Lots of feedback there appreciate the effort you went to. Don't plan on upgrading my hardware there's no point. Probably not going to improve my skills either. Literally couldn't care less it's a hobby not a career. If I was more serious about it then maybe I'd look into it further.
As for the magic based combat in Bane of Oakenshade. You have pretty much worked out the gameplay loop in a way. The magic is over powered on purpose but if you level up by gaining xp through enemies killed using magic the trade off is your melee improves with it. The stamina bar stops spamming attack buttons. You only do full damage when the bar is full! Swinging with a half full stamina bar is as good as useless. That's how Kings Field games work. I kept it inline with the styles they used in the 90s but added my own spin combat and levelling. As for not being able to tell if you hit things. That's a game engine flaw. Devs are working to rectify the short comings if the sword of moonlight engine. That's how Kings field plays. Hit boxes are vague and clunky.
I wanted to hide a starting weapon as most Kings field games give you one from the beginning. Wanted to make the player work for it. There is actually a lot of stuff to find early on in the first map alone. There's a shrine that will replenish your magic at no cost close by aswell.
Spiders are your simple grind enemy. They really get the experience points moving. Less to kill and give decent xp. Appreciate your effort and the extent you went to understand the game. The engine is 23 years old. I've enjoyed plenty of the fan games made with it. I just wanted to do things a bit different from what has already been done.
I probably won't be submitting for any jams for the foreseeable future. I have gone back to studying a multi coursed Cert IV after hours and that will consume most of my spare time.
Thanks again