So, several years ago I was looking into the origin of the surname "Ochoa" out of curiosity and discovered, quite interestingly, that it's derived from the Basque word for "wolf". I didn't think that factoid would ever be useful to me ever again until I saw our wolf for this entry was named "Otsoa." Hell of a way for that rabbit hole to come full circle.
Anyway, tangents to the side, for a first attempt, there's a lot to like here. There's also a lot to work on for next time, but browsing through the script, I think some of that may have also come down to not being able to fully realize your vision due to the time constraints of the jam.
Breaking down by rating criteria:
Implementation of Theme:
If it's there, it's not as clear as some other entries. What we're looking for here is "folklore", and I could see an argument for the Basque proverb "Eguna egunezkoarentzat eta gaua gauezkoarentzat" being the connection to folklore here. That proverb does provide a discrete thematic throughline for the VN, with our characters forced by nature into their environment despite their desires not to be confined to their predetermined spaces (and Angler at least successfully rebels against this at the end). I'm not sure if the proverb itself really constitutes folklore? I think that's plausible, considering it's at least oral tradition and all, but I'm also not sure if I'm stretching to give you credit.
Presentation:
Judging by some of the notes in the script, this may be where the project suffers the most from the tight timelines of the jam. When the presentation is working, it really works - the opening scenes of the VN are really great. The soundscape early sets the tone with ambient music and more subtle water SFX, we have great visuals like the faint sun from under the water, the crystal cave, and that poor snail, and the writing comes off very clean and aesthetic.
However, once Angler starts communicating with Otsoa, the presentation falls off for much of the VN. There are very many proofreading errors (typos, grammar, misused words), and while this really isn't as much of a problem with the internal narration, especially the purple prose in the cave where the text reading as ethereal or cryptic can elevate the moment, the errors can make the dialogue hard to follow and get invested in. Also, for much of the VN, basically the entire length of Angler and Otsoa's interaction, we are more or less staring at a blue screen. I understand that we're underwater and that is literally what it looks like, but that's a long way for a visual novel to go without any visuals.
The presentation does pick back up again from the viper fight through to the end, with tense sounds and some solid art, though I did notice there were quite a few comments referencing CGs that didn't exist, hence the theory that some stuff got cut for time. I know it's difficult when you're just starting out, but I think getting an editor, or at least a proofreader, on board could really help you out.
Story/Writing:
For how long this VN is, there's really not much plot to dig into. Setting aside some of the mysteries that are presumably intentionally left unresolved, like what the extremely durable phones are, how they got to the ocean and the forest, and why the cave and lake disappeared soon after, most of the conversation between the two leads is primarily meditative and philosophical. We don't really get much more out of our characters than the superficial elements that contribute to the theme - both feel trapped and disillusioned by their environment and desire for something unattainable, even if it would kill them. It seem like Otsoa might have a more interesting backstory (whereas Angler's is almost entirely characterized by aimless drifting before finding the phone), but we really only get hints of this before the phone is destroyed.
Again, I think I see what you' might be going for here, with Angler and Otsoa being representative of concepts or emotions rather than expressly defined "characters," per se, but the problem with this approach is that we spend a lot of time with these two having basically a Philosophy 101 discussion, and that combined with the static visuals and sometimes stilted dialogue can make the middle of the VN feel like a bit of a slog to get through.
As stated, everything picks up dramatically once the viper enters the picture, but from there we speed straight through to the climax and conclusion, barely getting any other interaction with Otsoa. I think if you were to revise this, I'd suggest putting more "events" in the story to break up the philosophy speak. You already do this a bit with the first viper fakeout and Otsoa's flight to the cave, but if we could have a few more of those events that add some tension, or some momentum, and let the story flesh out some more facets of the characters' attitudes and personalities, that would go a long way. Those events don't all have to be super dangerous or life-threatening, but maybe Otsoa hunts some easy prey, or Angler finds a cool underwater rock formation that they describe to Otsoa or something.
Creativity:
For all the feedback above, this was definitely creative. Underwater phone conversation with the wolf is absolutely a direction I haven't seen taken before, and there are other unique choices too, like the characterization of the underwater environment as very cold, calculating, and isolated and the integration of Basque language and culture.
There are some really cool ideas here (and, to reiterate, some really inspired images when they pop up), and I think now that you have some experience under your belt you can use this as a foundation to make something really special if you stick with it, and I hope you do.
Final score of 8 completely waterproof cell phones out of 12 Freshman philosophy lectures taught by a literal wolf.