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Ikimashou!'s itch.io pageResults
| Criteria | Rank | Score* | Raw Score |
| Sound/Music | #14 | 4.330 | 5.000 |
| Controls / UI | #32 | 3.753 | 4.333 |
| Art / Graphics | #32 | 4.041 | 4.667 |
| Overall Fun | #52 | 3.464 | 4.000 |
Ranked from 3 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.
If you have competed before, how has your game changed?
This version of the game includes framework for the test of the map movement system, extra voice acting for the protagonist, and tidied up writing ;)
Genre #1
Visual Novel
Rating #2
Family Friendly
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Hello! Welcome to Feedback Quest 7! My name's Hythrain and I'm one of the hosts and one of the streamers for this event! This feedback is being written live as I stream your game! If you're interested in seeing my live reaction, let me know and I can send you a link to the VOD once it's posted to YouTube!
Ikimashou returns yet again! If I'm correct, each time you enter FQ events you're demoing a different part of the story, right?
So while showings prior to now focused more on the character's origins in Montreal, this part finally sees Zinnia reach Toronto. I played up to the end of chapter 7, and I think the only things that stood out as a problem were some weird dialogue choices (like when Zinnia is with her high school friends and one goes "I'm glad we're great friends despite our differences!"). The dialogue doesn't feel natural to me. On top of this, I'm legit questioning a lot of Zinnia's decision making in general. While I know nothing bad is going to happen to her in the story, the manner of which she's doing things is just really bad.
But then again... part of this story is based on you, isn't it? I've always had that impression, but this is the first time where I've felt the story be connected to real events. However, because there's still a level of disconnect between the two it results in Zinnia's journey being more unrealistic, especially things like a driver of the GO bus letting a passenger just sleep on the bus through a round trip. There's also some very weird time frames (like taking 6 hours to go from Montreal's Gare Central to the station in Ottawa. I've done this train before and was only on it for 2 hours with the same stops you noted).
One day, I'll get around to playing the entire story in one go. XD
Yeah, you make some good points, it's the small stuff that counts. I've never actually taken a train from Montreal to Ottawa before, so I made an uneducated guess on how long that trip would take. lmao. I do hope to visit Montreal and Ottawa in the future so that I can fill in the rest of the story with realistic scenes based off of my adventures. As of now, I had actually rectified that scene in the school and moved it further back into the story, and made the dialogue flow more smoothly.
Also, I like to tell others this when they question Zinnia: Whenever you think of Zinnia's poor decision making, picture her as this little arctic fox. Stubborn, but very determined and goal-driven. But an adventure instead of a fish š¦
Hopefully, when the next feedback fest rolls around, I will have released v7.05, that touches up the aforementioned issues and brings full voice acting :D
Since I've done this train ride, I'm happy to share with you details of the trip.
As for Zinnia, I think my biggest issue is the fact that she IS a minor doing all this. You even bring this up when Zinnia talks about trying to find a place to rent. There are times when I do ignore the game's logic because it's at least plausible, but the fact that she's a minor and she effectively runs away from home is a big no-no for me. Honestly, I would prefer if she weren't a high school student altogether. Instead, have it that she's at least 18 years old, is done high school but she didn't apply immediately for college because she wanted to work and save the money up (which she claimed was for college but in reality it was to save up for the very thing she's doing now in the game).
I felt that way once when I was little, I wanted to run away too :o... But admittedly so, I agree that every character looks younger than they really are, and the anime artstyle doesn't do any justice >_>. Unfortunately, I have little control over the designs as they've been finalized by the artists.
But it is on the to-do-list to remove obvious references to their ages as I do admit it's a bit jarring seeing poor Zinnia down on her luck. The school scenes have already undergone some changes to appear later into the story, to make it more of a flashback than an event in the current time period.
And I'd certainly appreciate the details of your trip from Montreal to Ottawa! Many thanks.
PS, I also noticed you encountered the "spinning zinnias in amogus rain" screen after pressing continue in the VOD... That happens when the save file is corrupted, but I will make it more obvious! Never thought I'd see someone get it xD
Heya! I've just played a solid 90 minutes or so of this, and compiled some notes as I played which you can see here!
SO! Overall, itās really cozy. The vibes in this game are off the charts, itās very reminiscent of trips Iāve gone on in the past, and quite nostalgic. The music is GREAT, super duper uber fantastic! If you ever put out a soundtrack release, please let me know! The art is also really good.
The story, though… itās… well, okay, this is gonna sound mean, but the story is really boring. One of the very first lessons in writing I was ever taught is that a story must have conflict. While some of the scenes in this game have conflict, such as not being able to find a place to stay or falling asleep on the bus for too long, the overall plot is devoid of any real conflict and even the small issues Zinnia runs into are resolved within a few minutes. So far, very little has happened at all, and if the story is leading somewhere more substantial, I think that should be foreshadowed a bit better.
With that said, I think itās possibly okay that itās boring. Itās somewhat meditative and grounded, and it is a nice vibe especially with the music. Iām far outside the typical demographic for a game like this so itās possible that for people who are into this sorta thing itās perfect. At the very least, I didnāt get sick of it and turn it off after an hour or so of playing which is pretty great for what it is! Overall, this was very cute, and I had a good time enjoy the atmosphere.
Yoooo thanks so much! glad you are vibing with it, it's always been my goal to make a game with a cute and chill aesthetic! and atmosphere.
i'll try to respond some key takeaways here
The soundtrack is actually royalty-free, and most can be found on DOVA-syndrome! I'm still compiling a list of the songs, but a large majority are from yuhei komatsu and crep. All the vocal songs are from Losstime Life
And yes, I agree the story is a bit bland and uninteresting at parts. Sorta wanted to make a game that's not too tolling on the heart and is perfect to unwind after a long day at work. As of now, VN basically falls into the "moege" genre.
I'm not too experienced in writing conflict in stories, but I learn over time! The aforementioned small conflicts do give way into more substantial buildup past chapter 9, but I am still working on that part. In the meantime, might I suggest reading chapter 8... šµ
I will work on threading more hints on the conflicts in the earlier chapters and enhance it with voice acting.
Again, thanks a bunch for your notes and feedback! šø