Thanks for playing and the compliments! My favourite part is also first landing on the moon & other planet. Their upgrade trees are still pretty parse, but eventually will be fun to start making those and having some "personality" on the planets also. Some of the planets will later be discovered by exploration, not through upgrade tree, so that will add another aspect to the game also.
I actually first had thrust based controllers (see Nova Drift), but went with twin sticks since those are easier. It makes it a bit silly for the default ship to be facing different directions.
Good point about planet damage multiplier - I think I will remove it, it is a relic from the times before missions (I got exploration and defend phases).
And good point about the drone - I am actually thinking of having 1-5 "sidearm slots" for the ships, so you can pick your load based on your preferences or what kind of mission you are planning to take.
And yes, I hope I can get this to full steam game. Big plans, with many more planets and hopefully even multiple galaxies!