Alright, I beat the first boss.
Short version: This was pretty impressive all things considered. I could see it being a bigger game, but as short jam game it feels pretty complete, albeit lacking in convenient inventory interfaces regarding the cards and stats.
Long version:
My main issue (and I'm positive this is something you would have implemented with time) is not being able to view my cards and stats.
It was difficult to balance my deck for the boss, since the trick was to get to them with enough health to survive the battle. He's weak to Magic, but the enemies on the way are flat out immune to magic. I had to figure out what my card balance was like through trial and error in battle. And once I found the shortcut, I did it in a few goes, so it was quite satisfying to over-come.
Also, I wasn't sure how the Sticks and Hearts factored in. Were they blank spaces because I didn't have enough cards, to discourage small decks? And are the cards completely random draws, or does using one take it out of play? Do they reset at the start of fights? Knowing these things would make decision making more interesting.
I assume the theme was the duality of the two lives, which was well done. You had to invest in your real life skills to more efficiently build up your game stats. And a lot of effort was put into the city visuals. But yeah, seeing my own stats and having some clue to where I stood with the outside world would have helped.
I'm also not sure about having important NPC dialogue in the dangerous overworld was a good move, especially since some of the NPCs were thugs. (Though it certainly drove home the dystopian vibe.) Once I figured out I could just deposit all my money and stroll around freely it was fine. EDIT: In retrospect, most of it wasn't that vital. The important stuff was in Fantasy Quest.
Also, I'm not sure if this is just a hole in the logic, but I can go into negative funds at the card shop. I never tested it, but there doesn't seem to be a downside to it. Theoretically, could I buy as many strong cards as I want?
EDIT: I grinded about $1400 for strength training and beat the game. That was pretty nice ending.