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"My name is Felix Omin.
Ever since I was born, I've been afraid.
Afraid of what?
What is there not to be afraid of...
"

Story:
Cardiophobia follows Felix, a teenager with a unique heart condition.
Whenever his heartbeat raises, he cannot get it back to normal without taking medicin.
Living with such a condition makes it hard to have a normal life, but he manages at his new home.
One night, there is a blackout in the house and weird things start to happen.
Felix finds himself trying to survive the rest of the night, while saving his friends.

Premise:
In this game there are Scares and Spooks.
Scares are things that make Felix's Heartbeat rise. If it gets too high, he dies. The scares don't always happened either, most of them have conditions.
Spooks, on the other hand, are harmless. However, these things only appear depending on how scared Felix is, stuff like blood, messages, noises.

You will be faced with puzzles that range from very easy to thinking outside the box, and most of them are optional. However, puzzles isn't the only things you will have to face before you can escape...

The game is meant to be played multiple times, because I doubt it's possible to get the best ending on your first playthrough.

It's important to note, that even though it has horror elements, I would rather say this is a puzzle-survivor game. The scares are more for Felix the character, but if I manage to scare someone else, then I do see that as a plus. The scares also varies from small things to more elaborate.

This game contains:
  • Ending that recaps what you did or did not do in your playthrough, with 8 different endings.

  • Multiple puzzles that range in difficulty.

  • Multiple playthroughs.

  • With over 50 Scares.

  • New Game+ saving to keep track of your unlock progress.


Authors notes (Might be important to read through):
This project started years ago, and over those years, I've been working on this game from time to time. Some weeks more than others. Lately, I haven't felt like wanting to go back to this game. Don't get me wrong, the game is complete, but it has been complete for a long while, I've just been adding more to the game. I feel like if I don't release this game now, it will never be released.

With that being said, I just wanna say that I am not an artist or anything, this game has problems. Spelling error, dialogs being just plain bad etc. You kinda have to take this game with a grain of salt.

Just like any game, it is not 100% bug free, but I'm pretty sure all the game breaking bugs are gone (The ones that crash the game).

Credits
-Art-
PandaMaru

-Script-
Acezon
Bravo2Kilo
Galv
Gambit
IceDragon
Jet
Khas
modern algebra
Napoleon
Nicke
Tsukihime
Yanfly
Zeus81

-Music-
AlxEllis
Basset-Hound
Crazy_Leen
Crazzydrummer
CzySzy
Faletti
F4LL0UT
Matt-Porter
MetroPiano
MusicGamer-11
RyanA
Semaphore
TheAmateurAnimator

Latest Blog

Thanks

I'm really stoked about Cardiophobia getting over 50k views, so I just really wanted to say thanks for that.

I also wanted to say thanks for the spotlight, I couldn't believe it at first when I saw it.

While the making and first couple of weeks after completion had some rough patches, I've had a lot of fun watching people play the game and hear all of the feedback in the comments.

I don't know what else to say, thanks for everything.
  • Completed
  • Daniel_B
  • RPG Maker VX Ace
  • Puzzle
  • 05/26/2014 05:01 AM
  • 11/03/2021 08:17 PM
  • 01/13/2015
  • 180313
  • 41
  • 4188

Tags

Posts

author=Miryafa
Before this I didn't read the comments, so I didn't know what was said before. But I'd change the puzzle so that instead of yellow one of the colors is purple. And so that the numbers follow the order of the colors (red, green, then blue) instead of being random.


I could do that. I have been thinking of releasing a new update with some fixes on text and such, and changing the color on yellow to purple wouldn't take that long.

author=Miryafa
On another note, the game seems to be impossible for me to complete now. I've used every med key I've found on a med kit box, and there are still 2 med kit boxes I don't have keys for. Advancing the plot (with the shed or the basement) triggers a scare that kills me, and I'm out of medicines. Is there anything I can do, or am I just screwed?


