I appreciate the feedback. As I said, after like wave 10, I tested almost nothing. You actually used the same strategy I did when testing, put everything into fire rate and hold down shields always. I do agree with the fire extinguisher part. As I was working on the game, I had that exact same thought and I probably should have changed it, and I definitely would with a little bit more time. The fire would only spawn when your ship shields were <90% I think. The upgrades also were very primitively tested, even the XP gain. Heard some one say it was difficult and, as I said things weren't really tested past a certain point, so I really did not know. Either way, I really appreciate the detailed feedback! I would definitely change and balance a lot if I made it over again.
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I think that the fire should get you away from holding shield down a lot. So why not make the fire spawn cooldown go down when you are holding the lever at max? Punish from just avoiding two whole mechanics. I also recommend using exponetial functions for upgrades that lower, like fire rate, so you never hit 0 or below (y=2^x). I still really liked every bit of polish put into the game, and for future jams I highly recommend giving some early builds to family or friends, and tell them minimal amount of information. And if you can, watch them play. You'll learn a lot, even from your own game!