Dáta Deiridh

Sing, consume, moan and forget.
Submitted to the MIDSUMMER NIGHT's DREAM JAM. [MMXXIV.] and made in 11 days.

NSFW warning: nudity and sexual themes.

LORE
You are an Irish sailor captured by an enchanting floating mermaid—a mystical being whose survival depends on a host she meticulously selects. Bound together by a soul chord, a magical artifact linking your genitals, your souls become one. From the moment you're connected, your fates are sealed for eternity.

GAMEPLAY
Memories of lost items are your lifeline, serving as nourishment. As you journey, your shared satiety and pleasure will diminish. When the satiety meter hits zero, you will both perish. The lower the pleasure meter, the quicker the satiety drains.

Not all memories boost satiety and pleasure equally. Some may even diminish them. Pay close attention to descriptions to gauge their effects.

Your only goal is to survive as much as you can. After your first death, you'll see your record under the timer. Your last record will be saved locally on death.

ABILITIES
The mermaid has a unique talent: her voice, which she lends to the sailor as they become one. Use on-screen buttons to make her sing four distinct melodies that you'll need to discover:

• Search Melody: Communicate with other mermaids to find potential memory sources. This activates a visual cue visible only to the mermaid and an audible cue heard only by the sailor.
• Reveal Melody: Near a memory source, use this to uncover a set of memories. If used outside the source's range, the source will vanish.
• Save Melody: Plead with other mermaids for another chance, refilling the satiety and pleasure meters. Use this wisely since it works only once.
• Oblivion Melody: Erase consumed memories to free up inventory space. This melody can only be performed near a temple

TIPS
If you're struggling to survive for long, read these tips:

• Play with earphones. Some audible cues might be hard to hear without them. 
• The first person overlay is key, since memory sources can only be seen from the mermaid's perspective.
• Play around with notes to discover the melodies and write them down on paper to avoid forgetting them.
• To find a temple, use both music and the silhouette of the horizon.
• Until you have a complete understanding of the mechanics, don't attempt to improve your previous record.

CONTROLS
Arrow and WASD keys: allows you to move the mermaid.
Clicking on floating notes: makes both the mermaid and the sailor sing a note.
Clicking on satiety and pleasure gauges: opens or closes INVENTORY.
Clicking and holding on memories: allows you to consume them, regaining satiety and pleasure.

CREDITS
Code and art by Theogramme
Music and sound effects by Crisp
Background sound effects from Pixabay