There are keys for every medkit. You might be screwed, but wait, shed or basement? Aren't those scares random? Idunno which keys you have collected so I can't really help you with that.

author=Miryafa
No, this is not the case. I dunno what corners you stood in, but I tried all 6-7 corners in the room, and the lantern lights up literally every number except the 3 behind the wall's shadow.


I literally just tested this, and you must be doing something wrong. Idunno what else to say, this puzzle works as it should for me.
There are keys for every medkit. You might be screwed, but wait, shed or basement? Aren't those scares random? Idunno which keys you have collected so I can't really help you with that.
Are you asking me if the scares are random? Because my answer is "no, I tried more than once in each case and they happened every time." And an extension to that answer is "there seem to be far more scares than I have total health through medkits, because I've only used medkits when I was 1 hp from death, and never used an energy drink. Also, I've checked everywhere for keys (as far as I know, since I've examined every item and even the water south of Mother's room and found a key there) but can't find any more." Is there a list of where to find keys or something? And how many of them only appear after a certain event is completed, like the one in the hall between the dining room and garden?

My impression so far is that I dislike having to find keys for the medicine boxes. The health-to-scares ratio already seems designed to make me fail, and forcing me to find keys to even get at medkits just seems like an unnecessary added burden, when just finding medkit boxes is rare enough. If the system is designed to force me to do multiple playthroughs, I hate that, because this is not a roguelike, and because I've put a bunch of time into my playthrough already, save-scumming to avoid as many scares as reasonably possible. I do not want to start a new game, even if it is the only way to see the ending.

I literally just tested this, and you must be doing something wrong. Idunno what else to say, this puzzle works as it should for me.
Are you kidding me? "You must be doing something wrong"? You just said standing in the corners throws light on the correct numbers, and I just said I stood in the corners and it threw light on all the numbers. How is it even possible to do it right? And if there is a "right" way to do it, how would anyone ever figure it out? There's no clues that I can see, and the logic for this puzzle doesn't follow the logic of any other puzzles up to this point. After the S=19 puzzle, I thought the solution would be to add up all the numbers in the room, and only gave up when the total was >1000.

author=Miryafa
Is there a list of where to find keys or something? And how many of them only appear after a certain event is completed, like the one in the hall between the dining room and garden?


I'll give you a list. The key in the hallway to the garden is not there when you are too scared, the same with the medkit box outside of the stone room. These 2 are the only ones effected by scaredness.

Keys:
Felix's Room on the bed (after Lucas' cutscene)
You get one when you save Emelie (She gives it to you before leaving)
In the little garden outside Mother's Room
Inside the crack in the basement (First room to the left when entering)
Under the flower pot after finding Lucas
Hallway to the maze garden (Only when not too scared)
In the kitchen sink (Doesn't matter if its full of blood or not)

author=Miryafa
My impression so far is that I dislike having to find keys for the medicine boxes. The health-to-scares ratio already seems designed to make me fail, and forcing me to find keys to even get at medkits just seems like an unnecessary added burden, when just finding medkit boxes is rare enough. If the system is designed to force me to do multiple playthroughs, I hate that, because this is not a roguelike, and because I've put a bunch of time into my playthrough already, save-scumming to avoid as many scares as reasonably possible. I do not want to start a new game, even if it is the only way to see the ending.


The game is design like that, it's a survival game. Think of it like this, if you play Silent Hill 2 and by the end of the game you used up all your health and ammo and can't find anymore, then yes you would have to start over cause you're kinda fucked. I'm not trying to be an asshole here, it's just how the game is designed. Yes, it is unforgiving, but I bet if you make a new run through the game, you will do it with ease cause you already know where to go, the solutions to most of the puzzles, which will make you do less running around. Running around blindly is how some of the scares get you. However, I will admit that since there are scares that are random, maybe you just have shitty ass luck, but I'm amazed that you haven't been able to at least reach the exit yet, since you said you found 5 keys, and if you know where the Axe Key is, getting to the exit doesn't take that long. If you are trying to find everything on your first run, then I'd say that's impossible, cause the game is not designed that way.

author=Miryafa
Are you kidding me? "You must be doing something wrong"? You just said standing in the corners throws light on the correct numbers, and I just said I stood in the corners and it threw light on all the numbers. How is it even possible to do it right? And if there is a "right" way to do it, how would anyone ever figure it out? There's no clues that I can see, and the logic for this puzzle doesn't follow the logic of any other puzzles up to this point. After the S=19 puzzle, I thought the solution would be to add up all the numbers in the room, and only gave up when the total was >1000.


