thank you so much for the feedback! I think a lot of your points have weight and some were just because of constraints of being a solo dev and having to learn everything as I went.
Before making Start Running I had actually never drawn anything in my life or made a UI or programmed at all in python or written puzzles so it was a sharp learning curve and your feedback is super helpful.
The game I made at the end of last year, In The Foundations, is more simple gameplay wise but I think has elevated a lot of things that I learned from making Start Running. Thank you for playing and the kind words!