itch.io

I finished this now, at least 99% finished -- got the true ending and completed manifests but still got a "(2)" on one of the files.

NON-SPOILER FEEDBACK

Right after starting the game, I got stuck with no idea what to do;  I'm ashamed to say it took me a whole 5 minutes to realize that I can scroll down to see more content in the transmission file.  I may be dumb, but, I think some UI update could improve this by showing an indicator saying e.g. "↓", or only marking the file as "done" when you fully scroll to its very bottom.  (I was playing zoomed in, in case that matters.  by the way, I'm really glad that the game is programmed in a way that allows zooming in via ctrl +, it made the game playable for me since I was playing with a partner seated away from my screen)

I don't like how so many lines mix a description and a spoken quote.  Either put the descriptions (e.g. 'He coughs.') on a separate line, or keep it in the same line but make it italicized, or add quotation marks around the speech.

I think there are a few too many rooms (13 or 22, depending how you count, and maybe I missed a couple).  I think you could merge a few rooms together to trim some complexity.

The video transcriptions occasionally describe things that would absolutely not be visible or obvious through video or through audio, such as the smell of a room, or "the sound of an object being put in a pocket".

The terminal UI/UX is generally quite clean and nice to work with;  I have only very minimal complaints, but overall, it's pleasant!  I am glad you got lots of useful QoL commands here, though I wish there was also a QoL command to search for a specific room/location, and see all your collected scenes within it.

There are a few typos (though they're usually minor), but a few of them are typos in instructions that teach you the format of commands, which is bad.

The phrase "the scream is cut short" appears way too often, maybe vary it up a little :)

SPOILERS FROM HERE ON (ROT-13)

V yvxrq gur vqrn bs univat n "punenpgre ahzore" sbe gur pnzren, avargl avar, juvpu jnf hfnoyr gb purpx zvffvat cynpr-gvzr pbzobf naq rvgure gvpx gurz bss be ernyvmr fbzrguvat zhfg unir orra unccravat gurer.  guvf jnf n tbbq erirny.  ubjrire, vg qvq yrnq gb n irel tevaql frdhrapr bs cynl, jurer V whfg jrag bar ol bar sbe rirel gvzr+ebbz gb purpx gur pnzren ybtf gurer (orpnhfr vg bgurejvfr sryg gbb uneq naq enaqbz gb svaq fbzr "mreb" fprarf).

Gur rkgenf erirnyrq va gur qve pbzznaq jrer vagrerfgvat, fbzr irel avpr yvxr gur znc naq gur fvzhyngvba naq fbzr ybtf, ohg N YBG bs vg jnf whfg veeryrinag yber naq grpuabonooyr gung freirq ab aneengvir checbfr ng nyy.  vs vg'f zrnag gb or obevat naq veeryrinag, V jnag vg gb or pyrneyl frcnengr, fb gung cynlref qba'g jnfgr gvzr ybbxvat sbe pyhrf gurer.  (V gevrq svaqvat riragf va OV sbe gur ybatrfg gvzr...)

Gur jevgvat jnf... onq.  jnl gbb frkvfg;  gur gjryir punenpgref vapyhqrq guerr jbzra naq nyy guerr bs gurz jrer frkhnyvmrq zhygvcyr gvzrf ol rirelbar ryfr, ercrngrqyl qvferfcrpgrq, naq gur rcvybthr/cebybthr rira fubjf guvf orunivbe abeznyvmrq (V ungrq gung).  Nf sbe gur cybg gjvfgf naq erirnyf, gurl jrera'g nf greevslvat/rkpvgvat nf va Glcr Uryc, naq gur zntvp qrzba raretl ohyyfuvg frrzrq rkgerzryl enaqbz gb zr;  ng svefg V jnf rkpvgrq nobhg cbgragvny gvzr geniry furanavtnaf, ohg abcr, vg ybbxf yvxr "n qrzba qvq vg" vf gur nafjre gb rirelguvat (rirelguvat rkprcg "na vqvbgvp uhzna qvq vg").

Jul vf gurer ab Frphevgl ebbz va gur znc?  vagragvbany be abg?

