I'll abbreviate this game as TCoL.

To get it out now, yes I do consider myself a furry, and I do like to explore all reaches of content the fandom puts out. This also includes the indie games, including some of the other major VN (Visual Novel) titles I've touched like Nekojishi and Winds of Change.

With that said, there's one thing TCoL does differently than the other 'Anthro' games I've played: The 'Anthropomorphic' character designs are used entirely for world-building, and NOT for fan service reasons. And it EXCELS VERY WELL at that!

This means that TCoL is NOT a dating-sim, and is 100% safe to play with absolutely no embarrasments whatsoever. While other VN's like Nekojishi and Winds of Change have their own charm, they are definitely more fandom-oriented with much more suggestive romantic themes and character designs that are designed to appeal to a more homosexual male audience.

On the other hand, the character designs in TCoL are based on a fictional Sahash species, and the setting is only mainly in one small area, inspired by Gypsy and Gaucho culture and lifestyle, out of an entire universe that the artists have developed prior to this game. They have detailed many specific regional species traits, clothing, and culture as you can see here (link). Even the actual visual novel itself has pages and pages of concept art (link) to flesh the setting out.

Okay after all that word on what sets this game apart from the development side of things, how is the actual game itself? It's still a VN and a point-and-click adventure in the end, meaning that there are choices that can change how the story plays out. Considering the game is released as an episodic format and only 2 out of I believe 3 parts are officially released, it means this game isn't 100% fully finished and choices you make in Act 1 will all eventually gravitate towards a single resolution with minor differences to get you started in Act 2. The story starts homey and simple: you are a jeweler just trying to finish a bracelet. However, the story gets more and more para-normal, and... without spoiling much all I can say it escalates HARD into the fantasy spirit realm.

What really makes this game stand out though is all of the small visual details throughout the game! Despite the VN presentation, these are some of the most lively animated pieces of art I've seen! So much of it is animated! Even the environments have many animated trees, lighting, water, on TOP of many idle animations given to background characters. The major characters are re-drawn to fit in many scenes depending on what they're doing. If they're relaxing on your bed, the artists have actually both drawn that character both on the bed AND animated sometimes! The game also filled with numerous custom hand-drawn animations, especially all of the typography and symbolic imagery used to convey a message at the end of Act 2.

The rest of the aesthetic elements easily complements the visual style too. The menus are flashy and give out a "nostalgic stargazing", the game's overarching theme. The music is more focused on a nostalgic folk ambiance as well with a large guitar and cello focus, perfectly complimenting both the calm and rustic setting and... the unsettling parts of the story too!

I see this VN game as a beautiful work of art built from numerous care to details on both the world-building and the presentation end. Even though the game isn't even fully finished (and it might take a long time as TLOC is only done by two people), it's already left such a strong impression to be one of my most favorite games I've ever touched and one that will remain a heavy inspiration towards my own creative works.