This is why getting people to playtest games is important! When I played through it, I only restarted twice:
- Once, after looping and upgrading a bunch of times, and only to day 20 or so, and
- Once after getting automation.
This is mostly because upgrades take effect on the next loop or restart, and nothing in the game tells you that explicitly. There are lots of possible fixes. Simulating it after automation is one. I could also immediately re-run the first phase and give you the resources you would have, even in the middle of a phase 2 run.
If I keep working on this, I'm replacing the first 20 minutes. It's not engaging at all. I just couldn't risk changing it after balancing phase 2+.