Updated review 13.8 hours in I have 55 eggs, additionally wheel, bouncy ball, uv light and remote, and 3 out of 4 flames

After a certain the point the game stops being a puzzle platformer and becomes a precision platformer, less can you find a clever use for a tool to get somewhere more can you do a fiddly thing with a tool multiple precisely timed times in a row to get a secret.

Fundamentally the game doesn't respect your time, the first time a new tool or use of a tool makes you go back through the map seeing what it can do is interesting. When you're six tools in a row of the same gimmick, and then you start spotting a pattern in background details which would mean checking every single screen again, including repeating several annoying platforming sections with bad checkpointing it just gets too much. The shortcuts help a bit with this, but there are too many places where the game expects you to repeat a fiddly platforming section just to use a different item at the end.

Definitely just start using a guide instead of endless repeatedly tracking through the map.

Would give this a neutral review if I could under steam but as you can't have to say don't recommend.

Updated review 5.5 hours I have the sea horse and ostrich flames now, I have the firecrackers, yoyo, flute, bubble wand, disk, stamp and pen Still not recommending because there's no recommend but with big caveats option.

The good:
- Letting the player discover innovative uses for the items.
- Some of the more annoying single screen puzzles use falling in water as the failure case, which means you can retry repeatedly with minimal retracking.

The bad:
- Death returns you to your last save point with map progression preserved, but removes items for no good reason.
- Check pointing is still poor, resulting in far too much backtracking, especially with the number of instant death hazards, some of which you'll only discover are instant death after they kill you the first time.
- No consistency in it what is harmless, hurts you and is instant death.
- Platforming puzzles that extend across multiple screens, relying on successful leaps into the unknown - made worse by the poor check pointing.
- Apparently the interesting part of the game comes after you reach the first ending vno good if the game is too frustrating before then.
- A few too many pixel perfect jumps, could have made the distances a bit friendlier to make it less frustrating.

Limiting platforming puzzles to single screens would have enabled more generous check pointing and much less frustrations.

If you find the platforming annoying with the first two hours, it will only get more frustrating, so refund before then if you aren't committing to finish

-- Initial Thoughts after two hours --

Good
* Generally controls well in character movement
* Does a good job of teaching by play without explaining
* Provides option to disable scan lines graphics effect in settings

Bad
* Visually indistinct (particularly in the foggy? areas meaning some of the discovery is because things aren't always visually legible). Communicates depth poorly in terms if things behind or infront of the character. The scan line effect makes this much worse.
* Spikes especially don't stand out well which is a shame given how many puzzles involve them. They are also buggy in collision and randomly let you enter their space without taking harm.
* The Yoyo controlls abysmally especially if using an analog stick, with no in game help it's hard to know if it's intended or I'm using it wrong.
* Checkpoints are too infrequent resulting in a lot of repetition when solving a puzzle/platform challenge divided into parts over multiple screens. Would make more sense if this was more of a metrovania as it's more of a platform puzzler really it quickly becomes annoying redoing solved bits to try the new thing again. Would be fine if the punishment for failure wasn't loss of a limited health stat resulting in death and having to redo it all. Annoying because the failure punishment for falling in water doesn't involve health loss so I'm not sure what health really adds. Is it testing puzzle solving or platforming?
* Too many points of no return without any clear signposting whether or not a screen exit will be an unreturnable fall or one that provides the ability to backtrack. Means you may be stuck having to solve a particular platform sequence with no option to explore elsewhere instead when you were just trying to check out potentially routes. Feels at odds with the intent that that's no set order and that your are supposed to experiment.

Indifferent:
*Apparently there's some meta puzzles. I'm not the target audience of ARGs.

Fundamentally I suspect that certain routes through the game/orders for acquiring new tools are simply more interesting than others. At least I hope they are, because this will get very irritating otherwise.

Not as good a first impression as ratings/hype would suggest. Will play it through to see if this issues are my own skill or a bad early path or fundamental to the game.

