Impressive.
Well, I played all the way through, got the four different endings, unlocked all the medals (even the ones not yet approved) and virtually got everything that this game has to offer. This took me few hours. Was my time well spent?
If it wasn't, would I have gone through all that trouble? Actually, I don't understand why this game's already off the frontpage!
The protagonist, Dolly, is one I've not yet encountered in an internet flash game before. Meaning that it's the first character in a flash game ever I've felt attached to. Just a half an hour into the game, and I was already a fan of her. A silent, mysterious goth-like girl with a surreal design, what's not to love? The concept of self-deciding the personality of the main character isn't new, but it still added extra depth to the game, which is a very good thing. Especially in the beginning, with the scene of the mean kid (possibly her brother?). Do you choose to be aggressive, and beat the living crap out of him? Or do you remain passive, have your feelings hurt and run off crying (I adored this one). Not to mention, the way you behave throughout the game alters the ending, which only adds to the replay value.
One thing is for certain, I would love to see Dolly again in the future.
The story, and I'll be honest with you, I don't really get it. But that's not a bad thing. It's this kind of abstractness that either lets you ignore the meaning behind it, or makes you think about it deeply. I myself like to think about it, but can't quite figure it out. Yet. Maybe it has no real meaning. Maybe it's just how you interpretate it, and could mean something else to each individual. But no matter what it is, the strangeness doesn't stand in the way of the gameplay.
I like how you combined platforming and point and click elements in this game. It's easy to learn, and not complicated to figure out what to do and where to go. yet, it still has a free-roaming aspect to it. You can do the sidequests at any time, or choose not to do them at all. A Metroid-esque style of gameplay, with many things to do; too many for just one playthrough (which compensates for the fact that the game is rather short). The controls are a bit stiff sometimes, but combining the arrow keys to move and w key to jump makes it a bit easier.
Art and animation. The animation isn't the best I've seen, but it works well enough. While I love the design of Dolly, the NPC's look a bit bland and simplistic. But the backgrounds and environments are very interesting. It seems to be inspired by Tim Burton (since you made a reference to Nightmare Before Christmas). Beatiful tints and pallets that fit the mood of the game, strangely shaped objects and buildings, yeah, I like it!
Choice of music is brilliant! The exploration theme (Where the World Begins and Ends) is very atmospherical and sticks to you, and I'm actually still listening to it right now. I immediately recognised "The Moonlight Sonata" at the apple tree, which is an amazing piece of music. The Megadeth song at The Tornado Of Souls is awesome, and The Beast of Pirate's Bay was catchy.
To close it off, it was time well spent. Even the time spent to write this long-ass review was worth it, because I simply had to. One of the best games on Newgrounds I've seen so far, and pretty much one of my favorites. I hope you do a sequel someday.
Brilliant job!