Thank you for playing! Balance is indeed difficult, here are a few things I try:
- Playtest as much as possible, especially with other people! The game will usually be much harder for everyone that isn't you
- For a game jam, I try to err on the easier side, because most people will probably only play it for a little bit
- I also use spreadsheets to get a basic idea of how difficult / powerful different elements of the game are
Still, getting everything properly balanced in such a short amount of time is super difficult. You probably noticed my submission is more difficult at the start and then gets much easier, as your upgrades snowball. Not ideal ... 😅