The first thing that caught my attention was the camera work in the cutscenes—it's very well done, fluid, and natural! On top of that, the two protagonists work really well together, with a very '90s-style humor that reminded me of Magic Knight Rayearth, especially in the way they break the tension.
The camp is interesting and intuitive, with well-defined navigation. Something I really appreciated was the respect for the game's weapon and armor shop—there's none of that classic mechanic where you wander a bit and end up finding a significantly better weapon than what you can buy (though the Mithril Morning Star and Rapier in the cave are a small yet significant detail). The level design is intuitive and enjoyable; I barely needed any time to recognize and orient myself within the base. I think adding signs in key locations could help identify them by their lore-wise names rather than relying solely on mechanical memory. Whispers Hollow, for example, is my "Cave Without a Bridge," while the one to the south is the "One With a Bridge." :P
Moving much further ahead, talking about the game's ending, I really liked the tower, but one zone felt off—the confrontation against Sir James.
The floating bed with buttons appearing along the way to Leif just didn’t feel as good compared to what came next. The lava tracks, the sky-high paths, and the ghost town with a chest that spawns two monsters were all great moments. But the floating bed… it was odd. It felt like something added later. I understood the concept of creating a space where order is subverted to prepare the player for the portal—and the lack of order there—but I don’t think it was the best way to present it. Maybe ghostly footsteps that teleport the player uncontrollably, following a sequence of invisible walls leading to the buttons before stopping in front of the Save Fairy, would have worked better. But honestly, I’m not sure what I'd do.
The combat is very classic, and I understand that the best approach would be to allow the player to see and engage enemies directly on the map. Random encounters are a relic of the past, and while they’re fun here, a more modern touch would enhance the overall experience. Reducing the cost of the Battle Ward would also be important, as 10,000G is way too high. This ends up unbalancing the game since that amount is frequently found in chests, making the shop logic irrelevant and reducing the penalty for progression. Since this item is a trade-off between comfort and XP (as fighting less also means getting less powerful), its price could be reconsidered.
All the bosses have a good dynamic, but I found the battle against Mathilde (both the first and second encounters) too much of a damage sponge. I get that she’s placed in the latter half of the experience, but she doesn’t use any skills, doesn’t lock any stats… she just attacks normally and deals a lot of damage. The Kobolds/Whisper Weaver on the bridge are more dangerous enemies than Mathilde in the first battle, and Jorge is a much more imposing foe than she is in the second fight. In a way, her pattern feels similar to the Forgotten One in the encounter with Leif—no defined attack pattern, just waiting. In contrast, a good example was the Scarlet Colossus, which, even with my high level (26), alternated well between double attacks and even managed to take Selene down once. Grand Master Jorge, while using skills, is intentionally unbalanced because he's in the final stretch, so Scarlet Colossus felt like a better example of dynamic combat.
Having Emperor Bugle stall and turn the final battle into a magic attack spam got a bit tiresome because he’s such a massive damage sponge with no real variety. I understand that the idea there was to showcase absolute power, reducing opposition to a futile effort, but I’m not sure if the game executes that in the best way to achieve the intended philosophical impact without relying on the player's patience. The wait time until Hell Grasp is long—about eight turns of Grand Cross with Selene and Tornado III with Leif. I think three turns with Bugle dodging and taking 0 damage would be enough to get the point across.
The stat boosts at the end also got me thinking. On one hand, they’re an important buff since HP is low compared to the damage dealt by bosses (like Sir James). On the other, they feel artificially ineffective because Selene starts, continues, and ends as the strongest character. The player has no control over this, which makes sense lore-wise, but it might be worth reflecting on the level of agency you want to provide. After all, Grand Cross already trivializes some parts of the final stretch.
By the way, in the tower and the camp, interactions with locked doors should inform the player whether they will open automatically or remain closed for good. Since everything follows a classic approach, we instinctively expect to find a key. The fact that some doors open on their own can be a double-edged sword: in the camp, for example, south of the path leading to the Mathilde fight, there’s a locked door that never opens. Meanwhile, in the tower, the locked doors need to be opened with enchantments.
Overall, the game is thematically aligned with the jam. I really liked the protagonists, the story has a well-structured logic, it's fun, fast-paced, and the design is solid. There’s a typical grind spike in line with the design philosophy of that era, and I’m not sure how that would be received today. But the humor is light and works well! One of my favorite bits was the sewer paper joke, a fun nod to the Nintendo Power Line.
I’m really excited about what you’ve created here, and I’ll be around when you decide to develop more ideas. Thank you so much for sharing your game! It was a fun, light, and rewarding experience. I wish you luck, happiness, and prosperity! ༺☆༻