Here's a picture: The corners

What am I doing in these pictures that you are not? There is a hint next to the box that want the 3 digit combination, but I did notice that the wall is very dark so it is miss-able, but the hint itself might not be the best anyways.



I hope this helps, even if you still don't like the game.
You get one when you save Emelie (She gives it to you before leaving)
Wait, how do you save Emelie? I just checked the let's play, and what happened for him was completely different than what happened for me. As soon as I got the batteries, I rushed back upstairs to give them to Emelie, but when I talked to her door, I got no response - he just said "where did she go?". How did the LPer and I get completely different responses when we did the same thing?

The game is design like that, it's a survival game. Think of it like this, if you play Silent Hill 2 and by the end of the game you used up all your health and ammo and can't find anymore, then yes you would have to start over cause you're kinda fucked. I'm not trying to be an asshole here, it's just how the game is designed. Yes, it is unforgiving, but I bet if you make a new run through the game, you will do it with ease cause you already know where to go, the solutions to most of the puzzles, which will make you do less running around. Running around blindly is how some of the scares get you. However, I will admit that since there are scares that are random, maybe you just have shitty ass luck, but I'm amazed that you haven't been able to at least reach the exit yet, since you said you found 5 keys, and if you know where the Axe Key is, getting to the exit doesn't take that long. If you are trying to find everything on your first run, then I'd say that's impossible, cause the game is not designed that way.
As a matter of fact, I didn't know where the Axe Key was until I read the comments. "There's something behind me" is completely different from "there's something on the wall behind me." The former implies it's right behind me, like a ghost standing on the tile below my character, while the latter is what you actually meant.

And the thing about this game's unforgiving mechanics (and Silent Hill 2's as you describe it) is that they are terrible game design. And if you think about it, you'll understand why. This is a horror game, so you wanted to scare me right? And what reduces scariness? Isn't it familiarity, such as going through the same section again and again because I died the first time? Also annoyance, such as because I had to restart the game at the very end because of a mistake I made near the beginning. Familiarity and annoyance also reduce fun, so you've made a horror game in such a way that it's going to become un-fun and un-scary. And since fun and scariness are the reasons I play horror games, that means that while this game has a lot of good points, that "survival" mechanic makes the game far worse than it could have been. To end with, "survival horror" as I understand it means any type of game where there's scary stuff and your job is to get out alive, including Resident Evil, Amnesia, Outlast, Ib, Misao, Mad Father, and The Witch's House. But most if not all of those still let you finish the game even if you make some mistakes. Games that don't let you finish if you make mistakes are comparable to Touhou, which is an achievement-based experience rather than a horror- or fun- based one.

Here's a picture: The corners

What am I doing in these pictures that you are not? There is a hint next to the box that want the 3 digit combination, but I did notice that the wall is very dark so it is miss-able, but the hint itself might not be the best anyways.
Aha, I found the hint after you pointed it out. Yes, it is completely missable, because that patch of wall looks the same as every other patch of wall. And now that I've seen your pictures, I understand what you were talking about. But here's what I was doing, which still makes sense even after seeing the note: https://imgur.com/a/f2C7u

author=Miryafa
Wait, how do you save Emelie? I just checked the let's play, and what happened for him was completely different than what happened for me. As soon as I got the batteries, I rushed back upstairs to give them to Emelie, but when I talked to her door, I got no response - he just said "where did she go?". How did the LPer and I get completely different responses when we did the same thing?


