Wow. Thank you so much for taking the time to play my game and write this detailed comment. Your feedback made me realize a lot of areas where I can do better at communicating to the player. And you absolutely shouldn't be required to view the screenshots in order to play; I should've done a better job of communicating the rules of the game more clearly.
My intention with the enemy eyes being grey before touching the ground was to communicate that they're not hostile and won't hurt you if you touch them before they've been fully deployed.
Also, you are absolutely right about the dominant strategy being staying in the lowermost platform. I should've done a better job of incentivizing movement to higher platforms.
I don't think I will be updating the game any more since I've marked this project complete but your feedback has been precious in making me see what I couldn't see through the lens of a developer and I'm sure those lessons will help me make better games in the future. Thank you very much again. I'm glad you found my game fun :)