Im glad to hear your opinion on the shaders! There were a few things I really wanted to have in the game for the user experience and toggling the shaders was one of them!
You also hit the nail on the head. A health bar or more information being passed to the player was something that was lost in the rush of completing it in time. Finding a way to display health that was pleasing, and not invasive just wasn't in the time budget, unfortunately.