Interesting Puzzle Platformer

Graphics
The graphics were decent, a very unique approach. The player was pretty interesting to look at, but kind of reminded me of Pinocchio. The only thing I would like to see changed in the visuals department would be the background tilesets. They didn't quite seem to fit the attitude of the other sprites, especially the ghosts. The ghosts were more cartoony, but well done none the less.

Sound
The sounds were pretty fresh. The only sound that would get annoying was the bell noise from the clock ghosts. It would occur frequently. Perhaps you could lower the volume? I also enjoyed the music, but maybe the game would benefit from some more tracks?

Gameplay
The area that I felt was lacking the most was the gameplay. I had emense trouble with the mouse movement. I felt that the method used in the game was very original, but lacked precision. I died most often from landing spikes because I couldn't stop the character from running off the edge in time. I also had the tendancy to panic and throw the mouse too far and over compensate. Lots of times, I would try to click outside of the window to jump, so I wouldn't end up jumping. This was only a problem while I was in windowed mode. (I didn't feel that it was intended to start in windowed mode, but it was anyway. Thought I'd let you know...) I really like the risk you took by making the controls so different and much more simplified, but I believe that the gameplay suffered because of the lack of precision.

The other mechanics that you presented, such as the torch lighting acting as 'keys' for the game, were really unique. They aided in the atmosphere of the game, and gave Nightmare Manor it's own flavor. The puzzle aspect of only being able to carry one item at a time worked pretty well, too.

Story
The story seemed a little cliche, but was compelling anyway. Unfortunately, I was unable to complete the game, so I could not see its resolution. (I got stuck around room C5? The boxes kept disapearing, and I couldn't jump quick enough after grabbing the bomb. A bug?) What got me curious in the plot was that he couldn't remember what he did on Halloween...

Interface
The interface was very good, but I couldn't return to the menu without first closing the game. It may have been better to have an 'return to menu' button ort something. Other than that, very good. (I enjoyed seeing my death statistics!)

Overall score: 3.6 stars (4 stars)
I really like the way you tried to give the game a unique twist with the mouse movement, but it could use more tweaking. With minor fixes here and there, Nightmare Manor will be a very solid puzzle platformer.

Great game, Tahnok, and I hope you can continue your projects; between Aurora and Nightmare Manor, I'm excited to see what else you have to put up to bat!