Scarlet Deer Inn

Lovely game. I really liked the art and the dialogues

I found out about this game from an Insta ad of all things. Between this and it also recommending me The Land Forgotten, Insta seems to know exactly what to advertise to me for some reason. Fair warning that I am inherently biased towards this as an art piece more than a game due to my obsession with indie and experimental animation, and the prospect of a project using a handcrafted animation style I had never seen before was ridiculously exciting, let alone making it interactive. Indeed, it is ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ gorgeous, and even if the story and gameplay were crap I still would've been fairly compelled by it just for that. That said I did also genuinely rather enjoy the other aspects too; the fetch quests less so as that's not my thing (though sneaking around the castle is fun), but pretty much all the cave segments I found to be shockingly well-done. I like that every time I felt lost or that there were too many ways to go, which was frequently, I always just randomly stumbled across the right path because the level design has just the right amount of guidance. The exploration aspect feels frequently satisfying, either just due to plainly compelling layouts or by forcing you to put in a small amount of effort but keeping everything in small steps and giving you small rewards of a new door each time. That does make up the bulk of the game, so it's a relief that it works. I really enjoyed the chase sequences too (even if one or two of them felt a little misplaced in terms of breaking up the pacing), they do what chase sequences should do and test your prior platforming ability but they don't feel oppressively stressful or punishing like they do in some metroidvanias I've played like Constance or Bo: Path of the Teal Lotus. My only real complains is that it's pretty flat on the worldbuilding front when it comes to the fantasy aspects (the contemporary parts are very nicely done), and that one of the chase sequences runs too long; otherwise, great time with this.

The game is so beautiful. The stitching is wonderful, the characters are adorable, the music is phenomenal. Yet I can't recommend the game. It is plagued by navigational issues. The key for the wheat man's drawer. I found it first, but the game didn't let me take the key. I had to find the chest, see that it's locked, then go BACK for the key! the underground labrinth is crazy. you need an in game map for that. I got so twisted I had no idea where to go next. It needs a map. Also, you need an in game map for the overworld. it's so difficult knowing where to go. when I got to the guard at the castle, he said "Lady Vorsila ordered me to not let any riff-raff into the castle!" so i left and tried to find out what I'm supposed to do next. He said "the lord left and i don;t know when he'll be back." So, naturally, I think I'm supposed to find the lord so I'm let into the castle. Nope. After so much wandering, I got frustrated and looked up a guide. I'm supposed to just walk right by the guard!? After I come out, I'm supposed to give meet up with the woman healing the other woman. No idea where her house was. Had to skip through the walkthrough video to find that. Please! Put a map in the game! After I get the golden distaff, I go back to the castle talk to both merchants, the lady in the kitchen, and the lady in the church. None of them take the distaff. I have no idea where I'm supposed to turn this in. Back to the video. Come to find out, I went all the way to the left of the castle but didn't go UP. I just kept going right, thinking that's how I would get into the keep! This kind of thing has happened several times already. Please highlight objects that are intractable. I see how those are stars in hindsight, but it wasn't clear to me the first time; I thought it was stairs to get to the battlement which wasn't a place I would be allowed to go to. I'm supposed to go to the village. I'm at the castle waystone. My options are to the Mill or to the meadow. Where's the village?! Apparently I never opened the waystone at the village. Why was it not highlighted? this shouldn't be something that a user can miss. It causes so much frustration. When I get to the bear cave, I hit a wall that I cannot progress. There are posts blocking my character so I don't see the vines. I crouch, nope. I attack, nope. Have to use my walkthrough video to understand there are vines there that i need to BURN. So unclear. The game would have been better as a cinematic heavy, story driven choice base game like dispatch or the old Telltale series. In it's current state, the frustration outweighs the beauty. Which is saying something, because the game is ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ beautiful.

What a nice, grim Story enveloped in such beautiful handcrafted artworks. Even if its a rather short experience I enjoyed every moment. Can recommend.

Fun lil game to help fill an afternoon with. The art style is very fun and the story is very straightforward with some fun thematic stuff going on. Even on two runs to help get some of the stuff I missed it isn't too big a time commitment so bonus for achievment hunters as well. Also you can pet the sheep and geese.

I finished this game in about 3.3 hours, and it was exactly the kind of experience I love discovering in indie games. It doesn’t overstay its welcome but delivers a compact, beautifully crafted journey filled with charm, atmosphere, and personality.

Great story, vibes, and art. Only loses a couple of points on play control.

Graficky úplná paráda. Barevná paleta, kontrasty, všecko krásný. Občas byly ty sekce na mě moc dlouhý, hlavně ke konci už jsem měl pocit, jako byste se to snažili prodloužit za každou cenu. Každopádně jako člověk z Moravy, vidět tu "krásnó mluvo" u teho mlynářa, slyšet ty přenádherný zvukový podkresy, za mě SUPER. Gratuluju, fakt pecka!