Canvas Keepsakes

I liked it! The writing was engaging and the story compelling. As the story developed, i had to know what happens. The hallmark of a good plot.

The game is presented well, in Twine, without unnecessary gimmicks. I played on a mobile where it worked well, the text was clear and the layout fine. Some of the choices felt like glorified continue buttons, but you always get that. There were several good choice points and a few really good choices that made me pause (good design).

I liked the ending but wondered if there were multiple endings. There were many places where i thought the wrong choice could be fatal (which is good design). But i wonder if they were. Sorry it didn't play again to try. In any case, the outcome could be quite macabre and leave a bad taste. So perhaps it's best not to have them. At least not the bad ones. :)

I felt the pace of the story struggled a bit later;
(Spoiler - click to show)
During the scenes inside the monster, arguing with the two characters. Perhaps these bits could be more streamlined. "streamlined" what does that mean? People have said that to me. I sat scratching my head. So, instead perhaps "condensed". a bit. maybe.

This is a really minor point, and only the pacing, not the writing itself. Perhaps just my feeling comparing the initial pace to the later pace.

I enjoyed the atmospheric sound effects which added depth.

Pixel the cat;
(Spoiler - click to show)
Did feel like a witch's familiar. And the idea of going into paintings, like spells, does resonate with witchcraft. This angle was mentioned but not developed in the story. Perhaps a sequel?


To wrap up, a strong compelling story, well presented and engaging with many good choice points.

Thank you C.T. O'Mahony.

With solid writing and an interesting story which keeps the tension going, Canvas Keepsakes provided a pretty entertaining experience. As an artist, struggling to pay the rent, you have the strange power to travel in your own paintings and retrieve things from them. Of course, things quickly go awry as you meet a buyer who seems secretly out to mess you up, and your paintings come out to mess with you.

I liked the cat companion in particular. Pixel is pretty adorable, plays a strong role in the story and also provides some entertaining commentary.

One thing I didn't like was that the game didn't really introduce the story elements very well. For that, I recommend reading the blurb before you start, as the game does not explain quite a number of story elements otherwise.

As for one thing I really liked, the use of visuals and sound to convey scenes. Shaking and glowing letters, background color changes and sounds all work in tandem to add oomph to the different scenes. Special effects are one thing this game does very well.

It was a good bit of entertainment.

Adapted from a SpringThing25 Review

Played: 4/8/25
Playtime: 45m

The conceit of this work, like a lot of genre works, is doing a lot of lifting. Genre fiction (interactive or otherwise) gets a lot of bang for the buck in wild conceits. Arcane magic or hand-wavy super science can create bespoke scenarios that range from full on metaphysical metaphor to nuts’n’bolts lore-wonkery where exploring the setting (and clever twists by the author) is every bit as engaging as any symbology or themes. It is not a lick on this work to say it skews to the latter, because it does it so WELL.

As a player, we are co-piloting (let’s not pretend the author isn’t ALWAYS also at the stick in these things) an artist. A painter, trying to live off commission work while hiding a secret that they can enter the reality of their paintings and bring back artifacts from them. (Ok, yes, you and I would drop everything to labor on our civic-mural-scaled STACKS OF CASH TRYPTYCH. This protag doesn’t. Just roll with it.) He also has a partner/pet of a talking cat. Yeah, even I am beyond blinking at that at this point.

Follows some nice intrigue, evolving lore and ever-more-clever twists on the conceit that are both completely reasonable and completely satisfying. Do not underestimate the finesse this requires. “Going deep in the lore” and “Crawling up your own butt” share a LOT of common imagery and perils. For me, CK consistently fell on the right side of that dichotomy.

