can't let go by Matthewsworld
a story about an unstable relationship
about
can't let go is a narrative platformer. connect with the heart and mind of the protagonist and help them work through a tough part of their life with simple timing-based gameplay.
best played on pc with a keyboard or gamepad, but touch controls are also supported.
credits
- programming, art, sfx: matthewsworld
- music: someone somewhere
tools used:
- construct 2
- paint.net
- audacity
- reaper

| Link | https://matthewsworld.itch.io/cant-let-go |
| Original URL | https://ldjam.com/events/ludum-dare/49/cant-let-go |
Ratings
| Overall | 159th | 4⭐ | 25🧑⚖️ |
| Fun | 333th | 3.783⭐ | 25🧑⚖️ |
| Innovation | 593th | 3.457⭐ | 25🧑⚖️ |
| Theme | 18th | 4.543⭐ | 25🧑⚖️ |
| Graphics | 829th | 3.522⭐ | 25🧑⚖️ |
| Audio | 265th | 3.783⭐ | 25🧑⚖️ |
| Mood | 25th | 4.457⭐ | 25🧑⚖️ |
| Given | 22🗳️ | 22🗨️ |
Simple graphics, but I loved the background.
Mood was great and the story got me hooked too.
I liked it! Really good simulator of interpersonal relationship anxiety. The music was disorienting; it sounded like an audio glitch more than music until I got used to it. Unclear if there was music on the last level or if that one actually was a glitch I caused by turning my phone off briefly.
Overly, it felt like playing Cats Are Liquid, with less mechanics and a little easier. I think some of the platforming was too precision-based for clickable buttons at least on mobile, not sure if you intended mobile friendliness or not but I did beat it. Definitely shares the experience of "platformers on mobile aren't a good idea", not sure how it plays on PC.
Some of the text colors aren't readable on the white background, so you either needed a different bg color, different text colors, or a simple border on the font to provide readability.
Wish you well and keep dev! :smile:
#### Narrative
I think red heart represents instincts and will to not let her go, while the blue heart represents reason and empathy and the will to not suffer anymore because of her.
I played 3 runs, and I kind of understand that at the end of the game you can balance red and blue answers to define what type of relationship you will end up with: lovers, friends, or strangers.
Besides what you wanted to say with this game, you conveyed emotions, reinforced by music and feedback.
Keep adding/improving visual and sound feedback to boost the experience!
#### Gameplay
I think the gameplay need to be faster or more complex, because as a player I want to know the rest of the story or at least be engaged by puzzles or high paced action (think of Undertale), but depends on the type of player you are referring to.
I loved the heartbeat feedback, and more than anything else I loved the breath mechanic. This made me feel like i was in the game, and i feel bad because it remind me of such personal episodes (but it's ok).
I hope with all my heart you will keep develop games like these, no, even better. I always feel these games will help people who play it to better analyze the relationship with theirselves and loved ones.
Sorry if I committed grammar errors. Keep it up!
At one point, it started to piss me off that I couldn't get through.
I wanted to turn off the game. But I wonder what will happen next. And then I noticed a tip. Calm down, take a breath. It was cool.
And on the next difficult moments. I always took a breath with the main character. Calmed down and passed on.
5 out of 5. Definitely.
The music didn't work for me for some reason, so the only sound effect was the breathing - which was sort of atmospheric, but it felt like something was missing.