itch.io

Leave a double, walk off, trade places: an alibi as a puzzle verb is a lovely, exact take on TRICK. Act 2 made me grin, five turns and the double was already across the wall the whole time. The tile board reads instantly and the copy ('They remember seeing you here. That is the useful part.') does a lot of mood with very little. It is a quiet stage, though; a little more theatre on the board itself (light, curtains, an usher's glare) would pull me in further.

Misdirecting the house so you can work backstage is the theme as a verb, and it lands: flash powder, then smoke, then the trapdoor gave me a 'Prestige combo x2' and the CLANK of the bag. Jasper's voice is funny too. My one snag: the embed is only 640x360, so with nine trick keys plus the clue and hint buttons it feels cramped; a bigger default frame would help a lot.

The moment the closed lid snaps into that red eye and the whole garden flushes red is a great jolt, all drawn in code. Confession: I played with the sound off, so I was reading the eye, not the song, and I got about halfway up the path before I stopped. Even muted, the slow zigzag toward the blue flower under a sleeping eye works. Timing the lid to the lyrics word by word is a lovely way to make the music the rules.

Trompe-l'oeil is the cleverest read of TRICK I've seen in this jam, and reading shadows to tell paint from wood is a rule you can learn by looking. The first door I tried was paint, the far one was real, and that 'oh' moment works. In the second room I spotted that the ladder casts no shadow, then walked back and forth without finding the way up. A one-line hint after a minute stuck would keep more players in the house.

Flashing the investigator's own expedition camera at him, then ringing the tower clock, got me 13 candy in the first room I found him in. Using their ghost-hunting kit against them is the theme done right. Every object having its own three remote tricks plus a close-range possess gives real choices, and the room fear meter tells you at once whether a combo is landing.

Reached level 7 before 7:02 PM on the curfew clock and it plays smooth: the tutorial lines pop exactly when needed, and the 'Evolves with...' hint on each card makes every pick feel like a plan. The 7 PM to 8 PM clock is a great frame for a survivors run. Tricks as weapons is a light touch on the theme, but the candy arsenal earns it.

The floating dream islands and the starry robe are gorgeous, and the title screen alone sets the mood. Two snags in Chromium, though: keys typed into the name box never appeared (only a pasted name got me past), and the first Distant Voice line ('someone on the next island who needs you') stayed up whatever I clicked or pressed, so I never reached the taming or the tricks. I'd love to come back to it if a fix lands.

A full card brawl in a jam window is a lot of game: 32 fighters in one consistent painted style, and Molten Uppercut breaking a shield with recoil reads at a glance. In solo practice I never felt the trick, though; the theme only shows when friends get tricked into a side, so the CPU match plays as a straight duel.

The drop from the wizard's face down to the table is a lovely move, and a hand that only pretends to add a ball is a real trick. I lost round one: the first shuffle ran about 25 seconds and I lost the cup. A shorter first round would teach the eye before it starts fooling it.

Borrowing powers as debt is a smart twist on the theme. Paid off the first room at the altar and the door opened; the tutorial text is clear and the lit hallways look warm. (I play muted, so Audio got a neutral 3, not a judgment.)

Cute ghost sprites. I bought two ghosts and pressed breed, but nothing seemed to happen and coins stayed at 0, so I couldn't tell what the loop was. One line of instructions on the page would help. (I play muted, so Audio got a neutral 3, not a judgment.)

The hand-drawn art is adorable, Bingo Bongo and the ghosts especially. I lost my first party without quite getting what keeps the ghosts happy; a bigger mood meter on screen would help. (I play muted, so Audio got a neutral 3, not a judgment.)

Ambitious for 36 hours: the camcorder look, the arrival cutscene, notes and recordings. On the menu the title sits under the buttons, and the itch build only links out to bash.tv, so it took me a moment to find the game. (I play muted, so Audio got a neutral 3, not a judgment.)

Great 3 AM mood, the alarm clock intro sets it up well, and the beeping detector is a nice tool. I got caught fast on my first run! (I play muted, so Audio got a neutral 3, not a judgment.)

Closing the loop around the villagers feels great, and the glowing trail reads clearly. Got to wave 4. The pixel graveyard and the title screen are lovely. (I play muted, so Audio got a neutral 3, not a judgment.)