yea i really liked that moment! that's the kind of stuff i mean, would have loved to see more of that kind of meta-progress throughout but also i think what you did within the time constraints is still super impressive :))
also, i respect the idea that it's purgatory for both the player and the character and i see what you were going for narratively, but for me personally the reset back to the start felt a bit anti-climactic. i think there's a way you could do it where there's a narrative ending showing that the character is still trapped in the loop, but the player reached an "ending". but that being said this is all very much subjective, and you should make your game how you want to make it, that's the whole point of art!