You took too long, sorry. She is on a timer, if you get the batteries to her, you get some more time. Here's a spoiler:
Her timer stops in her hallway and some other places, like safe rooms if I don't remember it wrongly. Since she doesn't talk to you anymore, that means it's already too late, but if you walk away and come back later, you can even enter her room and get a cutscene of Felix finding her body.


author=Miryafa
Aha, I found the hint after you pointed it out. Yes, it is completely missable, because that patch of wall looks the same as every other patch of wall. And now that I've seen your pictures, I understand what you were talking about. But here's what I was doing, which still makes sense even after seeing the note: https://imgur.com/a/f2C7u


Oh now I see what you meant. Well, the puzzle and clue are confusing, but I actually thought the puzzle was a neat idea at the time, since it uses the lighting effect to solve. Might just be me though...

author=Miryafa
As a matter of fact, I didn't know where the Axe Key was until I read the comments. "There's something behind me" is completely different from "there's something on the wall behind me." The former implies it's right behind me, like a ghost standing on the tile below my character, while the latter is what you actually meant.

And the thing about this game's unforgiving mechanics (and Silent Hill 2's as you describe it) is that they are terrible game design. And if you think about it, you'll understand why. This is a horror game, so you wanted to scare me right? And what reduces scariness? Isn't it familiarity, such as going through the same section again and again because I died the first time? Also annoyance, such as because I had to restart the game at the very end because of a mistake I made near the beginning. Familiarity and annoyance also reduce fun, so you've made a horror game in such a way that it's going to become un-fun and un-scary. And since fun and scariness are the reasons I play horror games, that means that while this game has a lot of good points, that "survival" mechanic makes the game far worse than it could have been. To end with, "survival horror" as I understand it means any type of game where there's scary stuff and your job is to get out alive, including Resident Evil, Amnesia, Outlast, Ib, Misao, Mad Father, and The Witch's House. But most if not all of those still let you finish the game even if you make some mistakes. Games that don't let you finish if you make mistakes are comparable to Touhou, which is an achievement-based experience rather than a horror- or fun- based one.


The text box saying the thing about the axes hanging on the wall behind you are broken. The text goes outside of the message box so you do not get all the info, sorry.

I don't really have much to say about this, I guess it comes down to opinion. Some will like it, some will not. You can't please everyone. I made this game alone, so for me it all kinda made sense and I tried to make a game that I would like to play. If I had worked with other people that could give me input and ideas all the way through, then yes it would've probably been a better experience overall. But unfortunately, that's not the case. I can understand it's maddening for you, but what do you want me to do? Go back and redo the whole game? All I can do is take what you and everyone else have said and take it with me if I ever make another game.

Now don't get me wrong, I'm very happy that you write long posts about this to me, I don't believe in bad critic. It sucks that the game is un-fun for you, but some people seemed to like it, with flaws and all, so like I said before, you can't please everyone.
I think you're misunderstanding some of what I'm writing. I enjoyed some parts of the game a lot. But others are maddeningly frustrating. Randomness is one of those things, and for me personally so are missable things. I hate putting a lot of time and energy into a game just to find out I can't get an ending or do something 2-3 hours in because I missed something within the hour, and am now past the point of no return. That sort of stuff is fine in 5 minute games and roguelikes, which have high re-playability, but just stink in a game that's the same on your 2nd, 3rd, and 10th attempt as on your first.

And the lighting effect puzzle would have been fine, if it had been at all clear what to do, and if there weren't multiple solutions to the puzzle. That's a problem I had with a lot of the puzzles in the game actually: I have to solve one puzzle to figure out what I'm supposed to do (like get the colored numbers in the garden) and another to ignore the unimportant ones, and another to put them in the right order. It's like you said "ok, here's a puzzle where I supplied the bare minimum amount of information required to solve it. Now let's remove some." In my opinion that's relatively fine for optional quests, but not main plot points.

The other problem I had was that sometimes an action would cause damage (like looking in a mirror in most places) but at other times it's required (like looking in a mirror to find the axe key). You can't just train me to avoid something, then expect me to do it anyway to advance the main plot. It just makes me frustrated when I can't figure out what I'm supposed to do, even though I'm following the rules the game has taught me (like don't look at mirrors).