V sryg gung Wnpxvr'f jubyr frperg fvqrcybg jnf bayl unys rkcyberq, va gur ybtf;  V jnf yrsg jnvgvat sbe n fprar be erirny gung arire unccrarq.  Fher, fur erfrnepurq fbzr cynane geniry naq ovsebfg fghss, ohg V qba'g trg ubj vg gvrf vagb gur enaqbz qrzba ceboyrzf be gur perj ivbyrapr be gur fvtany be Zvpunry'f vafvtugf.  Qvq V creuncf ernpu gur gehr raqvat jvgubhg ernqvat rabhtu frperg qbphzragf?  (V bayl ernq nobhg 3-4 qbphzragf jevggra ol Wnpxvr, pbhyqa'g svaq n jnl gb npprff nal "nepuvirq" barf vs gurl rkvfg)

gur ZNAVSRFGNGVBA svyr sryg gbb neovgenel.  jura V svavfurq vg V fnj n "fhzzbare: mreb" nccrne, ohg, pbhyqa'g znantr gb qb n anzr pbzznaq ba vg.  kmldz?  nycun-qrzba?  qvqa'g jbex.  gura V ernyvmrq, znlor guvf vf zrnag gb freir nf n pyhr gung n punenpgre ahzorerq mreb rkvfgf va gur fgbel (ohg V unq nyernql svtherq vg bhg ntrf ntb, fvzcyl ol trggvat fhfcvpvbhf nobhg vg, znlor gunaxf gb Glcr Uryc rkcrevrapr)

The first four are because I copied it from Wordle's list, which doesn't have plurals, and I kinda want to keep it that way.  but Prise is a good one to add!  probably the NYT removed british spellings?

I agree... I designed the game as a pure word ladder at first, but it simply was too hard to "find your way" to the goal, because usually all letters need to be changed at least once to reach it (the graph distance is about 20 nodes between the words).

I only discovered how hard this is halfway through programming the game, so, I tried to fix it with the powerups, but they kinda ruined the puzzling element completely.

If anyone got any idea on how to solve that design problem, I'm all ears!

egg

This was a fun game, thank you for making this.  Very elegant!

I completed about 95% of it -- I thought I had a solution for the final (top-right, "Live") puzzle but later realized I don't, but, don't have the time to keep working on it.  Here's a SPOILER-FULL picture of my final solve, dirty and full of temporary markings:  spoiler warning in this imgur link

I enjoyed most of it.  especially enjoyed the yellow and orange areas (after solving orange I had to retreat to yellow to fix some stuff!).  Red had a good twist but I couldn't figure it out and had to spoil myself with a hint, because of some minor UX issues that I complained about at the time but probably can't be improved.  Purple was annoying and also required me to spoil myself on the twist, but, that's because it felt too "gamey" -- I think I would not have figured it out either way.  Black, final area, was excellent -- but the nonlinear form of it confused me (and I still have some lingering doubts about e.g. what to do with uh, Lithops Marumorata and Charge/Change).

Despite your wishes not to make this into an interactive videogame -- I really truly think it would be better that way.  Some of the revelations would be worse, sure, but some would be better and it would be WAY more accessible.  (the fact that it isn't an interactive videogame is why two of my friends gave up -- friends who did enjoy other image-only puzzles).

I played this for a while but couldn't figure out what I'm supposed to do... the platforming is very clunky.  it's hard to understand what is intended and what is a bug (e.g. am I supposed to try jumping over candles to not die in them, or rely on the time passing?  is it intentional that I can teleport up/down from any point?  what placement makes each plant grow, can I grow both simultaneously?...).  I thought I figured out how to use the moving platform to reach the right side ledge while carrying a lit torch, but the timing and platforming together makes this too hard for me, and I am probably missing something (e.g. what to do with the box).

At least I think I figured out the "why" of the game -- (ROT13) -- gur pnir prvyvat tbg oybpxrq ol fbzr bowrpg ng gur fgneg (tynpvre/cyngsbez??) naq abj gur sver vf pbafhzvat bkltra (pubxrf bhg gur pnaqyrf bar ol bar sebz gur obggbz hc) naq cebqhpvat pneoba qvbkvqr (urycf gur cynagf tebj).  Ab vqrn jul vg'f pnhfvat gur jbeyq gb ybbc, be jurgure be abg vg'f "xvyyvat gur cynlre" (rira jura nobir tebhaq gubhtu...?).

