Almost no one is playing, and the feedback I’ve gotten is minimal—but it’s been incredibly valuable. While working through it, I had a moment—like a bit of light breaking into my head. I realized I’d been overly cautious—like someone trying to make spicy food, but constantly worrying, “What if it ends up spicy?” The real issue isn’t that the food might be spicy—it’s that I might overdo it and make something inedible. But I was hesitating for the wrong reasons again.
Now you can jump off any wall up to three times in a row. You can dash while wall-running, and jumping out of a run or a dash affects speed and direction. These changes slightly expand the playable space, so I’m adjusting the level and environments to match. It actually feels closer to what I originally intended, so I’m enjoying the process.
I also overhauled the main quest: the big goal stays the same, but how you get there is entirely up to you. It’s a return to an earlier structure I abandoned after misreading previous feedback. It might still be a bit off, but it feels more right than before—and that’s enough to keep going. Getting stuck, then figuring things out—that’s what keeps me doing this.
That feeling, when a single line of feedback gives you the answer you were searching for, is like reading the manual of a model kit over and over on the bus as a kid, even while getting carsick. Or listening to a new CD you bought from Tower Records while staring at the album art the whole way home. Or diving into a movie magazine the moment you get it at the subway station. These moments are more exciting to me than a hundred likes.
Making games is the only thing I know how to do, and there have been times I’ve wondered if this path was really right for me—it’s tiring and things rarely go the way I want. But that kind of joy brings me right back to the thrill of childhood. When I think, “This might actually be fun,” or “This feels closer to what I meant to do,” that alone is enough. Good results would be a bonus. It’s already good.
Anyway, my to-do list has exploded. This next update will probably take a week or two. We’ll see. Hopefully it helps with the early-game experience too.