Hi!

The music, UI sound effects, and hover effects are absolutely insane! The logic behind the minigames is genuinely out of the box.

I played it with my wife, and she felt a little lost (she's not really familiar with video games). I decided to give all 52 weeks a shot, though, and I had a lot of fun! Still, I know this kind of experience isn't for everyone.

Best

Played this last night and it left me absolutely awe struck, to the point that I had no idea on how to rate it or what even were my thoughts on it besides "wow". Came back to give it another go today and I've got a much clearer idea on how everything fits together, which is why I'm leaving this comment a day later after much musing.

To preface any gameplay critique, I think this is an excellent game that has a clear goal in communicating something important, and absolutely bats it out of the park. The presentation is immaculate; gorgeous visuals, great music and a brilliant attention to detail with the effect design; the subject matter is terribly dark but also treated respectfully and with the gravity it deserves; and it's a very unique take on the theme & limitation of the jam.

As for the gameplay itself, besides the balance being a bit out of wack, my main issue is that depending on how you approach it it takes way too long to get through for the amount of decisions it has. For my first playthrough, I made a few choices that were wrong in non-obvious ways while I was still learning the ropes, and ended up with decently high stress, low energy, and very low warmth very early on, and spent ages trying to figure out the optimal actions each week in order to avoid maxing out stress/letting warmth or energy hit zero. By the time I made it to winter it'd been like 20 minutes of gameplay, I was getting tired, and seeing Week 14/52 without much substantial change week-per-week was extremely demoralizing. It wasn't so bad on my next playthroughs the following day (I managed to get to Week 52 in just over 15 minutes), but it didn't leave the best first impression in that regard. It's a tough problem that I think would be very hard to diagnose in the first place, and I don't know how you could fix it without handholding the player or adding a bunch more unique events - the former would neuter the impact of the game and the latter is obviously not feasible given the scope of the jam. Best I can think of is a little timer that's not too harsh, maybe 20 seconds per week or so, but enough to prevent decision paralysis and establish the intended pace of the game a little better.

Other nitpicks that were noticeable in the gameplay front include:

• The dialogue for weeks passing is a bit samey, with nothing to stop the player and have them actually read some of the unique ones like seasons transitioning. Making those a bit more obvious might've helped contribute to a sense of progression, as I know I accidentally skipped one of them.
• Maybe I'm too old for this, but the character's inner monologue being in netspeak felt like it detracted from the whole thing. I mean, yeah, they seem like the kind of person who's terminally online , but still.
• The text for the summertime "go outside" event is barely legible due to the colour choice and lack of contrast. I had to squint to parse the numbers.

With all that out of the way, wow. Just wow. What an experience It was so subtle the first time around, I didn't notice the minigame getting harder, the colours getting dimmer, and the border creeping in. It wasn't until I was at 90/10 that I realized that something was definitely wrong. Like I alluded to earlier, the game had me feeling tired, demoralized, and I just wanted it to be over already. I started making careless decisions, my stress hit 100 and I was given a choice. I wanted to finish the game, and it let me. Time Cut Short.

I have thankfully never been in a situation like the main character of this game, but I've been close to people who have, and spent several years when I was quite a bit younger teetering on the edge between progress & connection, and isolation & stagnation. So being put in these shoes, feeling the desperation and impossibility of it all, and then coming to terms with the choice I'd made because of it. It stuck with me all day, and it will probably stick with me for a long time.

I tried again the next day. Making it to spring and seeing the flowers was such a nice feeling. "Walkin' The White" felt like a trap option, but now I could just go outside and smell the flowers. Finally, a choice without drawbacks. The minigame was so much easier, the flames were huge and so tranquil. Even when I drank too much Monster and they were zipping around from the stress, it was easy! Winter had been soul-crushing and the warmth of spring felt so freeing, that reverse difficulty spike is such an elegant way to convey narrative emotion through mechanics. I made it to the good ending this time - I was expecting something a little more upbeat besides just making it out, but compared to the bad endings (I did play through again and got the zero warmth one as well, no idea what the last one is) it's definitely a victory!

This is not a fun game, or even a very enjoyable game, but it is a good game. An excellent game, even. Sometimes we forget that games are an art form just as much as they are entertainment, and art that resonates with us is just as important as art that makes us smile. This seems like it comes from a deeply personal place, and it looks like it resonated with people here, as it resonated with me.

Well done Lily. Never stop making art.

WOAH! Very cool and extremely polished! The corrupt/crazy effects are super well done and interesting! I made it to the end of the year but I definitely lost my inner warmth along the way, if it were a shorter experience i would definitely try for all of the endings :)

Let me get a couple constructive things out of the way first, so I can yap about everything I liked. The game is almost perfect to me, just a couple spots to polish.

Couple of the cards have contrast issues: Evening, Sunshine +Stress and Sunset -Energy

I played a couple rounds on my phone, this game is particularly a good fit for mobile. I'm not sure if I'm imagining it, but it felt like putting the flames to rest was much harder with touch compared to mouse. My guess is maybe Godot Hi-DPI settings make the touch point smaller than a mouse cursor at 1080p.

Okay now that that's out of the way ....

I should know better by now but, the initial gameplay and the lofi beats to study to made me immediately forget the content warning. The first time I got one of *those* cards, I was like WHAT DO YOU MEAN ... oh right. Making a wild guess that Omori might be a source of inspiration here for visceral storytelling through UI.

Morbid curiosity is one of those things where video games are the perfect medium to explore. Maybe an overused example but Undertale/Deltarune exploit this curiosity very well, and I got similar feelings here like when my stress meter was almost full, but energy is low. How bad could a quick GG EZ really be?