It looks like your Lovers don't behave exactly like the ones in Dragonsweeper!  (I expected them to be placed symmetrically horizontal on the board)

Some quick feedback after playing all ~7 levels...

Bugs + points of improvement:

• Music and sound settings are broken, they don't stop the audio at all
• The initial "tutorial screen" is more confusing than helpful;  I recommend just removing it and letting the player figure out the rules in the first level.  The rules are very simple, after all.
• It would be good to visually mark constraint clashes when you hover a card over a bad location, even before you place it.  For example, if I have a fire element on the left and I grab a "water, no fire neighbor" card, I'd appreciate seeing the nodes adjacent to the left node all turn grey/red, and if I move the held card over such a bad node position I'd like to see the connecting edge to the water turn grey/red too.

General opinion:

• The music is too repetitive and too short, at this point I'd rather just play my own music
• I don't like the constraints that are like "place this on top of a square node".  The nodes put underneath the cards are no longer visible once you place them (unlike everything else), and also they really confused me at first, because their rule occupies the same space as the "neighbors" rule (both are at the bottom of the card).  Plus, they're already completely unused for half of the levels.  So I recommend just removing them from the game.
  
• The puzzle aspect of the game is okay, but a little bit too arbitrary and abstract.  This makes it feel less satisfying and more annoying, once you get to the later levels (which have lots of cards with 1-2 constraints).  It reminds me of the game mechanics of another upcoming game, "Is This Seat Taken?".  The difference is that, in ITST, the constraints are intuitive to the human mind and easier to immediately respond to or recognize (e.g. don't place a noisy person next to someone who wants to sleep).  Here the constraints are all abstract and repetitive, making it feel like a chore.  I can also compare this to the game Dino Sort, where there are few types of dinosaurs each with a consistent constraint, making it much more intuitive.
• Even though the theme is "three elements", they're just three colors/shapes with no actual purpose or difference, so the aesthetics are very thin.
• If you develop this further and want to focus on themes more, I'd like to see stuff like... constraints based on the rules of the world, rather than based on what's on the cards.  Like:  "If you put Fire next to Water, it will always release bad steam, but steam can be neutralized by putting Air anywhere adjacent.", or "Three Waters touching each other is always bad, it creates an Ocean, so you must separate them out."
• Why 3 elements?  Using 4 elements (add Earth) or using 5 elements (remove Air, add Earth+Metal+Wood) would be more "standard", and will also increase the complexity ceiling.

Wow, all of those and in only 7 minutes?  :O

Gura jul qvqa'g Wbua orpbzr gur frpbaq ivpgvz jura ur ercrngrqyl nfxrq nobhg Ehcreg Tnyyrl, ybbxrq ng uvf vaivgngvba juvpu jnf jevggra ol Ehcreg Tnyyrl, gura gbbx gur xrl sebz Ehcreg Tnyyrl'f obql?  V thrff vg'f whfg orpnhfr ur jnf fyvtugyl yrff snzvyvne jvgu uvz, fb ur qvqa'g ernpu gur guerfubyq bs rzbgvbany pbaarpgvba...?

Be Rqqvr erzrzorevat Rir vzzrqvngryl nsgre gnxvat gur jrqqvat evat sebz ure unaq?

V nqzvg gung lbhe gurbel jbexf cerggl jryy gbb, orpnhfr vg bayl erdhverf n fvatyr "gevttre" zbzrag, naq... V nqzvg V jebgr nobhg gjryir zber yvarf qrsraqvat zl gurbel orsber ernyvmvat abj gung lbhef vf zhpu "pyrnare" naq zvar ynetryl unccraf gb jbex ol nppvqrag engure guna ba checbfr:  zl gurbel jnf onfrq ba gur crefba jub gubhtug bs gur ivpgvz *va gur zbzrag bs gur ivpgvz'f qrngu*, naq V guvax vg graqrq gb or evtug abg orpnhfr bs pbeerpgarff ohg orpnhfr gur tnzr vf qrfvtarq va n jnl gung fubjpnfrf gur zrzbel ybff zber boivbhfyl, juvpu vf jul zber punenpgref trarenyyl graq gb fcrnx bs ivpgvzf evtug orsber naq nsgre gurl qvr.

