Hi! There was a fairly significant difference between the stat requirements in the first demo, yes. There was still ample time to meet the requirements, but while testing I hadn't properly factored in that people would experiment with all the choices, or not know which knight they planned to aim for from the getgo. Plus 1 point could mean the difference between a good and a bad end so you may well have come very close to winning the original a few times without realising it.
I'm glad you like the art style! I'd say it's fairly close to my usual drawing style, but maybe I took inspiration from tapestries and stained glass windows without realising, haha. Certainly some of the poses are quite formal.
The map will be coloured eventually. I did a rough colouring of it but it honestly just made it look unfinished and I didn't have the time to make it all neat (or the patience, after staring at it for three days straight). I'll revisit it eventually! There are definitely a few things in the game that need retouching or even redoing, like the opening CGs.
Hmm, good point about the music - though playing the emotional music for both was intended to make you unsure if you'd won or lost, with hopefully surprised delight if you hadn't! But you're right, it's probably a little too sad for the good ending and I will likely change it in the next release.