Had a fun time with this shmup. I like the emphasis on grazing, which I rarely see being encouraged so much in a survival clear. final boss was a lot of fun.
Some small thoughts;
-was a little confused by the hud, which makes it look like there are two separate values because of the >100% gauge.
-hard time figuring out what does good damage (is it worth it to burn my heat and absorb bullets? most of the time it felt like a waste to do it offensively). I also originally assumed the 100-125% range bullets were weaker (the red ones) to encourage players not to hoard heat, but I never really figured it out.
-Stage 4 boss was completely trivial... a secondary pattern on top of the waves would be fun. then again, i suppose he's supposed to be a miserable lad.
Probably one of the top pico-8 shmups or even pico-8 arcade games in general. Thanks for making it!