Alright, I've done some further testing and learned how to backflip and frontflip at will, but more importantly, I think I've finally thought up a decent solution for the Overheat gauge.
Currently the Overheat gauge IMMEDIATELY starts emptying itself when you stop doing actions that would fill it, which is why repeatedly extending your arms doesn't really do much to fill the gauge, since there's a moment between button presses where you're not pressing any buttons, causing the gauge to empty in that time. So I think there needs to be a delay (like half a second) before the Overheat gauge starts to decrease. That should help limit repeated small attacks.
Also thought of an idea to use in substitute of additional colors/changing AI player setup manually. And I think this game could probably use this in the future anyway: the ability to save and quickly access your favorite builds.