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Some areas got really frustrating, but overall I liked it. Definitely some solid horror in here, and the sounds were really nostalgic in the best possible way!

I really enjoyed this a lot. I'm not normally big on visual novels, but the themes in this really struck a chord with me and I'll be thinking about it for a while. Thank you so much for your hard work here!

I absolutely loved this! Very challenging overall (it took me 4 hours to actually get the "good" ending), and very satisfying to play!

Thanks for posting spoilers and ruining part of the game.

I agree that there's a responsibility to disseminate harm reduction and inform people, but psychosis is still not the long-term adverse effect (even in the case study you linked). The long-term adverse effect for that patient was major depressive disorder. 

If you're going to inform people, just make sure you're accurate. Use studies with better statistical power and a larger subject population, because case studies are literal anecdote - peer-reviewed anecdote, but still anecdote. 

Here's a better analysis, as a fairly comprehensive literature review, that gives more detailed long-term adverse effects: Long-term effects of psychedelic drugs: A systematic review

Here are their conclusions:

Sustained changes in personality/attitudes, depression, spirituality, affect/mood, anxiety, wellbeing, substance use, meditative practices, and mindfulness were documented.

There are no mentions anywhere of persistent psychosis. At most, there are acute episodes while under the effects of the substance, and a very small risk of underlying mental illnesses like schizophrenia surfacing.

I apologize too if this seems pedantic; I'm a PhDc with a special interest in neuroscience and neuropharmacology, so these details are important.

Not really a fan of your disclaimer at the beginning. Psychosis isn’t really a long-term effect of psychedelic use at all. It can trigger the emergence of underlying neurological disorders (such as schizophrenia) that present in part as psychosis, but that’s exceedingly rare.

I’d argue the main adverse effects to warn about would be 1) psychological trauma, which can be caused by a challenging experience (bad trip), and 2) HPPD (hallucinogen persisting perception disorder) which, while also rare, can happen and causes constant visual disturbances like shifting or static.

Just played through the whole game and really liked it too, despite the inaccuracies! 

That’s too bad that there isn’t a common thread with the turning issues, but I’ll do everything I can to replicate it! Would you be willing to share your CPU/GPU/OS just for reference? Every data point helps with pinpointing this stuff so with that info I should hopefully be able to get some equivalent playtesting done to try replicating it.

And good point! I had left time running when examining things to try driving up tension, but getting killed off-screen while looking at things isn’t going to be a fun experience for anyone. Thank you again for the feedback!

Thank you for letting me know about those bugs! 

Were there any specific areas in the level that gave you difficulty turning, or was it more of a random thing? And was that on a controller or with keyboard and mouse?

I’ll have to take a look near that car to see if there’s anything weird happening with collision or anything like that - apologies there. On a side note, do you think I should change it so that the game pauses while looking at notes and listening to audio?

Glad you’re liking it so far! I’ll try getting bug fixes for these issues pushed shortly!

HOLY CRAP MAN. I just hit the secret ending and I was not prepared for the whole style and audio to change like that - that legitimately freaked me out!

Thank you so much for taking the time to play and share such positive feedback! It means a lot to hear that Requiem brought back those classic PS1 memories—I worked hard to capture that retro vibe while adding a unique atmosphere, so it's fantastic to know it resonated. I’m definitely planning to keep developing this project and exploring its potential, so stay tuned for updates! Thanks again for the encouragement—it really helps keep the momentum going!

That’s awesome! I’ll be looking for updates! If you could take a look at my submission and give some feedback/a rating it would help me a ton as well!

THANK YOU!!! I’m super pumped for the secret ending!

I'm super impressed to find a multiplayer game in a jam! It controls butter smooth as well, and I like the visuals a lot. Very, very nice!

I really like the overall composition of this - the lighting and atmosphere are spot on! I'm really looking to seeing where you take the level design and story!

This is a really solid base you have to work off of! I'm super interested to see where you take the story!

