O2A2 2026 Visual Novel Review Project (Part 1/2)

Introduction I recently published an article about creating and publishing a new visual novel in ONScripter-EN titled Under the Alien Sky from beginning-to-end from July 17-19. I created that piece within the restraints of two Itch.io game submission jams. While the tight July 17-19 time limit came from Kenney Jam 2026, I worked under a set of asset and length restrictions from the O2A2 2026 – Only One of Any Asset Visual Novel Jam (“O2A2”). The O2A2 jam limits submissions to no more than 1,000 words, no more than one sprite and one background (or one illustration in lieu of a sprite and background), one background sound file, one sound effect, one voice actor, and one piece of menu background art. In the end, I was one of 182 developers/teams to submit to O2A2. Because all of the submissions are necessarily short given the 1,000 word limit, I decided that it would be interesting to switch from my developer hat to more common reviewer hat and play/read and review some of the other…