The game is pretty good, but maybe it could be... diversified a bit—adding things like ricocheting weapons, for instance. It’s perfectly adequate for a game jam; this was just an idea for the future, in case you decide to keep working on it. <3

Sub Sonar is a very polished and well-presented jam submission. I really enjoyed the transmission-style opening: it gives the game a strong visual-novel briefing feel and immediately makes the Bermuda Triangle setting feel more interesting. The animated main menu, glowing effects, and overall UI presentation are excellent as well.

The core loop is simple and direct in a good way: monitoring the sonar, deciding what to prioritize, managing resources, and defending the base creates a tense underwater strategy experience. I also liked the idea that not every contact can be trusted, which makes the sonar theme feel fitting for the jam.

My main suggestion would be to improve the readability of a few small text elements, especially at the resolution used on the itch.io page. Fullscreen makes them easier to read, but slightly larger text or stronger contrast would help the game communicate its information more clearly from the start. I also noticed a few minor UI consistency details, such as buttons whose top border does not match the surrounding frame; using transparent icon buttons there could make the interface feel even more cohesive.

Overall, this is a very nice build with great presentation, a strong atmosphere, and an interesting defense concept. Great work!

The incremental auto-tower defense concept set in a creaky, underwater research station is insanely addictive and easily one of the most engaging games in the entire jam! The dark oceanic atmosphere, clean UI presentation, typewriter text audio, and the radar system where you have to upgrade your sensors to distinguish between actual hostile threats, harmless sea life, and hijacked cargo ships fits the "Don't Trust" theme brilliantly. 

A few balance, onboarding, and QoL suggestions to make this game even better for post-jam updates:

- Early-Game Economy & Balance: The initial upgrade costs feel a bit steep right at the start. Smoothing out the early progression curve would eliminate the slow waiting periods and let players dive into the core strategy loop much faster.

- Tutorial & Dialogue SFX: The intro story text drags on slightly long for a game jam context. Also, adding a randomized pitch variation to the typewriter sound effect would keep it from feeling repetitive during long dialogue sequences.

- Targeting Clarity: Make sure the target-lock mechanic (clicking a missile/hostile to prioritize it) is explicitly highlighted in a short, skippable onboarding prompt so new players don't accidentally click once and lose HP without knowing why.

- UI Formatting & Button Sizes: Enlarge the upgrade category icons slightly so they are easier to read at a glance, and fix the text-wrap layout bug where upgrade prices over 4 digits spill onto a second line and break the button layout.

Incredible execution on the audio, art, and overall mechanics! If you get a free minute, I'd really appreciate your feedback and rating on my solo jam entry as well: /jam/brackeys-16/rate/4953523

I loved the presentation page, it was really immersive! I also loved the music, which somehow made the whole game feel kinda cozy too. And I loved the artwork!

As for the critiques I have, I had quite a bit of difficulty understanding what I was supposed to do once the missiles started entering the screen. I would click on them, but some of them wouldn't get destroyed, and I would instantly lose health points. I feel like this mechanic could be explained a little more clearly so the player understands exactly what they're supposed to do.

I think the narrative is great and has a lot of potential, but it could have been developed a bit more. I also had some trouble understanding how the game fits the theme of the jam.

Another thing I noticed was the number of lives, it felt quite high, so maybe having fewer lives could make the game a little more challenging and engaging.

Overall, though, I really enjoyed the atmosphere, especially the artwork and music!

The visuals, sound, and polish were great! Game could use some balancing as it was tough upgrading in the beginning and although I held my base together for a while, not being able to upgrade quickly prevented me from seeing all the possibilities this game has to offer. I really liked the dialogue text scroll mechanic and sounds you chose for the text scroll as well. With a bit more tuning, this could be a really good idle clicker. Great entry!

What I liked: The auto tower defense concept is super neat. The upgrades are well thought out and well executed.

What could Improve: The pacing is all over the place. Sometimes I have nothing to do but to wait for the resources to arrive so I can upgrade but other times I'm trying not to die by micro managing which things to target. It is also hard to tell sometimes on what upgrades you can buy since the ui icons are pretty small. 

Additional Comments: I really liked the gameplay it could be turned into a nice idle game with some polishing. The thing it lacks right now, imo, as I said is pacing.

I like that it gave the game a really interesting style and backstory. As a tower defence game, it is good. The concept for them sounds better on paper, and I think more could be done to explain why the sensor reading is inaccurate, especially early in the game before upgrades.