Maybe if the first scale up had just a few enemies so the player could adjust to it? It's really fun gameplay, definitely worth some tweaks to get it perfect!
Viewing post in For the Swarm - Game Off 2023 Edition jam comments
I'm leaning to an idea like that. I was thinking on Scale 2 (the one with the mines) I could add some turrets that fire slowly/randomly (kind of like they are debris from a destroyed ship that aremalfunctioning). Then, on Scale 3 (when enemies are introduced) I think I'll just redo the Enemy spawning and have it so that the rate increases the longer you stay on that scale. That way the player only faces 1-3 enemies when they scale up.
Thank you for your input and encouragement!