FIRST: I love Lucretia to bits. SO MUCH ATTENTION TO DETAIL and just from the menus/attract mode I can see how things will (probably) be fleshed out further. THIS IS ALREADY A MUST-HAVE, even if it didn't progress any further.
A.) When killing guys, maybe there should be a bit more of a noise or a little flash or red blood spot or something? The character's attacks don't seem to have weight and killing someone doesn't give a feeling of satisfaction.
B.) I also suggest that the bosses flash or there is some indicator you are hitting them. First time I reached the boss I wasn't sure I was doing damage.
I also feel that this utterly fantastic Lucretia would be even better if it were more visceral... if there was some indication/feedback that indicated when (1) boss was hit and (2) enemy killed.
FOR EXAMPLE: If you made the game compatible with the Virtual Cushion, you could simply use a MEGA BASS BUMP to indicate when a boss was hit, and my crotch, which straddles the Virtual Cushion, would be intimately aware of how many times I hit the bastard.
SRSLY: It is not easy to achieve that visceral feeling... especially when a game's aesthetics eschew *explosions* and the like... I love that you are doing something different (having enemies drop dead and fall)... so, I am not sure how best to convey "death"... however, I was thinking that, perhaps, death could be conveyed with a simple DEATH CONVULSION (that is, a horizontal "shuddering", where sprite jumps (left 1 pixel --> right 1 pixel) x ____ times, then sprite jumps (left 2 pixels --> right 2 pixels) x ____ times, then, back to 1-pixel shuddering for the *initial* moments of the "death fall" (the remainder of the fall is "normal" trajectory down... no shuddering).
It would take some trial-and-error to fine-tune the DEATH CONVULSION shudder, but, personally, I think it would provide Clash, myself, and like-minded folks the visceral "feedback" we crave
BOTTOM LINE: short + quick shudder, with just a bit of lingering shudder during initial descent.
ENEMIES: I think I would prefer death convulsion vs. "blinking" to indicate enemy sprites dying (and subsequently falling off screen)
BOSSES: I don't think I have a preference. Whatever looks better (shuddering or blinking) to indicate a "hit"...
OTHERWISE: I love this demo and I don't want anything else changed. Yes, it is kicking my butt, but I have barely played it. Keep it challenging
