I'm in total shock. 

NES Jam 2025 is over. I worked very, very hard these past 17 days, and I'm quite proud of what I was able to put forth-- but I wasn't expecting to win first place! There were so many amazing projects, I'm so very grateful I had the opportunity to work amongst so many strong teams and see all these creative ideas-- I don't think I've ever felt so in-tune with so many other projects during a jam before!

It's been a wild ride; as with most game jams, work was done in between a busy schedule juggling life happenings and roadblocks that seemed to want to keep me from working. Several all-nighters were held to work on graphics and code to ensure things were getting implemented and polished as efficiently as possible. I may have worked solo on the art and code, but I had some really great people behind me cheering me on and providing moral support, and I couldn't have pushed all the way to the end without them.

And of course the project wouldn't have been nearly as cool without the awesome soundtrack that was written for it-- an insanely huge thank you to SavestateCorrupted for getting the vibe just right with his killer compositions. If you haven't already, give him a follow, and consider him for your project! He's got insane skill and range-- the chiptune he wrote for AoZ is just a taste of what I've heard from him.

Last but not least, a great big thank you to everybody who voted, I'm so very glad you enjoyed my game!

Currently, I am planning to continue development. I'm working two jobs and am currently in the process of moving, so things will be slow for the time being while my priorities are set elsewhere... once I'm in settled into my new place and things calm down, I'm hoping I can really polish the existing mechanics and sectors (as well as add in the little bits that I had to cut from the jam version due to time constraints). I look forward to bringing you more of what I have planned! 

Until next time, keep cool, and thanks for playing!