This was pretty solid as a platformer! I really liked the fact that it felt complete in terms of soundtrack, number of enemy types, and variety of gameplay. I did have a good bit of fun in the maze areas as well!

One thing to note is that you should make sure to attribute work to AI where it was used - I don't believe there's any issue with AI in this jam (and I don't have anything against it either), but it's a good idea just for the sake of transparency.

Overall, very well done!

The arrows to help with selecting objects help a ton! I managed to use the gun as well, but I'm having trouble doing anything past there - I assume I should be able to move the Demiurge, right?

Super sorry to hear about your laptop! Hopefully you can get it back soon. Thank you for checking the game out too!

I’m glad you liked it - thank you! :)

Thank you so much!

Thank you so much for the feedback! I’m really glad to hear you enjoyed the features and story—we put a lot of work into creating a polished, immersive experience, so it’s great to know that resonated.

About the webcam: it’s actually used as part of a specific reveal near the end to add a unique layer to the experience. I completely understand that it can feel unsettling! We’ve added a disclaimer on the game page about this (and we’ll make it even more prominent), and we’re also working to include an in-game notice so players know about this element in advance.

Thank you again for playing, and I hope you enjoyed the experience overall!

Thanks so much for the awesome feedback! I’m thrilled to hear the PSX-style visuals and Resident Evil/Silent Hill-inspired mechanics hit the mark for you—I really wanted to capture that nostalgia while adding some new twists, so it’s fantastic that you enjoyed those touches!

Sorry to hear about the camera bug. I’m actively working on refining the transitions to make them smoother on hardware where it’s been a bit glitchy. There’s actually quite a bit more content after the house area, so I hope you’re able to check it out once the fixes are rolled out!

And yep, the webcam is part of the final reveal—without spoiling too much, it’s used to create a moment I think you’ll enjoy! There is a disclaimer about it on the main page as well, but it’s a bit hidden in the lore, so I apologize for that. Thanks again for giving it a go, and I hope you’re able to finish it up with the updates soon!

Thanks so much for checking out the game! I’m really glad you enjoyed the fourth wall elements and atmosphere—we put a lot into creating that immersive vibe, so it’s awesome to hear it landed well!

PS5 controller compatibility has been a bit hit-or-miss due to a known Unreal Engine issue, but I’ll definitely be working on a fix for that post-jam! Also, good catch on the pipe not breaking crates—totally agree that it’d feel more natural, and that’ll be an easy fix to have in place soon.

Thanks again for all the feedback and for diving into Requiem!

Thank you so much for your thoughtful feedback! Your insights are incredibly reassuring, especially regarding how players interact with retro-inspired games like Requiem. I’m glad the Silent Hill tone, meta storytelling, and twist left an impact; getting that nostalgia feel right was a priority, so it’s great to hear it resonated!

Your comments on the camera are helpful too. Balancing that retro camera style with modern comfort is definitely something I’ll keep refining post-jam. It’s a fine line between honoring the original feel and ensuring a smooth, frustration-free experience.

And I truly appreciate your encouragement about player feedback. Knowing that players might enjoy the experience in a quiet way is valuable perspective and definitely helps to ease my concerns.

Thanks again for taking the time to share this, and I wish you a great day or night as well!

Here’s mine if you get the chance! I’ll be playing yours first thing tomorrow!

https://itch.io/jam/cosmichorrorsjam3/rate/2944659

Here's my game! If you're interested feel free to post yours and I can rate you back!

https://itch.io/jam/cosmichorrorsjam3/rate/2944659

Thank you so much for the in-depth feedback and for giving Requiem a playthrough! I’m really glad to hear the visuals, audio, story, and old-school vibes landed for you, especially with how much went into creating that retro survival horror feel. It was actually a solo dev project (we had four composers and a character modeler as well, but I did everything else) with a one-week time crunch, so it means a lot that it came across as a team effort!