Updated review 13.8 hours in [spoiler]I have 55 eggs, additionally wheel, bouncy ball, uv light and remote, and 3 out of 4 flames[/spoiler] After a certain the point the game stops being a puzzle platformer and becomes a precision platformer, less can you find a clever use for a tool to get somewhere more can you do a fiddly thing with a tool multiple precisely timed times in a row to get a secret. Fundamentally the game doesn't respect your time, the first time a new tool or use of a tool makes you go back through the map seeing what it can do is interesting. When you're six tools in a row of the same gimmick, and then you start spotting a pattern in background details which would mean checking every single screen again, including repeating several annoying platforming sections with bad checkpointing it just gets too much. The shortcuts help a bit with this, but there are too many places where the game expects you to repeat a fiddly platforming section just to use a different item at the end. Definitely just start using a guide instead of endless repeatedly tracking through the map. Would give this a neutral review if I could under steam but as you can't have to say don't recommend. Updated review 5.5 hours [spoiler]I have the sea horse and ostrich flames now, I have the firecrackers, yoyo, flute, bubble wand, disk, stamp and pen[/spoiler] Still not recommending because there's no recommend but with big caveats option. The good: - Letting the player discover innovative uses for the items. - Some of the more annoying single screen puzzles use falling in water as the failure case, which means you can retry repeatedly with minimal retracking. The bad: - Death returns you to your last save point with map progression preserved, but removes items for no good reason. - Check pointing is still poor, resulting in far too much backtracking, especially with the number of instant death hazards, some of which you'll only discover are instant death after they kill you the first time. - No consistency in it what is harmless, hurts you and is instant death. - Platforming puzzles that extend across multiple screens, relying on successful leaps into the unknown - made worse by the poor check pointing. - Apparently the interesting part of the game [spoiler]comes after you reach the first ending[/spoiler] vno good if the game is too frustrating before then. - A few too many pixel perfect jumps, could have made the distances a bit friendlier to make it less frustrating. Limiting platforming puzzles to single screens would have enabled more generous check pointing and much less frustrations. If you find the platforming annoying with the first two hours, it will only get more frustrating, so refund before then if you aren't committing to finish -- Initial Thoughts after two hours -- Good * Generally controls well in character movement * Does a good job of teaching by play without explaining * Provides option to disable scan lines graphics effect in settings Bad * Visually indistinct (particularly in the [spoiler]foggy? areas[/spoiler] meaning some of the discovery is because things aren't always visually legible). Communicates depth poorly in terms if things behind or infront of the character. The scan line effect makes this much worse. * [spoiler]Spikes[/spoiler] especially don't stand out well which is a shame given how many puzzles involve them. They are also buggy in collision and randomly let you enter their space without taking harm. * The [spoiler]Yoyo[/spoiler] controlls abysmally especially if using an analog stick, with no in game help it's hard to know if it's intended or I'm using it wrong. * Checkpoints are too infrequent resulting in a lot of repetition when solving a puzzle/platform challenge divided into parts over multiple screens. Would make more sense if this was more of a metrovania as it's more of a platform puzzler really it quickly becomes annoying redoing solved bits to try the new thing again. Would be fine if the punishment for failure wasn't loss of a limited health stat resulting in death and having to redo it all. Annoying because the failure punishment for falling in water doesn't involve health loss so I'm not sure what health really adds. Is it testing puzzle solving or platforming? * Too many points of no return without any clear signposting whether or not a screen exit will be an unreturnable fall or one that provides the ability to backtrack. Means you may be stuck having to solve a particular platform sequence with no option to explore elsewhere instead when you were just trying to check out potentially routes. Feels at odds with the intent that that's no set order and that your are supposed to experiment. Indifferent: *Apparently there's some [spoiler]meta puzzles[/spoiler]. I'm not the target audience of ARGs. Fundamentally I suspect that certain routes through the game/orders for acquiring new tools are simply more interesting than others. At least I hope they are, because this will get very irritating otherwise. Not as good a first impression as ratings/hype would suggest. Will play it through to see if this issues are my own skill or a bad early path or fundamental to the game.