And what I want you to do is take the things you learned from making this game, and use them to make your next game better. This game is done, and there's no need to change it. Just do better next time.
author=Miryafa
I think you're misunderstanding some of what I'm writing. I enjoyed some parts of the game a lot. But others are maddeningly frustrating. Randomness is one of those things, and for me personally so are missable things. I hate putting a lot of time and energy into a game just to find out I can't get an ending or do something 2-3 hours in because I missed something within the hour, and am now past the point of no return. That sort of stuff is fine in 5 minute games and roguelikes, which have high re-playability, but just stink in a game that's the same on your 2nd, 3rd, and 10th attempt as on your first.


Yes, no I understood what you meant. The randomness may suck, but it's kinda there for replayability and to enhance the scariness. It's there to mess with the player. Now it might not be implemented in a good way, like you've said, so maybe random is not what I should've gone with, but like I said, in that case I had to redo the whole game, or at least half of it.

When I played through the game, I actually didn't think it would be longer than 15-30min (if you skip side stuff), and that you would maybe figure out one or two of the side things at a time if the player wanted to replay the game. Can't say more than that. Thanks for still playing the game as much as you have, and I hope I do a better job next time, if there is a next time.
author=Daniel_B
author=roseangel
Also, perhaps you can make something that collects all the texts you receive?
You mean the notes? In your inventory, you should have all the texts you collect so that you can re-read them, or am I misunderstanding what you mean?

I assume roseangel meant the text messages you get on the phone, like "Have you seen my energy drink pack?"

On another note, is secret ending 2 supposed to be the Forgetful ending? (And how is it forgetful when I 100%'d the game, rescuing both Emelie and Marcus, confronting Levi, finding Mother and finding the research data?) If not, I have a bug to report. And it took about 10 resets to even get bloody eyes too - it may be simpler than secret ending 1, but I'd say it's not easier to do.
author=Miryafa
author=Daniel_B
author=roseangel
Also, perhaps you can make something that collects all the texts you receive?
You mean the notes? In your inventory, you should have all the texts you collect so that you can re-read them, or am I misunderstanding what you mean?
I assume roseangel meant the text messages you get on the phone, like "Have you seen my energy drink pack?"

On another note, is secret ending 2 supposed to be the Forgetful ending? (And how is it forgetful when I 100%'d the game, rescuing both Emelie and Marcus, confronting Levi, finding Mother and finding the research data?) If not, I have a bug to report. And it took about 10 resets to even get bloody eyes too - it may be simpler than secret ending 1, but I'd say it's not easier to do.


Maybe, but I never got an answer from rose, so I don't know what he meant.

Hm, that doesn't sound right. Forgetful is NOT a secret ending, it's the worst ending, which you shouldn't be able to get if you did all those things.

Did you get forgetful when trying to leave as dark felix after you've saved emelie and marcus + the other things? I need more info, please send me a private message detailing as much info as you can, and I will look into this myself too.
If anyone's interested (or stuck), I put a 100% playthrough on youtube here: https://youtu.be/II881LjuKZ8
author=Miryafa
If anyone's interested (or stuck), I put a 100% playthrough on youtube here: https://youtu.be/II881LjuKZ8


You didn't even save once xD so manly
I really love this game. It´s replay value is amazing and here is why: When I finshed the game I could rewind game to collect other endings. "Cool!" - I thought. But the amazing part is that when I was replaying it and did things differently, it activated new scares in places where nothing happened on my first playthrough, scaring the s*** out of me. I end up finding something new everytime I rewind game and that is what I call a replay value.

I am trying really hard to find all things and unlock all endings without any help and I am doing a great job at it, but some items and secrets just keep eluding me.

I do have few questions: At some points in the game when I do certain things I hear doors opening or closing (like when I get red gem). Are these sounds meaningful in some way or just there to scare me (which, by the way, are one of scariest things in this game for me, making me think that someone came in the room, or was there the whole time)? I did notice silhouette running in the garden, so... yeah.

