what happened unfulfilling, in part. the last song also went with this scene really well.

i love that tina didn't try to pry too much and just casually stood with lucky at the end! it was a really good callback to the beginning, where lucky was thinking about how tina is someone who knows more than anyone else about her, but doesn't force her to talk about those things. it was all really nice, thank you for sharing!!

though the art style may seem simple, that is not a flaw of this emotional read. i really felt the frustration in how vara did have others around her, but still felt really alone and dissatisfied because none of them were truly seeing and affirming her. it's really hard when people like leah and vara's parents do care in their own ways, and are trying to be supportive, but still miss the mark so badly.

i felt like your game really conveyed the idea that often it feels like it will take too much work to try and change the minds of people who have been around you for so many years, but those are the ones who can hurt you the most, if left unaddressed. when vara's dad bragged on her for the rabbit she hunted, i really felt the impending pain of the confession. not wanting to lose the support you have, even if it's not enough.

vara saying that she also chose to be alone felt both sad and hopeful to me. the music also went well with these two emotions, i think. thank you for sharing.

ohh...i really loved this!! what a delight to read! normally i'm wary of this type of faux historical setting, but the language here is very evocative, while still remaining accessible! it focuses so nicely on all of the sensory details of what lys is experiencing, with some effortlessly complex expressions. a couple of my favorites are: "A faint sense of relief made granular by wariness washes over you." and "The faint flutter of leaves in a breeze too light to sway their branches." SO much imbuing of movement/emotion into whatever is being described, but subtle and fresh!

the idea of an expressly forbidden journey even for the CHANCE of saving a knight's radiant one- is just classic incredible Knight Stuff. all the light-as-florian's-gaze/touch comparisons are great. ahhh i love knights.....

the bit where lys just kind of cooly notices that cecily is treating them like a tool instead of a person was really good too. and the way the prioress keeps provoking them... i laughed a lot when, at first lys tries to fib to florian about the mission, and she's just like, i know you would not "entertain the folly of an empty whim," so just tell me what's up already!! and then the prioress essentially does the same thing... poor lys. can't get away with anything 😂 i love how quick they are to give up the ruse

lys's particular demeanor is a really enjoyable lens to experience things through, in general. a great balance of bold and reserved. i also really appreciate that the artwork feels so gender-neutral. it's a great style.. DANG i gotta stop writing before i fill up your whole comment section!! but please know that i am very excited to experience the full version, whensoever it might release!!!

i've never played hello charlotte, but it looks interesting 👁️ i'm glad my game made you think of those two things.

thank you so much!! 💚 i'm so happy you felt compelled enough by the story to want to play again. that's exactly the sort of reader experience i hoped for. i'm also really appreciative to hear you mention the dialogue choices...those were my favorite part of the game to write! so it feels especially great to hear they made an impact for you. regarding timeskips; i was very interested in exploring the ways in which people go from point A to point B, often unexpectedly, without spelling it completely out. i'm glad you enjoyed the ride! it gets a bit bumpy, haha. your comments about the art and characters are also very kind... thank you again! ☺️

thank you so much! i'm glad you enjoyed it 💜 the answers to certain questions are meant to be ambiguous, for sure. i did have to desperately beat back the urge to blab out all the worldbuilding details right there in the description, because i want people to Know...!! 😅 but i wanted to create a cryptic experience even more.

thank you so much... that means a lot to me! deimos is my favorite too. i'm so glad she resonated.

🥺 uuuu.. i want to print this out and hang it up on my fridge---v

thank you again. i really appreciate your feelings 🫂

the save should be working as intended now! (in the future, i'll also add a cg gallery;; didn't quite have time to figure that one out..)

thank you so much for all those kind words...! it means a lot to be able to hear what parts made an impact for you 💚

about anhedonia, i agree. it's interesting to put an agent of chaos in there to poke around at those folks, ahaha (poor deimos). separate from boredom, or apathy. like being trapped in a body that won't do anything you agree with... there isn't 'nothing,' but the 'something' is tied down.

i'm glad you found their interactions fun! i love them both to bits, but... someone recently referred to elpis as the "love interest" of the story, and i had to do a double-take LOL. i don't think of elpis that way at all!! (it's true, but.....)

your comment about the art is too nice, thank you 😭 i will reverse-uno you and say that everytime i thought your comment was nice, it just got nicer💔

thank you for the error details! i believe i've fixed the issue and will upload a new build shortly.

thank you so much! 💜 i'm happy you could enjoy their journey.

would you happen to remember at what point in the story you encountered the save error? i will certainly investigate o7

the save error should be fixed 🫡

i liked this! i wasn't sure where it was going at first, but i got the true end, and really enjoyed it haha!! good for anna.

the ambient music was all nice, and i really enjoyed the rough edges of the artwork. there were some comic-style touches too, like the patterned dots on laura's dress shading, that were really neat! i also thought the description of the monster was interesting, how it changes focus depending on where you look.

eve blowing the kiss to the window lol. she's so mean (and cool). i really laughed at the line where the monster describes the length of time of their relationship, and anna just goes... oh. that's a lot longer than any of mine have lasted... poor anna...!!! it was really charming, thanks for sharing.

oh gosh...that was a rough ending 😭 but i liked this, thank you for sharing! your art style is cute and unique, and the yellow/teal color scheme was very refreshing. the sequence at the beginning when voda says "of course (i'll be safe), mother" and then you see her facedown in the water, with rusalka glowing above her, was well done. a story like this...really shows how short-sighted thinking can get you in trouble. but that's the sort of decision-making people in stressful situations can be forced to make! so i thought it worked well/felt right. i tried not to think rusalka was cute, but she was cute 😂💛 "do you understand?" "...not really" awww

i love this so much!!!!!! it's adorable! 😭 kamilla is so lovable/my favorite, but eleni is great too- spontaneously goofy but also very genuinely kind. and olog is so lovely and supportive. i just love the way the characters all interact so kindly and casually! this game really has a comforting air, while still integrating fantasy elements and a bit of drama. thanks so much for making it!!! i want to draw fanart!!!!! (maybe when i recover some spoons)