@archenklos I have updated the introduction boot sequence and made a slight change to the difficulty curve, give it a shot now!
I made it to 13 twice on a few playthroughs of the new version. I'd say it's an improvement and about right.
The explanation of the rules is great for new players, but maybe there's a way to exclude some of it on retries? Or retries when the player loses after a certain round since you can assume they know the rules?
Still really enjoying it. Another thought is maybe a cover image on this page could help it get a little more attention.
Thanks for the note @archenklos, glad the improvements helped! I have toyed around with a cover photo in the past but came up short! I am hopeful as it gains traction that I can work with a pixel artist to come up with something fitting to the storyline!