Fb V gnxr onpx zl pbzcynvag nobhg gur gvzvat.  V qb guvax vg'f fyvtugyl naablvat gung Rqqvr'f gvzr orgjrra erzvaqre naq qrngu jnf whfg n zvahgr be gjb (n fvatyr fprar) juvyr Gubeagba jrag guebhtu gjb fprarf naq gjb ebbzf va guerr qvssrerag sybbef, nf qvq Ivpgbevn.  Ohg zhpu zber haqrefgnaqnoyr.

Fantastic game!

(Spoilery constructive feedback for the author below)

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1. I wish there was an easier way to `find` text not only across scenes but also within scenes.  Right now what I had to do each time is to first type the command `find ring` and then Ctrl+F and use my browser's search to directly highlight the instances of the word `ring`.  This felt janky because the game window kept shrinking/expanding (fullscreen switches) and the browser kept finding words in the itch.io comments.  I would really much prefer it if, after clicking a scene through the Find results, the searched word would be underlined in all its instances.

2. I felt that there were a few too many puzzles that required me to figure out the layout of the house itself -- characters going "upstairs" or "downstairs" and the reader expected to know where they end up, at least approximately.  The positioning of rooms was not fully intuitive (e.g. a kitchen below the dining room... until I learned about the dumbwaiter), and I found myself wishing for more help there.  I know @ says "I couldn't find any records of the layout, so I can only go off the names that I've found within the audio", but, I wish at least the player was more obviously told to write down the layout of which rooms are "upstairs" and which are "downstairs".

3. The name of the game isn't great (I'm sorry).

4. The time delay between deaths was very confusing and as far as I know it was simply left unexplained, which I found dissatisfying.  I loved the fact that the rate keeps going up, with more and more bodies dropping, but I couldn't find any explanation for why the deaths are accelerating.

I'll expand on this with very major spoilers in ROT13:  

V haqrefgnaq gung rnpu gvzr fbzrbar qvrf sebz gur nagvzrzr phefr ("gur cerivbhf ivpgvz"), gur arkg ivpgvz orpbzrf rvgure gur ynfg crefba gb unir gubhtug bs gurz be gur svefg crefba gb guvax nobhg gurz ntnva (abg pbhagvat guvaxvat nobhg vgf hasnzvyvne obql).  Rirelbar sbetrgf nobhg gur cerivbhf ivpgvz naq eryngrq zrzbevrf va gur zbzrag bs qrngu, ohg gur arkg ivpgvz jvyy fhqqrayl ertnva gurfr zrzbevrf gur svefg gvzr gurl guvax/gnyx nobhg gur cerivbhf ivpgvz (hfhnyyl unccraf guebhtu n culfvpny bowrpg gung erzvaqf gurz), juvpu gevttref gur "pbhagqbja" sbe guvf arkg ivpgvz'f qrngu.  

V qb abg ng nyy haqrefgnaq jul, va-jbeyq, gurer jnf n uhtr gvzr qrynl orgjrra gur qrnguf bs gur svefg srj punenpgref (Ehcreg, Uneel, Rir) juvyr gur ynfg qrnguf unccra rkgerzryl dhvpxyl nsgre rnpu bgure (Rqqvr, Znegun, Gbal).  V gubhtug vg zvtug or gur "culfvpny zrzbenovyvn" pbaarpgvba, ohg gung'f abg pyrna rabhtu naq snvyf gb rkcynva gur beqre (r.t. jul Gubeagba pnzr nsgre Ehcreg rira gubhtu Wbua jnf unaqyvat gur xrl), fb zl orfg thrff vf gung vg'f n pbzovangvba bs "jnf guvaxvat nobhg ivpgvz nf gurl qvrq" naq "vf erzvaqrq bs gur ivpgvz guebhtu fbzrguvat arj".

5. I enjoyed the large amount of red herrings, but I felt that there were a few too many of them near the end which were left unresolved in a way that doesn't exactly convince the player if they are or aren't connected, even by the time the final theory is completed.  Perhaps one or two of them should be blatantly deemed false by @, in one of the very last documents?  Just as a final confirmation.

