I know I responded to your comment over on YouTube too, but I honestly really enjoyed Wolf In The Woods. It had such an eerie and kind of cozy feel to it.
The wolf was such a delightful character (and both his design and Emma's are very nice. I really enjoy the storybook illustration look to the entire visual novel!)
But, I definitely ended the game with more questions than answers. I don't know if you plan to do more with this story, but I really liked it. It leaves me with a lot of theories about who is the real big bad (and that bad ending was so well done!) I'm just hoping that the wolf really is as soft as he seems to be.
You did a great job all around with this short VN. It's been a lot of fun to play your solo projects!
Sorry for the late reply! Thank you for the comment and thank you for playing.
I’m glad you liked the designs! I really wanted to give it that storybook feel.
Due to the word restrictions for the jam I had to make the bad end quite short which meant I couldn’t fully explain what was going on haha. I have really enjoyed hearing different people’s theories, some ideas which I haven’t even thought of. I haven’t planned more for the story at the moment but who knows in the future.
Thank you so much for playing so many of my solo projects and also our Hyakuten games! It really means a lot ❤️😊
I found myself getting excited when I figured out how the choice at the beginning was set up ahah- Like solving a puzzle, almost! It's a brilliant way of merging the inspirations in my opinion, loved that so much!
The blues and browns in the woods really mixed the storybook feel with the darkness of the forest really well, I think! Your art and the color choices made the presentation really immersive!
It is very much up in the air if we can trust our big wolf pal, but it also feels so very real the way that bad ending played out, and my gosh the ambiguity is real but both truths can exist, it feels like- Loved this!
Thanks for the comment and for playing my game! I'm glad you liked the puzzle at the beginning haha. I really wanted to set the tone and make the story references very clear at the start of the game.
The storybook feel was what I was aiming for with the art style so it's great that it came across as intended. The endings being quite open was because of the word count but I also wanted it to be a bit mysterious.
OHHH this was very intriguing, and definitely incredibly ominous!
The artwork and design of the game is absolutely gorgeous. All of the color is kind of "splattered" on, in a style reminiscent of blood splatter, creating an ominous feel, while the lineart is rendered in charcoal-esque lines. The background is especially well-done, with its eerie twisting trees that perfectly set the scene of the game. I also really liked the backing track for the game, which was spine-tingling, to say the least. I also really loved the designs of both characters (especially Emma and her pig aesthetic!)
I do have to give a special shoutout to the start menu, with the twisting trees framing the words that surround the protagonists - it's a really beautifully composed shot.
===SPOILERS===
The presentation of the choice is very interesting - at the start, you're in a black space, given the choice between three boxes, each containing a material that corresponds to one of the Three Little Pigs' building materials (brick, wood, or straw). If you pick the brick, you're safe; if you pick the wood, you're put back into the lottery for the next year. If you pick the straw, you're sacrificed.
As you speak with the Wolf, he appears kinder than you expected, and you're not sure if it's genuine or a ruse. If Emma runs from him, she is shot by someone unknown, and if Emma agrees to go with the Wolf, they go to search for the other sacrifices, though the ending is left somewhat open. The endings definitely left me with more questions than answers, but I liked it - by not presenting the audience with a clear answer, it really tickled the imagination. (Personally I'd say that the person who shot Emma in the end might be The Hunter from the village, a person who makes sure that the sacrifices disappear to keep the tradition alive - and the sacrifice wears a "shroud" to make them easier to spot and shoot.)
Overall, my interest was very tickled by this entry, and it was IMPECCABLY executed. Fantastic work!
I enjoyed doing the art and visual design for this game, I wanted to give it an old fairytale book sort of feel. Plus, the messy style of lineart meant I could draw it a lot faster, haha!
I really like your interpretation of the bad end. The idea that the red “shroud” makes the sacrifices easier to see was spot on! I wasn’t sure if players would enjoy the more open endings so I’m glad you liked them :).
ROSE, THIS IS FANTASTIC! You always KILL it in the art/presentation department. Everything was super cohesive. The story was really nice, and shows how fear can often be our downfall. (Also that bad ending WAS SO WELL EXECUTED! Wasn't expecting it honestly!) Excellent job, Rose! <3
Thank you for the rating, comment and playing it on stream! I’m really glad you enjoyed it 😁. When I started making it I immediately knew that I was going to use the one sound effect for the bad end haha.
The vibes of this are EXQUISITE. I'm in love with the whole setup! From the block-print style artwork to the ominous ambience to the feeling of foreboding hanging over everything... it really pulls you in right away. Even right from the beginning with the choice of the box (I ended up not choosing the "right" box to advance the story until last LOL) and you don't know what any of it means but you just FEEL nervous about it.
Great lead-up to the wolf's appearance. Felt chills on the back of my neck from the BG and the ambience. Then even more as we start to question things and have to make the choice. I made the "right" choice first (or at least the one that did not have tragic consequences LOL). Made my mind start racing as to what else was out there. Would we find any of the others? Why did this whole thing get started in the first place? SO MANY QUESTIONS!! Then I went back to do the other choice and DANG. What a jolt. I admit I had a feeling by that point that things might head in that direction... but the execution and sheer gut drop, especially with the SFX was so well done.
Overall a really well-done little game that left me with so many questions and thoughts about the larger world and story!!
Thank you for the lovely comment and rating Carrot! I found it quite challenging setting up the story and the mood of the game with the restrictions of the jam so I’m really happy that it came across as I hoped. I fought with that 1000 word count a lot haha! I’m really glad you liked the vibes! ❤️ I really enjoyed playing with the fairytale theme so I’m tempted to do some similar games in the future. Thanks again!
