Gameplay:
I enjoyed most of the puzzles, and (since I played the game on casual since I'm baby :,) ) the chase scenes weren't too bad.
Some of the hallways were really long... this has to be one of the longest games in this jam I've played so far, but at lot of it was just walking through hallways. Even though I had Running turned on for almost all of the game, the hallways would always go on for just a bit too long, if that made sense? But I'm also an impatient person haha, and I appreciated that going through a long hallway would help key me into when a chase scene would happen.
Story:
I always hoped Marion would find her dad down there, haha, but as far as I could tell I wasn't able to in any of my playthroughs :') but I did enjoy the story! I was a bit disappointed that you couldn't do more with Jane, it felt like she was being built up to be something major in the story, including having her own photo... but I do like the major character you meet in the second part of the game, so it's not too bad.
I also liked the journals you find later in the game, I always like finding little bits of lore. The execution was a bit awkward... maybe recordings would have made more sense in the context? But I enjoyed those tidbits regardless.
I ended up getting Ending A, Ending C, and Ending D. Ending A is, of course my favorite ending, and I also liked Ending C, though it didn't quite feel as satisfying to me. I think somewhere deep down I was still hoping Marion could find her dad... oh well, maybe she did in Ending B.
I really liked Ending D as well. The twist there was... I wonder how the time skip happened, but other than that it completely made sense and definitely gave me a lot of mixed feelings to watch. In a good way! It had a strange blend of feeling like you're no longer "unsafe", but still having it's own flavor of horror... I don't know how else to describe it.
Presentation:
Right off the bat, the sound design and music in the menu are excellent. I especially like the art gallery! I always like seeing things like that in games, I think it's very cute though I myself haven't figured out how to pull it off in RPGMaker quite yet.
I did notice that some of the dialogue is shorter than the box itself? I'm not sure it's a stylistic choice or not, but I thought I'd mention it. I didn't notice it in the intro cutscene but then it was there on the train with Marion, so... yeah, a bit strange.
I do like the sound effects, but some of them are a bit distracting in places. To me personally, some of them just seemed ill fitting, like some of the sound effects that Marion makes or some of the walking sounds. Or, sometimes testing a locked door didn't quite sound like a locked door? But I do appreciate the attention to detail, even if I didn't like all of the sound effects it really did help the world come alive.
Creativity:
There's a lot of horror games that start off with the protagonist looking for a missing loved one, but after that first premise a lot of this game is very much uncharted territory. Certain tropes pop up, sure, but this game has a lot of subtly unique elements, and not to mention the monster designs! The whole first part kind of tricks you into thinking that there's just one kind of monster, one kind of environment- and then part 2 opens and throws you for a loop, over and over again.
I like how the behaviors and appearances of the monsters are always hinted at in the lore, but even they don't really prepare you for what they'll actually be like. There are some that I was only ever able to recognize after the fact, or if they were stated outright- most of them even now I still can't identify. It's great! For a horror game I mean, haha.
Horror:
I don't know if it's a spookier game on casual than on the other modes, but my playthroughs didn't scare me too much. There were definitely uncomfortable parts though, and other parts that made me jump- and the whole thing kept a decently spooky atmosphere. I think probably the culmination of this in Ending D is really... it was close to quintessential horror for me. I think also something about the game felt too big... like in a good way? The maps were too big, it felt like there was too much to explore- at times this led to frustration, but other times it felt like getting lost. This dread that you really will never make it out alive- or at least, that Marion won't.
Theme:
The theme is "Depths of the Earth" and most of the game takes place underground, what more could you ask for? There was one section were I was walking through and getting worried that it was a maze, until I realized- the incredibly large map sizes and winding corridors and hallways already make the whole game feel like one!
-Final Thoughts-
I got Ending A first. Best ending hands down, 10/10, needs to be in every game.