I really enjoyed the game, to the point where I'm eager to follow the creator's future work; there's a unique vision here on how to shape an experience. The protagonist is very charismatic, with a Coraline-like touch that makes everything feel like a dollhouse theater but lively enough to give that "something's off, but I can't quite tell what" feeling. Although I enjoyed the experience (and thinking that a few years back, this game would have been a treasure in the Flash era on sites like Newgrounds or Armor Games), I have three observations:
Crafting System - It could benefit from a more gradual progression. The system is so robust that it’s intimidating at first, even though it’s more about combining elements by minigames. For some, it might seem overwhelming, while others may appreciate the challenge and dive right in. I understand there are time and technical limitations (I didn’t find any bugs, which is impressive given the complexity!), but a smoother balance in future updates might make the experience more accessible without losing its personality. Three starting zones—a brief buying/selling area inicial potions, an exploration area to showcase the forest’s verticality and gather ingredients no clients, and a potion-making area with intuitive outlines for one potion with ingredients colected previous—would provide a gentler learning curve without taking away from the game’s initial impact. I think the story could develop further with a daily coin goal, telling a bit more of the story and elements in the store, in that dating sim logic of x days to a goal, with intervals for upgrades between x day and the next y day. Simple, but very functional.
Speed and Navigation - The protagonist feels a bit slow in the forest; having a navigation shortcut, like pressing Enter to return a screen or just touch to collect ingredients, would help. I began to feel fatigue while retracing long paths just to make potions. Adding a side-access tab to jump back and forth between the store and forest, accessible as an upgrade, might smooth out the pace for better navigation + give a purpose to extra coins.
Order Labels - Having a label on each order pointing to its matching entry in the grimoire and ingredients to make the order would be helpful as a starting point without breaking immersion. I get that this might go against the alchemist theme, but even a short note field (up to 50 characters) could help organize orders without forcing the player to constantly cross-check details, encouraging synthesis and aiding in note-taking without interrupting immersion.
Thank you for sharing the game; it was a fulfiling experience!