Design Statement
The theme track suggested a fragile journey towards something beautiful and unfamiliar. I interpreted that feeling as a deep-sea anglerfish imagining sunlight and deciding to leave the waters she knows. Her own small light is both a guide through darkness and a way to connect with other creatures.

Swimming is the central action. Vitality gradually decreases outside quiet water; food and shelters encourage the player to pause, recover and notice the ocean. Four connected environments gradually shift from bare dark stone to blue gardens, violet reefs and golden kelp, giving the musical sense of change a spatial form. Wildlife follows its own rhythms around the player.

Companions share part of the route, ask questions and eventually continue along their own paths. Dialogue choices let the player shape these brief relationships. The original theme recording accompanies the opening and final moments.

Game Instructions (launch steps, controls, and gameplay overview)
Browser version: open the itch.io game page, click Run game, and use the fullscreen button if desired. Play on a desktop or laptop with a keyboard. Click inside the game if it does not yet have keyboard focus.

WASD / arrow keys: swim in all four directions.
Hold Space: dim the lure to attract less attention from nearby creatures.
Hold E for one second inside a shelter: recover and save.
If an octopus catches you, hold E for two seconds to break free.
Enter / E / Space: advance dialogue; 1 / 2 / 3: choose a reply when available.
Escape: open the menu. Continue resumes the current journey, including interrupted dialogue. New Game starts immediately; Music toggles the theme.

Guide the anglerfish upwards through four connected waters. Vitality slowly decreases outside quiet water, and hazards can reduce it further. Quiet pockets pause the gradual loss. Glowing food restores vitality; resting in a shelter restores full vitality and saves progress. When vitality reaches zero, the fish returns to the last shelter without a death scene. Meet companions and choose replies while continuing towards sunlight. Shelter progress is saved locally in the browser.

Gameplay walkthrough video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XOhIa250fik

Did your project use any AI tools or assets? If yes, please specify.
Yes. This game contains AI-generated content. OpenAI tools were used to generate and revise character portraits, creature sprites, scenery and menu artwork, and to assist with game design, programming and animation implementation. I directed the process, selected and refined the results. The original thatgamejam #02 theme recording by Jason Grace is used unchanged and was not generated with AI. The Cormorant Garamond Italic font and CC0 water sound effects are credited separately.