Look like v1.1.18 fixed the "full clear" stamp.  The maximum score is now 365.  And when you get a full clear you get an ominous poem, which ends with a suspiciously purple question mark.  I wonder if it's yet another hint...

Looks like you're not allowed to even touch the rats, except the rat king.  So you have to be very lucky and find him near the start, kill him, and leave all the others be.

For context (and vague spoilers) -- I already know the secrets of the... rats, gargoyles, minotaurs, guardians, purple slimes, lovers, mine king, rat king, beholder, purple mage, chests, gnome (maybe).  I hope there's something to discover about skeletons, bats, or green slimes, but so far they seem completely random to me (identical except for their power level, before the slime scroll).

I love the 1.1.17 update, including all the new monsters and new behavior.  I like the current level of challenge, but I'm stuck on two of the achievements (stamps).

The "board clear" seems like it's just bugged -- I cleared the entire board including the dragon at the end, got max score, but nothing happened.

For rat pacifist... I made a dozen attempts already and none of them succeeded.  I already learned the secrets of the rat king, but they seem useless if I'm not allowed to touch any of the rats.  Is there any consistent way to get this done, even a tenth of the time, without being extraordinarily lucky?    [Update two hours later]:  I got it!  The name was apparently confusing, and killing the rat king is still allowed.

Pretty fun!  I gave up after getting stuck in the Turbine level for way too long (the difficulty really spikes there!)

My favorite game from the jam, so far.  It's a simple idea but it turned out way more fun than I expected, with enough polish to make the experience enjoyable for at least 20 minutes.  (longer review on game page)

Great game!  It's very much "Paper's Please with the Knapsack Problem", and even though the basic gameplay is very simple, it is delivered really well here.  The ability to place weights on both sides of the scale is what makes the game click.  

I managed to buy Saffron around day 6, but by that point the game became a bit too boring (which makes sense with the limited dev time).  If you ever decide to make it a full game, I imagine you could add all sorts of new mechanics to "spice things up":  sacks with holes that slowly leak out spice, special weights that need to be saved for special people, bonuses/penalties for finishing fast or delaying too long during each customer's turn... and of course, plot!

UX-wise, my criticism is all minor:

1. It's very hard to tell how much money each sale gives you and why.  This information is important so that I can better decide if I e.g. prefer to sell [6/7 + 3/10] or [3/7 + 6/10].  I know the color system (white vs yellow) helps, but it doesn't help enough to figure these small details out.  I also don't know if sometimes it's better to stop and do nothing rather than confirm a very bad deal.
2. Dragging my cursor back and forth got a bit painful for my hand after a while... some hotkeys would be nice.  For example:  assign the numbers 1,2, 3,4, 5,6 to the halves of the scales, then let me press 3 while hovering over a weight to automatically place that weight on the left side of the second scale.
3. Make it easier to remove a specific weight from the scale after it was placed.  Currently they all overlap.

Thanks for making it!

You're right, your game is pretty similar (and I enjoyed it too!).  Maybe one day we could have a game where you're a tiny worm controlling a giant mech

I finished it now;  it's got a bunch of nice ideas in it, and the level design is good, but the controls are really holding it back.  Would've been nice if climbing was automatic (as long as you're holding the up key) rather than relying on the space button, and if falling was slower.

Nice game! Definitely what this jam was meant to have, with good focus on the core mechanic and the platforming puzzles that it can solve. It took time to understand how the controls work exactly, and the player character is able to rotate for no real good reason, and there are a few small bugs, but overall it's satisfying to figure out how this mechanic works and play with it.

I wish that the white yo-yo rope line was consistent - I think it's better to have the cursor "wrong" than the line to the yo-yo "wrong". Also, I think the player character could be a bit smaller (or the world a bit more zoomed out).

Is the yo-yo movement-towards-cursor speed limit on purpose? I didn't like how I had to act fast and move the cursor quickly so that the yo-yo could catch up in time, but maybe it was meant as an additional skill challenge for the game.

Really good! Simple but smart concept, executed quite well. I like how the difficulty curve is very natural, and the mechanic of extending the loop's time both forwards and backwards after each iteration is brilliant. The best strategy is to create a conga line of clones that execute each other, but the most fun strategy is to run around and shoot everything and dodge everything you shot :D