really adore the pixel art on this one! and i really loved the concept of the platforming + getting upgrades. the gameplay reminded me of cave story (especially after the final upgrade for the weapon)
but yea as others said, 2nd stage definitely caught me by surprise. i think i could beat it now w/o relying on combat upgrades, but the amount of enemies on it compared to the 1st level was pretty surprising
all in all, fun game!