Hi everyone! In the first ranked jam I ever did the 2nd place winner made a community post discussing their game, and also taking the time to shoutout some of their favorite games from the jam. While we don't have the luxury of ranking THAT high, we still ranked higher than I could have ever hoped, and now I want to carry on that post-jam tradition of spreading a little love and celebrating the awesome games everyone made!

Nights in Color

First though, here are some thoughts about Nights in Color. Nights in Color was the first game for Team Littleheart, more of an experimentation and a trial-run than anything else, but it turned out far better than I had hoped! I'll be the first to admit I DEFINITELY overscoped for the two week period we had (seriously, why'd I think it'd be a good idea to make a game about playing other games?? Thats 4x the work!), and I was scared that this would show in a lack of polish, direction, or poor games. While I think a few of those things still DID rear their ugly head, it seemed that you guys actually really enjoyed it! Overall we ranked #26, which is the highest I've ever ranked in any jam. We got top 10 in creativity, and close to top 10 in Coziness and Aesthetic! But hands down, our best rating to me was in Fun. Although it's our lowest rating at #41, thats SO incredible to me because its STILL a higher ranking than any rating category I've gotten in  a game before this! Even though I was so doubtful of the gameplay I started calling Nights in Color an "Experience" rather than a game, people still seemed to enjoy it, so I can't really ask for much more :)

With that aside, lets dive into the fun part! Celebrating all of the awesome games I got to play:

Acorn Grove

First up, I wanted to shoutout Acorn Grove. As someone who's an absolute sucker for low color palettes and Link's Awakening, this game sucked me right in. The art was incredible, and the overall theme and environment showed so much care and creativity! It nailed what makes zelda game so much fun, the feeling of a real world around you that you get to explore and truly interact within. I loved the mini metroid-vania style of it, and how your end goals (such as getting silk) actually helped you progress through the game! I can't wait to see what games GibbonGL makes next, they have a real talent for making worlds and cozy environments <3

A Husk at Dusk

Next I wanted to talk about "A Husk at Dusk"! While looking through the rankings to gather my favorites for this post, upon seeing A Husk at Dusk I literally said out loud "Oh!!! I love Husk at Dusk!!" This game has so much charm and character, with adorable art and absolutely stellar music. It really nailed the theme of cozy because it was a game I just enjoyed BEING in! Everything about how this game was designed and lovingly put together had me smiling from start to end. All these well-crafted GB Studio games make me want to pick up the engine myself, I couldn't have enjoyed this game more :)

Hibernation

Next is Hibernation. While this game ranked quite high and I'm sure most of you have played it by now, as a long-time frog superfan I couldn't NOT mention it! What this game nailed to me was the creativity and the theme.  The idea of crawling deeper and deeper underground as a cozy game had never occurred to me before, but WOW it worked! Despite the pseudo-rage game mechanics, every time I remembered I was an adorable frog hunkering down for winter, I always got a warm fuzzy feeling that encouraged me to push on. It's also one of my favorite pixel art frogs of all time maybe, and the animations made simply watching the little guy bounce around an absolute joy.

Clove's Hootenanny

Finally I wanted to mention Clove's Hootenanny. Made by two lovely developers, this game just OOZES creativity, and charm, and so much love. The pixel art style is so cozy and feels so incredibly polished, and the simple snake moving mechanic was simple, but crazy intuitive and such a refreshing take that I instantly fell in love with it. I would 100% play a full-length adventure game where you play as this snake, the movement and looks are just SO fun. I loved the snake-mechanics too and having to eat apples to get longer and progress in an adventure setting. Basically I'm just in love with this game, and can NOT wait to see where it goes! 

FINALLY finally, I wanted to give an honorable mention to Typing on Autumn by Nizar. While it was a simple typing game, it was really well polished and enjoyable to play. Great job! You made a typing game memorable in my mind, and I think that deserves a shoutout too :)

Closing Thoughts

Overall, I had a stellar time with this jam. Not just making games, but ranking them too and getting involved with the community! You all did so great, and I can't wait to see what you all make the future. 

Thanks for reading, and thanks for playing.

I hope I see you all again one day!

- Mopi <3