(MINOR SPOILERS AHEAD)

We loved this game so much!! It’s such an incredible take on the theme - the premise is fresh and unique and exciting, and the narrative absolutely lives up to its promises. The writing is so, so deliciously good - it’s evocative, and authentic, and painful - the world and characters feel real and lived-in. It’s incredible how quickly the game gets you attached to them - we’ve only just met these people (and not-quite-people) and we were already invested in all of their stories - Arnold’s and Lidia’s in particular absolutely destroyed us. The sense of inevitable doom was palpable, and made us feel so powerless and frustrated in the best way possible - all of the choices having their advantages and downsides made for compelling moral dilemmas. We loved Jesse, and we loved the Crossroad Keeper, and we loved their relationship - they had such heartwarming, genuine chemistry, and their conversations were so fun to eavesdrop on. They were just so lovable and charismatic. The pacing was also impeccable, with plenty of room for the story to “breathe” while also keeping the readers at the edge of our seats. Watching all the little pieces of foreshadowing fall together in the end has been extremely satisfying, especially given the flowers used in the UI - it was such a clever little detail.

Speaking of UI, we loved it to bits - we kept going back-and-forth between the save menu and the game just to watch the little animation - in general the game’s visual identity is very stylish and cohesive, and oozing with this, rustic melancholy feel. We also appreciated the variety in choice mechanics - figuring out how the promise-making and the riddles worked together was a super exciting “aha!” moment. The hint/answer system was a welcome addition - in our experience, almost all the riddles were very solvable, but for the one we’ve struggled with, using an in-game function instead of having to reference an itch page/text doc felt like getting a high five from the game.

We’ve had an amazing time - congratulations on your well-deserved first place!!

wow. i just played it through and i am left with few words. the story was really beautiful and i really enjoyed the mechanics of the game. you did an incredible job there, from the visuals down to the writing, i felt really connected with the characters even if i knew so little of them. bonus point for the pleasantly deep voice acting!

I am ON THE FLOOR... Bro, this game was such a punch in my face... I feel so sentimental after playing it. Also THE GRAPHICS? THE VOICE ACTING? THE NARRATIVE? 10/10, would make a deal just to have the same experience again.

Damn, an emotional punch! I love these types of stories, and it feels like you’ve got it down to the details here (I loved the screen change anim!) Excellent job!

WOW. OHMAN. HOLYSHIT.

Dude i'm so in love with this game and i've had 3 glasses of rose so im feeling a lil extra corny but MAN.

You guys did so amazing, the art, the  music, the WRITINGGGG, the ui, everything feels so wonderfully done and just filled with so much love and care. I was really sucked into the atmosphere of this game, the way it was tragic but so beautiful, two things i love so much in a story!! I loved the main character like so fucking much you have no idea they were so interesting and captivating that I desperately needed to know more about them. I loved the endings and THE SECRET ENDINGG BICCHHHHHHH! I got so emotional and I felt like I got hit by a truck of emotions from the big reveal.

you guys absolutely KILLED it <3

This was such a great take on the theme, and I loved how fleshed out every one of the characters were! The riddle mechanic was also a fun touch!

lovely game!! the polish on this is super nice. definitely choked up a bit at certain parts. also thank you for including a hint / answer button for the riddles haha i definitely needed to use that a few times (though i didn't realize it was there during my first run through OOPS). great work!!!

This game was so incredibly beautiful - I've never seen a Visual Novel incorporate a riddle mechanic, so it was fun to try out!

the particles were really cool howd you do them

I'm still working my way through it BUT I love seeing how much you as a team have learned and grown since the last jam. The improvement is really noticeable, and you were already amazing last time in velfab -- and you only had 4 days this time! Really sick work legends

I like it but sadly once that animal lady was done i got this { I'm sorry, but an uncaught exception occurred.} please help

Absolutely killed it guys! chefs kiss! 10/10