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this is fantastic feedback, and it's something others have told me as well. dying is super punishing right now and it feels really bad. i have some ideas on how to improve this, but i'm not happy with any of them just yet 🙃

I disagree with your assessment.  To me, this is an absolutely brilliant build up and advancement of mechanics made popular in 1982 with the mother and poster child of what twin stick shooters should be, Robotron.  The influence is absolutely clear here and makes the right decisions every step of the way.  To promote no-death long runs to get greater score is just brilliant.  It makes every single risk/reward judgement become even more riskier and rewardier!  I love it!  

The entire point of risk reward is a split second decision on 'is it worth it' and encouraging the player to take risks for huge reward forces the player to do things they otherwise wouldn't do. 

One of the biggest problems with twin stick shooters is 'circle strafe boredom' becomes there's nothing to break the circle strafe.  This is done through 'rescue/bonus' items strewn and wandering through the hoards of enemies.  

I beg you to reconsider what this mechanic brings and absolutely makes the rescue/bonus mechanic that had not been improved on since 1982 actually IMPROVED.  I'm ALWAYS looking to make that Friends number bigger because my points get bigger!  And I've died trying to make it bigger even in situations where I thought, 'yeah, i can do this' and NOPE...couldn't.  And that feeling of anguish and seeing all the points dry up....man...it makes me take even MORE risks to build it back up!

I LOVE this aspect and I don't agree it should be changed.  Whether it was accidental genius or calculated genius, I don't care, I love it, and I vote that it does not change.  It's brilliant and does all the right things to make the game harder, without forcing one's hand.  This game is FAR easier than Robotron in general if you're just looking at 'staying alive', but this mechanic balances PERFECTLY for score chasing, you make the game harder yourself.  And you pay for your mistakes in judgement.

Twin stick shooters aren't about circle strafing.  They're about having the fire power to deal with impossible situations and having a reason to put yourself in an impossible situation.  Geometry Wars is a circle strafe bore.  Satyrn is a damn fine game that breaks the circle strafe intelligently and finally takes the mechanics that nearly everyone who's played it finds Robotron the perfect sweaty palms game and FINALLY pushes it forward.  

Props to maybell, I have suggestions for minor changes here and there, but your risk/reward system is definitely not one of them.  Keep pressing forward.  In my humble opinion, folks that find it too hard have played too much Geometry Wars or Binding of Isaac.  They're fine games, but they're they're own thing.  I see all you did here and even though it's an iteration on a great game, it's a GOOD iteration and moves in the right direction! 

At the end of it all, my one suggestion is top 10 scores.  Single high score is no good for this kind of game.  Top 10 at least, if not 10 top of the day and top 20 of all time.  But I'm fine with everything as it is right now, no changes necessary, I love everything about this. Smash TV failed to improve, and it had Jarvis on the team.  Same with Total Carnage...you did it absolutely perfectly, imo.  In my opinion, this is proper Robotron II. 

Consider yourself a hero, maybell.  A winner is YOU.