I totally understand your points about the navigation challenges and the ambition being a bit much for a week-long jam—I pushed hard on scope, and I’ll definitely be streamlining things to make key items and pathways more intuitive. I’m also planning to add more subtle guidance (like the dumpster code puzzle) in a future patch to smooth out that early learning curve.

I also appreciate the heads-up on the “dodgy” feel of the browser and desktop interactions; while I wanted them to amp up the ARG vibe, adding a disclaimer at the start should help players feel more comfortable. There are disclaimers on the main game page, but they're woven into the lore so they're likely not obvious enough.

Audio-wise, I’ll definitely look at adding more retro-style effects to the recordings to better match the game’s setting and apply a filter to give them that vintage feel! I intended to run everything through a bitcrusher to get the sound appropriate for the time period, but just didn't have enough time for it. As for the AI-generated images, I get it—it was a quick way to add some polish under tight time constraints, but moving forward, I’ll likely create original assets to keep it fully organic. For what it's worth though, all AI-assisted assets were only roughed out with Adobe and then were properly completed by an artist. Still not an entirely human workflow though.

Thanks again for all your insights—it’s incredibly helpful, and I really appreciate your support and kind words. There’s a full release on the horizon, and with feedback like this, it’ll be better than ever!

Just wanted to follow up on this! Have you been able to get it to work?

No worries at all! That's what I figured - I will continue working on it! I really like everything about it so far!

I really liked the innocent mechanic of truck driving with horror elements added! Just about the time I got used to attaching/detaching trailers and actually backing into spaces was when I came across the first unsettling sight - it was only then that I realized how slippery the roads were (I was trying to book it out of there). I really liked everything about this, especially when it comes to the visuals and sound design. Absolutely wonderful and fresh!

I really liked the static cameras combined with the 2.5D movement and pixel art. Very beautiful visually, and I really liked the story as well. Well done!

I actually think I'm having an issue picking up this item on the shelf:

Okay, so I've gotten as far as getting the gun, but I haven't figured out how to progress beyond that - do you have any hints on what to do that wouldn't be spoiling too much?

Thank you so much for playing and for sharing such detailed feedback! I’m really glad the fixed cameras and movement took you back to those classic PS1 and Xbox days—that was exactly what I was going for! Apologies about the nausea; I’m happy to hear it’s authentic to the retro experience, even if it’s a bit intense!

Thanks for the heads-up on the loot bag as well—it’s definitely something I’ll make more visible in a future patch so it’s harder to miss. And you’re absolutely right about the need for clearer disclaimers on the webcam and desktop notifications; I do mention it briefly on the game page, but I’ll look into adding an extra prompt within the game itself to make sure it’s super clear up front. The goal was to amp up that “being watched” vibe, so it’s awesome to know it worked!

Thank you again for playing, and I’m really glad the experience hit home for you!

Happy to give the feedback, and I look forward to seeing future releases from you! If you have the time I’d love to hear your thoughts on my entry as well :)

What do you mean it’s too big for download? If you’re having any issues with it I’d be happy to help. Over a hundred people have been able to download it without a problem!

There are a few people who have streamed it as well, though I highly recommend playing it for yourself if you’re able to. Here are a couple of the streams I’m aware of: 

1) Starts at 1:54:00 - https://www.twitch.tv/videos/2285929328

2) Starts at 1:28:00 - https://www.twitch.tv/videos/2284957301

3) Starts at 3:10:00 - https://www.youtube.com/live/VqVZX8TCylo?si=s6j0_U8YYB5CORzM

No worries at all! I can try it on my laptop later today too! In any case I can give it a shot as soon as it’s updated as well!

Very cool! I liked slowly unlocking the full logs, and it was pretty cool that you replicated a bunch of the built-in Windows games and UI for this. What engine did you use?

I have to say, this is super unique, and I'm really curious how you made it! 

I really liked how claustrophobic and isolated the atmosphere was for this, and the posterization in the rendering was really visually interesting (especially the way it makes the shadows creep)! The intermittent lonely beep reminded me quite a bit of Alien: Isolation as well which is always welcome. Well done!