Point being, I think it's smart not to tutorialize too much about the stats/resources, beyond whatever the player might need to get started. There should already be an implied understanding that too much or too little will lead to consequences. The UI provided several good hints when this was happening, like music cutting out, or how the colors desaturated when warmth got low. Best to let the player put the pieces together in their head, and I think it worked well here.

The most interesting experiences this game provides are not the result of skilled gameplay or informed resource management, though you can certainly try (and is more or less required for two of the endings)(edit: I agreed with most of Halfbar's critiques except this one). While I was working on the < 50 warmth ending, I had to make some ... *creative* ... decisions to make it through the year, including strategic overd "self care". It's a little tonally dissonant, but kinda funny too.

But really, I don't believe that, as an art piece, this is a game that you're supposed to "win". The final interpretation kind of does belong to the player, but it's clear that you as the creator are trying to communicate to the audience how difficult it can be sometimes to just make it through a year. To me, it's extremely relatable, and people who can relate to this can really benefit from reminders they're not alone in feeling that way.

I could totally see a full game being made with this base. Different mini-games and such to calm the souls down, with different difficulties depending on the stress levels like you have now. It's really cool! Also super dark and real, but I really like it. Also great work on the art!

I love the concept, the art and the gameplay. One of the best game jam I'va ever seen! :D

Oh no, this game is cute~ like 10 seconds playing and I'm already craving for the full game!

I enjoy this game like alot, you should release it on Steam.
Giving me Needy Streamer vibes.

Kudos!

Very creative idea for a game, definitely stands out from others in the jam. I thought the sound effects, artwork, and story were very well done!

I played the game several times, and I have to say, it's genuinely quite interesting! Here are a few things I'd like to highlight.

• It's immediately clear that a large portion of the development time went into the artwork and presentation. It really pays off, making the game visually appealing and enjoyable to play.
• I also got the impression that Needy Girl Overdose might have been an inspiration, or at least that the two games share a similar atmosphere.
• Given the development priorities, I'd say the balance could use some work. Money doesn't seem to play a particularly meaningful role in the game. For example, Ichi-Express offers relatively little value when similar alternatives provide almost the same benefits without costing a full $15. Hobbies also feels like an upgraded version of the Sunset card, and whenever I had to choose between the two, I never picked Sunset.
• The resource balance could also use some attention. Managing resources felt quite challenging, and for a long time, I found myself stuck at roughly the same resource levels. This might be due to my own skill level, or it might be a balancing issue with the game. I'd need to play more to be sure.
• The game deserves special praise for its polish. Little touches like the music fading out when your resources get low, or special cards appearing when the protagonist starts losing their mind, are details you notice and appreciate right away. I also liked how resource levels affect the minigames, which makes you value those resources more. And the game's page design deserves recognition in its own right!
• One area I'd particularly like to see improved is the onboarding. At first, I felt a bit lost and wasn't sure what I was supposed to do, what my objective was, or which resources mattered most. It was only after clicking through various cards and experimenting for a while that I started making more informed decisions. I think the game would benefit from a clearer introduction that explains the available stats, what they affect, what the main goal is, and how the different mechanics fit together.
• I noticed that some development effort went into this screen, but as the game progresses, the gameplay starts to revolve mostly around clicking cards and checking the resource panel. As a result, the other elements gradually fade into the background. I'd suggest either adjusting the gameplay to make this screen more engaging and give it a more meaningful role, or reworking it into something else.
• Personally, I felt that the autumn theme was only present in a few places, and the Stay Warm constraint wasn't immediately obvious. If you renamed the "Inner Warm" bar to "Sanity" or something similar, the game would still make just as much sense. It wouldn't lose its core meaning or become a worse game. This is more of a subjective observation on my part, but I would have liked to see the theme woven more deeply into the overall experience.

Despite the issues with resource management and the limited value of certain elements, the game looks fantastic and plays quite well overall. And that's especially impressive when you consider that the entire game was made in such a short amount of time by one person - and I really do mean ONE person.

It's great to see that you managed to meet the deadline and bring the game to such a polished state. I'll definitely be keeping an eye on your progress and hoping to see more great things from you. And who knows, maybe we'll get the chance to work together someday!

Either way, this is genuinely great work. Well done! ❤️

A Little Warmth. What an amazing game! Really love that each stats affected how the minigame behaved. And going outside is so free

that was pretty good, it's good at giving the creepy feeling when things are getting wrong

This is a cute game. I liked the theme and the artstyle and the game is pretty balanced. I was a bit confused on what the "Put Them at ease" is, but overall great game :)

It's a really cool game honestly! The way you handled very serious topics while not being oppressive is very good. I did have some trouble reading the Evening, Sunshine stress and energy debuffs but nothing too bad. I loved how when times are hard for the character, music stops entirely, it's a great idea. In gerneral it was a great experience, I loved it!

This game is pretty cool, and I love the art style and sound design! I had a lot of fun with this, getting endings 1 and 4. I felt it was very satisfying when new cards were introduced, though at times, it takes quite a long while before seeing new cards. It would be cool to see what other cards you come up with if you choose to continue working on this.

Interesting story, but I found it a bit long for a game jam. I liked the art style and the soothing background music.

Very pretty, very cool music, some choices really made me laugh, congrats for the game!

Easy to understand and play but very deep. Eager to see how far it goes.

Really great game! Would love to see more from it in the future :)

I cant even say anything. Its a masterpiece, heck the funniest thing is, its a text based rpg/game. Great storytelling through the art and the atmosphere. Underrated. Needs more advertisement tbh