itch.io

The concept is really cool, makes me imagine a more bullet-helly version of Everhood ^^ The level is fairly short, but shows a lot of promise. The first half captures the song's eastern, blazing sun kind of feel really well. Beat counter mode no-hit first, then one hit mode.

The gameplay and its visuals are solid and promising, however the one aspect I think really needs work is presentation. I've seen the game's banner quite a few times over the jam's rating period, but it didn't feel appealing or clickworthy. The game page doesn't have any gameplay screenshots. The logo seems hard to read and doesn't catch a lot of attention imo, nor gives off a feel of the game too well. Ultimately, I'm glad I clicked, downloaded and tried the game, but some other souls might pass it by, even if the gameplay would be up their alley. Presentation is important ^^ Because sadly, people won't be able to enjoy a game if they never click on it :c

Only a couple nitpicks about the game itself:
- The tutorial being broken, which I see quite a few comments mentioned already. Probably a good idea to change the game page's description about it until it's fixed
- The, err, 3x3 grid part starts quite abruptly, giving little time to figure out what's happening. Might be worthwhile to give some kind of visual warning the first time it's going to start, or give a little more time to react
- While moving on the 3x3, trying to rapidly press the arrow keys may prevent the player from moving properly. I imagine this could be really nasty later on if there are any 3x3 grid patterns that require speed to evade

Overall - great concept, I think presentation is the only glaring issue, everything else is solid ^^ glad I gave the game a go, would love to see some post-jam updates!