What a lovely artistical style! The spinning gears in the background, the characters with their glowy shadows and the centerpiece flower with its animations - I love it all. I only wished the visual shooting feedback - that is the red flashing screen effect - was toned down a bit. "Countdown" is incorported perfectly here, and I like that you stuck with the time theme for the flower's progression too. Gameplay wise, it's very satisfying to kill enemies and dash around and pick up power-ups - especially with those lovely retro sound effects. Well done!