Very interesting concept! We were also thinking about theming our game around viruses and bacteria at first before settling on our 80s aesthetic. I think you have the core of a cool game idea; I'm actually surprised that this is the first programming-type loop game I've played so far this Jam. I think the main thing a more fully fleshed out version of this game would benefit from is a tightly scoped tutorial section to walk you through some of the decisions you would make in choosing which upgrades to buy and which actions to choose to put into your loop. I got through level 10 with just an Attack and a Defend action repeating quickly in my loop and a bunch of the visible upgrades unlocked, but I think this has a ton of potential!
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Thank you so much for the thoughtful feedback! It means a lot, especially hearing that the loop-based gameplay stood out during the Jam. We were definitely toying with the virus/bacteria theme for a while, cool coincidence that you considered it too before going with the 80s aesthetic (which looked great, by the way).
You're absolutely right about the need for a proper tutorial. The upgrade system and loop design have a lot of depth planned. A future version would definitely introduce more structured onboarding and incentivize experimentation with different logic patterns.
Glad you saw the potential. We’re excited to keep pushing it further!