It is enhanced by a lot of tangible, unadorned writing. In particular, the details of the painter’s craft were just as present and tactile as you would expect for this kind of protagonist. The writing went a long way to casually and matter-of-factly establish his bona fides as a working artist, and that in turn helped sell the really outre’ developments to follow. If there was a facet that was shortchanged, it was the characterization of the protagonist. Other than a REAALLY strong reluctance to bathe (seriously, what is THAT about? SO many grooming actions available, uniformly rejected by the narrative), and the physical details of their craft, they were more or less a blank slate. Now in IF, this is not generally an issue. The protagonist is often explicitly intended to be a player surrogate. Thing is, specificity in detail works against that identification, so we fall into a weird middle ground where the protag is not US, but isn’t really an identifiable OTHER either. This stands in contrast to NPCs that are quirky, motivated and interesting. Even the rather moustache-twirling antagonists are narratively justified and fun in their one-dimensional-ness.

What? You want me to say it? In print, attached to my name in perpetuity? Fine. Yes, the cat companion was quite fun. Happy? I feel dirty.

As the narrative progresses you work with the protagonist to untangle the implications and nuances of the wild lore, satisfying stakes that range from ‘losing an apartment’ to ‘slavery and death.’ I mean, what, you didn’t want it to escalate? I found the whole thing a really enjoyable lark, not the least of which because it enabled me to reclaim some dignity for those most-unfairly-maligned of creatures: no, not cats. Their malignment is totally fair. I speak of (Spoiler - click to show)giant spiders. Yes, I was not satisfied with my status as feline pariah, I must bolt headlong into FURTHER social marginalization! I regret nothing!

All in all, this was a nicely calibrated plot engine, just about the perfect size for its preoccupations. It also gifted us with a new legendary beast for the Monster Manual: the Artistivore. So good.

Horror Icon: Leatherface
Vibe: Reality bending
Polish: Smooth
Gimme the Wheel! : If this were my project, I think I would endeavor to flesh out the protag, just a little bit more. The nature of IF is such that players usually do not begrudge inhabiting a complete character who is NOT them. Would be worth pulling this protag in that direction.

Polish scale: Gleaming, Smooth, Textured, Rough, Distressed
Gimme the Wheel: What I would do next, if it were my project.

In this Twine story, you play as a down-on-their-luck artist who is trying to sell a painting. Unusually, you have the ability to enter your paintings and retrieve things from them, including magical creatures, called Artifexes. You usually keep one 'keepsake' from each of your 'canvases'. You need to sell a painting in order to keep on top of bills but there's a problem with your newest painting (and your newest buyer).

There are three things I liked about this game:

-The real-life parts were convincing. Our character seemed like a lot of artistic-type young people I know, in the way they act, the language they use, their relationship with family. The parts where the dishes just aren't done and that makes them too depressed to do the dishes, and that makes it hard to do anything, is very real. I also suffer from depression, and it changed my life when someone said that I shouldn't feel guilty for using paper plates if it improves the rest of my life. I do that now and it's really cut down on the amount of dishes I have to do. I also make sure not to buy too many dishes so that it can't get overwhelming. Anyway, I related to this a lot.

-The magical parts seemed consistent and well-thought-out. It felt like part of a TV show or series and the kind of thing where people could keep wikis on the info, as opposed to the kind of slapdash 'use your imagination and focus on your feelings' magic I often write.

-The choices felt like there were real consequences and reasons to pick both. Even if there weren't consequences some times, choosing to be angry at your jerky but lovable cat or apologizing to it felt like it mattered.

Note: This review was written during Spring Thing 2025, and originally posted in the intfiction forum on 6 May 2025.

Pleased to get at least one more game review in. I was playing this one for about half an hour. It’s a choice-based art/fantasy/horror mystery story. And it’s another with a most excellent cat in it. Which I greatly approve of.

I really enjoyed playing this story right through. The player character can enter paintings and take keepsakes from them. And in the process discovers a much more dangerous threat which they have to face.

It was constantly a very tense playing experience. I often felt that I needed to read the text and make my next choice quickly before I ran out of time. I’m not sure that was a real concern, but the writing definitely added to the tension.

I was very happy with the ending I reached, though I expect there may be less positive outcomes to discover too.

Really good stuff. Thank you to the author.