itch.io

⚠️ SPOILER WARNING: This feedback discusses gameplay mechanics, progression, and endgame behavior. If you haven't played the game yet, I'd recommend playing it first before reading further!

First off, I thought this game was great and has a lot of potential! I really enjoyed the concept and the mechanics, and I had fun playing through it. I ended up doing multiple playthroughs to explore different outcomes, which is where I noticed a few things that I thought might be worth sharing.

I've split my feedback into gameplay suggestions and bugs/issues to make things easier to review. None of these suggestions are things that necessarily need to be implemented, but I figured I'd share my experience in case any of them are helpful while polishing the game!

🎮 Gameplay Feedback & Suggestions

1. Candy Identification: Pressing the Candy

The candy identification mechanic is fun, but pressing the candy currently seems to be the fastest and easiest way to identify bad candy. Since this method alone can identify the bad pieces, it can make the other inspection options feel unnecessary.

Suggestion: Consider giving each inspection method a distinct purpose. For example, pressing the candy could reveal whether it's firm or soft, but firmness wouldn't necessarily guarantee that the candy is safe. The magnifying glass could then reveal a different visual clue that identifies whether the candy is bad.

This would encourage players to use multiple inspection methods rather than relying on a single action to clear an entire bag.

For context, I used all three inspection methods during my initial playthrough because I didn't want to risk missing anything. However, when I did a second playthrough to record another ending, I discovered that I could simply press the candy and clear an entire bag in a few seconds. It made the process much faster, but it also highlighted how easily the other mechanics could be bypassed.

2. Eyeing the Candy vs. Using the Magnifying Glass

I'm not entirely sure what additional information the eyeing mechanic provides compared to the magnifying glass. At the moment, magnifying the candy doesn't seem to have a meaningful downside, and having to click the eye icon and then the magnifying glass adds an extra step without an obvious benefit.

Suggestion: Either make eyeing the candy reveal a distinct type of clue that can't be discovered through magnification, or consider removing the separate eyeing action altogether if the other inspection mechanics already provide enough variety.

The goal would be to make each interaction feel intentional and useful rather than adding an extra step to the inspection process.

3. Candy Collection and Objectives

Currently, collecting candy seems secondary to progressing through the game. As far as I could tell, it's possible to complete the game without collecting any additional candy beyond what's required in the tutorial.

Since the player has three strikes, there doesn't appear to be much incentive to take the time to bag candy unless doing so is tied to another objective or consequence.

Suggestion: Consider making candy collection a more meaningful part of the gameplay loop. This could be accomplished by introducing a minimum amount of candy that must be bagged, tying the collected candy to progression, or making the amount of candy available affect the outcome in some way.

4. The Timer and Trick-or-Treaters

One thing I noticed is that there's no apparent way to speed up the clock or end the candy-bagging phase early. Since the player needs trick-or-treaters to appear before the father can be distracted, this can lead to waiting around if the player has already finished bagging candy or decides not to collect any.

Suggestion: It might be worth allowing the player to go to the door and hand out candy to trick-or-treaters once they're available. Doing so could trigger the father's distraction and potentially reset the timer, allowing the player to move forward without having to wait for the entire bagging phase to finish.

5. Give Players a Reason to Collect a Certain Amount of Candy

Building on the previous point, I think the game could benefit from having a clear candy-collection objective.

For example, a set number of trick-or-treaters could arrive at the door, with the player having a limited amount of time to inspect and bag enough candy before they leave versus before they arrive. This would give the player a tangible goal to work toward and create a more interesting balance between identifying bad candy, collecting enough good candy, and managing the available time.

It could also introduce a meaningful trade-off: do you take extra time to inspect every piece carefully, or do you risk making a mistake to ensure you have enough candy ready? And how much time do you spend doing the investigation in-between?

I think this could help tie the candy inspection, bagging, timer, and trick-or-treater mechanics together into a more cohesive gameplay loop.

🐛 Bugs & Issues

1. Previous Playthrough State Prevents Progression (Browser/Web Version)

Observed during: Multiple playthroughs / replaying after a completed run.

There seems to be some persistent state or save data carrying over between playthroughs, even though there doesn't appear to be a way to save or load a game manually.

During my second playthrough, which I recorded, I intentionally gave bad candy to a trick-or-treater. This had a negative consequence and ended the run, as expected.

However, when I attempted a third playthrough to capture what happened when choosing a different option at the end, the game wouldn't let me progress because it appeared to remember that I'd given away bad candy during the previous run.

It seems like some state from the previous attempt is carrying over and preventing a fresh run from starting correctly. User must refresh game to not have this issue.

Possible fix: Clear or reset the relevant run-specific state once a run ends, or provide a way to start a fresh run without inheriting flags or consequences from previous attempts. I suspect some persistent state isn't being reset properly, though I can't say for certain how it's implemented internally.

2. Ledger Can Get Stuck on the Desk (Browser/Web Version)

Platform: Browser/web version.

I've encountered an issue with the ledger twice. If I don't click directly on the page, the ledger lowers without turning the page, leaving me looking at the desk with no apparent way to exit the interaction.

Once this happens, I seem to get stuck in that view and can't continue playing.

Possible fix: Make the page-turn interaction more forgiving, or have the entire relevant clickable area respond consistently. It might also help to prevent the ledger from closing until the page-turn animation or interaction has completed, while still providing a way to exit safely if needed.

3. Game Freezes Before the Final Choice (Download Version)

Platform: Downloadable version.

In the downloadable version, after reaching the end scene once, the game seems to retain some state from that completed run. When I try to play through again to select a different option, it freezes just before the final choice appears.

I tried this twice to see whether it was consistent, and both attempts resulted in the same issue: the game remained focused on the background, with no text appearing and no way to proceed.

This might be related to the persistent state issue mentioned above, although I can't confirm whether they're caused by the same thing.

Possible fix: Check whether the end-of-game flags, dialogue progression, or scene-transition state are being reset correctly when starting a new run. It may be worth testing whether completing one ending affects the ability to reach other endings on subsequent playthroughs.

Final Thoughts

Overall, I really enjoyed the game! I think the core concept is great, and there's a lot of potential in the candy identification mechanics and the different choices the player can make. I especially enjoyed exploring the different outcomes, which is why I ended up doing multiple playthroughs and noticed some of these issues in the first place.

These are just suggestions based on my experience, so please don't feel like you need to implement everything here. I wanted to share what I found in case it helps with balancing or polishing the game.

If you ever want someone to test potential fixes or try out changes to the mechanics, feel free to reach out! I'd be happy to give it another go.

Thanks for making the game, and I look forward to seeing what you do with it! :)