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Lost at Sea's itch.io pageResults
| Criteria | Rank | Score* | Raw Score |
| Visuals | #4 | 4.655 | 4.655 |
| Story / Writing | #4 | 4.552 | 4.552 |
| Concept | #4 | 4.621 | 4.621 |
| Overall | #6 | 4.414 | 4.414 |
| Audio | #8 | 4.138 | 4.138 |
| Challenge | #15 | 3.103 | 3.103 |
| Use of LGBT Themes | #15 | 3.690 | 3.690 |
| Gameplay | #16 | 3.552 | 3.552 |
Ranked from 29 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.
Team Members
sharkinfishnets, pointyshades
Streaming Permission
Yes
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Comments
don't even talk to me. you don't need to hear me speak. it is obvious. i will leave the fantastic-looking hiffu game for last
right now i haven't even started the game but i'm already impressed because BAM looks great and BAM i know you're doing it in ren'py. that isn't easy. most people stick with default font default textbox all those gross buttons at the bottom but look at how CLASSY this is. look at how CLASSIC it is. i wouldn't even be able to tell it was ren'py if it wasn't for the game's directory
heh heh....color quantized/reduced backgrounds made from real life photos................i do a bit of that................nice
talksounds...............me too bro
alright i'm done and wouldja look at that its the coolest game this jam. i knew it. can't fool me
the aesthetics? immaculate. can't even say art here because it's all of it and how it all goes together. the ship? fantastic. don't know how you got all these shots without being on the perseverance yourself. the hifuu? on point. ten. i know about hifuu right trust me
the only slight i've got is that it's a wee bit easy but whatever right the job gets done i'm sure maribel appreciates not having to play portal 2 to not die
Nice ship (?
I usually dont like point and clicks that use real pictures because is less obvious where you have to point... and click. Fortunately there's a glitch that sets the canon on the wrong picture and is more obvious what you must do.
This is a nice spooky story, really enjoyed the part where you manage to save yourself, still, very weird how the story goes about the dimension part, we definitely know that's a little bit weird than usual, but ok, that works for me.
Still a wholesome story, with a good moral, never date on spooky ships.
Absolutely fantastic! The first section reminded me of Magical Astronomy, and the second of Trojan Green Asteroid. It's clear the main writer did their homework: Renko has her stargazing ability, we see an evil Murasa pre-Hijiri, and there's references to past stories like the trip to the Netherworld. It felt as if I was reading the next chapter of the Hiffu Story, only that this time some of it happened to be playable. If I may ask: who was the main writer? I didn't see any credits.
hey there! so glad to hear you enjoyed!
i was the main writer, but we shared the outlining before i translated those outlines into actual dialogue, and i have to credit sharkinfishnets as the primary source of lore! we are both hifuu club fans but they're more familiar with touhou lore than i am :)
we really appreciate your comment!
Quite the ride. From only having read the first five Hifuu CDs, I don't have too much attachment to Merry and Renko as characters... but this game might be changing that. They're written in a way that's very fun to read, and I'd love to see an episodic series like this. The Hifuu Club seems very well-suited to this genre/medium.
Visuals are great too. Merry and Renko look so cool here... dunno what it is, but the art style fits them to a tee, and complements the tone of the story. And I loved the real-photo backgrounds (you certainly did it way better than me), as they really fit right in and added to the atmosphere. The music's real chill and well-made, befitting of the gameplay.
All the elements combined give it such a great atmosphere. It felt refreshing after so many games full of bright colors and magic battles.
My only issue is that it could've been a little more puzzle-y. All the steps for progression were just kinda lying right in front of you, and AFAIK there's no way to fail. It was fun exploring the ship, but that's all the point-and-click brought to the table for me.
In short, 'twas smooth, spooky, and super [insert boat pun here]
What a fun adventure. The only minor gripe I have is the inventory system - I felt it was slightly unintuitive to use.
That aside, the plot is quite immersive, and the presentation is great! Like, the portraits are a delight to look at, and the ship's interior, wow I'd never have thought. Where did these ship interior pictures come from anyway?
Glad you liked the visuals! The photos are from a pack of pictures of the HMS Victory, which is an actual museum ship (though as far as I'm aware it's not haunted)
Solid writing, presentation, and sound design, and wonderfully spooky
Fun story that fits very well into these two's daily adventures. The music works great with the nighttime and mystery mood. I also enjoyed the backgrounds and the water and wind sounds, and the other sound effects were chosen quite well.
I really enjoyed playing through this and while the point and click was a pretty subdued component and could have been more pronounced, I dont think it really matters much. Fun ride, would recommend to others
I usually don't rank visual novels high in the gameplay category, but I had to make an exception for this one. The point-and-click gameplay along with a detective fiction esque music and design style just screams Old Flash Games vibes, and it warmed my heart.
The story was quite short and I was left wanting for more, but that's far from a complaint. What's there to complain about a wholesome detective fiction story with the Hifuu girl(friend)s?
I found a notable bug in the game however - in the sailor's bedroom with the matches and code scrap, it seems that examining items again and again too quickly makes it so that when you examine them again, you get booted back to the title screen, and saving the game locks it in this state. It's not a big problem since the game is short and you can skip your way back to that part, but just something to consider for future works.
Another small complaint is that the cannonball blended in a bit too much with its surroundings and was a bit difficult to find. Maybe a light glow over it after triggering Maribel's cannon idea would be nice?
A lovely visual novel overall - I was aching to play this first as soon as I finished my jam submission and I was not disappointed!
Just finished the game! Great UI design, it's so fitting and sleek UwU I didn't encounter any game breaking bug beside one visual bug. Hifuu club is always great and a rather expected unexpected guest.
Let's stab a ladle/10