So glad you liked it!
Weird that you weren't let into the pod at the end. The ending is finished and there is a credits scene after it, but it seems to have bugged for you. You didn't miss a lot though. I can't replicate the bug on my end unfortunately.
I'll see what I can do to make the pop up messages less obstructive and I'll for sure be fixing the checkpoints, and will have the new version up at the end of the voting period! Could send you a message if you want. I'll also be fleshing out the story a bit more.
Glad you like the look of the creature, I'm very happy with it myself too!