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The wolf was such a delightful character (and both his design and Emma's are very nice. I really enjoy the storybook illustration look to the entire visual novel!)
But, I definitely ended the game with more questions than answers. I don't know if you plan to do more with this story, but I really liked it. It leaves me with a lot of theories about who is the real big bad (and that bad ending was so well done!)
I'm just hoping that the wolf really is as soft as he seems to be.
You did a great job all around with this short VN.
It's been a lot of fun to play your solo projects!
Sorry for the late reply! Thank you for the comment and thank you for playing.
I’m glad you liked the designs! I really wanted to give it that storybook feel.
Due to the word restrictions for the jam I had to make the bad end quite short which meant I couldn’t fully explain what was going on haha. I have really enjoyed hearing different people’s theories, some ideas which I haven’t even thought of. I haven’t planned more for the story at the moment but who knows in the future.
Thank you so much for playing so many of my solo projects and also our Hyakuten games! It really means a lot ❤️😊
Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it :)
Made a video
Thanks for playing!
I found myself getting excited when I figured out how the choice at the beginning was set up ahah- Like solving a puzzle, almost! It's a brilliant way of merging the inspirations in my opinion, loved that so much!
The blues and browns in the woods really mixed the storybook feel with the darkness of the forest really well, I think! Your art and the color choices made the presentation really immersive!
It is very much up in the air if we can trust our big wolf pal, but it also feels so very real the way that bad ending played out, and my gosh the ambiguity is real but both truths can exist, it feels like- Loved this!
Thanks for the comment and for playing my game! I'm glad you liked the puzzle at the beginning haha. I really wanted to set the tone and make the story references very clear at the start of the game.
The storybook feel was what I was aiming for with the art style so it's great that it came across as intended. The endings being quite open was because of the word count but I also wanted it to be a bit mysterious.
Thanks again!
OHHH this was very intriguing, and definitely incredibly ominous!
The artwork and design of the game is absolutely gorgeous. All of the color is kind of "splattered" on, in a style reminiscent of blood splatter, creating an ominous feel, while the lineart is rendered in charcoal-esque lines. The background is especially well-done, with its eerie twisting trees that perfectly set the scene of the game. I also really liked the backing track for the game, which was spine-tingling, to say the least. I also really loved the designs of both characters (especially Emma and her pig aesthetic!)
I do have to give a special shoutout to the start menu, with the twisting trees framing the words that surround the protagonists - it's a really beautifully composed shot.
===SPOILERS===
The presentation of the choice is very interesting - at the start, you're in a black space, given the choice between three boxes, each containing a material that corresponds to one of the Three Little Pigs' building materials (brick, wood, or straw). If you pick the brick, you're safe; if you pick the wood, you're put back into the lottery for the next year. If you pick the straw, you're sacrificed.
As you speak with the Wolf, he appears kinder than you expected, and you're not sure if it's genuine or a ruse. If Emma runs from him, she is shot by someone unknown, and if Emma agrees to go with the Wolf, they go to search for the other sacrifices, though the ending is left somewhat open. The endings definitely left me with more questions than answers, but I liked it - by not presenting the audience with a clear answer, it really tickled the imagination. (Personally I'd say that the person who shot Emma in the end might be The Hunter from the village, a person who makes sure that the sacrifices disappear to keep the tradition alive - and the sacrifice wears a "shroud" to make them easier to spot and shoot.)
Overall, my interest was very tickled by this entry, and it was IMPECCABLY executed. Fantastic work!
Thanks chatter for the lovely words!!!
I enjoyed doing the art and visual design for this game, I wanted to give it an old fairytale book sort of feel. Plus, the messy style of lineart meant I could draw it a lot faster, haha!
I really like your interpretation of the bad end. The idea that the red “shroud” makes the sacrifices easier to see was spot on! I wasn’t sure if players would enjoy the more open endings so I’m glad you liked them :).
Thanks again!
ROSE, THIS IS FANTASTIC! You always KILL it in the art/presentation department. Everything was super cohesive. The story was really nice, and shows how fear can often be our downfall. (Also that bad ending WAS SO WELL EXECUTED! Wasn't expecting it honestly!) Excellent job, Rose! <3
Thank you for the rating, comment and playing it on stream! I’m really glad you enjoyed it 😁. When I started making it I immediately knew that I was going to use the one sound effect for the bad end haha.
The vibes of this are EXQUISITE. I'm in love with the whole setup! From the block-print style artwork to the ominous ambience to the feeling of foreboding hanging over everything... it really pulls you in right away. Even right from the beginning with the choice of the box (I ended up not choosing the "right" box to advance the story until last LOL) and you don't know what any of it means but you just FEEL nervous about it.
Great lead-up to the wolf's appearance. Felt chills on the back of my neck from the BG and the ambience. Then even more as we start to question things and have to make the choice. I made the "right" choice first (or at least the one that did not have tragic consequences LOL). Made my mind start racing as to what else was out there. Would we find any of the others? Why did this whole thing get started in the first place? SO MANY QUESTIONS!! Then I went back to do the other choice and DANG. What a jolt. I admit I had a feeling by that point that things might head in that direction... but the execution and sheer gut drop, especially with the SFX was so well done.
Overall a really well-done little game that left me with so many questions and thoughts about the larger world and story!!
Thank you for the lovely comment and rating Carrot! I found it quite challenging setting up the story and the mood of the game with the restrictions of the jam so I’m really happy that it came across as I hoped. I fought with that 1000 word count a lot haha! I’m really glad you liked the vibes! ❤️ I really enjoyed playing with the fairytale theme so I’m tempted to do some similar games in the future. Thanks again!