Another question of mine is when I pick up item in the water, when I click again it say that there is something shinning in the water. Is this some error or something I haven´t figured out yet?

I like how I lose sanity and see horrifying images when I lose my "health".

All in all, game is excellent. Congratulations, Daniel_B!

Is your last name Fawn? Saw a grave in the game with Daniel Fawn written on it. And is that a Markiplier reference I spy with my little eye?
author=Omega3000
I really love this game. It´s replay value is amazing and here is why: When I finshed the game I could rewind game to collect other endings. "Cool!" - I thought. But the amazing part is that when I was replaying it and did things differently, it activated new scares in places where nothing happened on my first playthrough, scaring the s*** out of me. I end up finding something new everytime I rewind game and that is what I call a replay value.

I am trying really hard to find all things and unlock all endings without any help and I am doing a great job at it, but some items and secrets just keep eluding me.

I do have few questions: At some points in the game when I do certain things I hear doors opening or closing (like when I get red gem). Are these sounds meaningful in some way or just there to scare me (which, by the way, are one of scariest things in this game for me, making me think that someone came in the room, or was there the whole time)? I did notice silhouette running in the garden, so... yeah.

Another question of mine is when I pick up item in the water, when I click again it say that there is something shinning in the water. Is this some error or something I haven´t figured out yet?

I like how I lose sanity and see horrifying images when I lose my "health".

All in all, game is excellent. Congratulations, Daniel_B!

Is your last name Fawn? Saw a grave in the game with Daniel Fawn written on it. And is that a Markiplier reference I spy with my little eye?


Thank you for the nice comment. I do know the game is very hard and unforgiving, so do not feel ashamed to look up a thing or two if you are really stuck.

Yes, those sound effects are there to add atmosphere, they don't really "do" anything else. Here's a little bit of a trivia for you, the silhouette in the garden is Lavinia's character sprite.

That is an error on my part. I've fixed it, but I'll probably hold on updating the game just yet, so the next time I do upload a new update, this will be fixed.

My last name is not Fawn no, all the names are taken from somewhere, or made up.
Small trivia spoiler:
Felix is a nod to pewdiepie (we are both Swedes), Robin, Lucas, Marcus, Oscar are my friends, Lavinia was a name I got from googling "First female serial killer" or something like that, Emelie is a variation on Emma, a childhood friend of mine. Omir, Felix's last name in the game, is a variation on Imre, which is another friend of mine. The Daniel on the gravestone doesn't necessarily mean me, because I have a friend whose name is also Daniel, but having 2 Daniels would only be confusing. The Derek and Alex in the Brothers story are actually a nod to the HVGN (Derek Alexander).


Yes that is a markiplier reference. I think you are the first to point that one out actually :)

Thank you so much for liking the game, even though it has a lot of flaws.
Im so curious about this game, i'll try play *0*
Yes, Miryafa is right, that is what I meant.
Sorry about that,my internet access can be a bit uncertain, and I kinda forgot I made the comment.
author=itsBlueFalcon
Im so curious about this game, i'll try play *0*

Thanks for trying ;p

author=roseangel
Yes, Miryafa is right, that is what I meant.
Sorry about that,my internet access can be a bit uncertain, and I kinda forgot I made the comment.


Np, it happens.
Ahhh i hate horror games but this looks promising so i'll play it i just hope i don't piss myself
author=Kai-Simie
Ahhh i hate horror games but this looks promising so i'll play it i just hope i don't piss myself


Don't worry, it's not that scary really. =)
author=Daniel_B
author=Kai-Simie
Ahhh i hate horror games but this looks promising so i'll play it i just hope i don't piss myself
Don't worry, it's not that scary really. =)


Imma gonna take your word on that...If i piss myself i'm going to sue you...jk jk
author=Kai-Simie
author=Daniel_B
author=Kai-Simie
Ahhh i hate horror games but this looks promising so i'll play it i just hope i don't piss myself
Don't worry, it's not that scary really. =)
Imma gonna take your word on that...If i piss myself i'm going to sue you...jk jk


Haha, you do that ;)