Ten complaint clusters, then and now.

1. 01

   Balance and RNG

   “Useless upgrades pollute the pool; one dominant build; RNG decides runs; bullet-sponge late game.”

   982 weighted in the first sweep3,895 weighted in the full atlas34h median playtimebalance RNG

   This one is measured continuously rather than closed. Kaito's win-rate gap is fixed. Sora's novice wall and the elective imbalance are still open.

   The playtest labThe card deckCursed Energy and the five things you can do

   AugustAT-RISKNowOngoing

   55% our estimate

2. 02

   Progression grind

   “Unlocks take forever; meta currency trickles; feels designed to pad hours.”

   773 weighted in the first sweep3,664 weighted in the full atlas23h median playtimeprogression grind

   Prices are flat, the short periods pay out early, and dropping a period to earn is the intended recovery. The Roof's unlock cost is the remaining problem.

   Periods, stars and the coin bank

   AugustSAFE-ishNowShipped

   70% our estimate

3. 03

   Bugs, crashes, lost saves

   “Crashes; froze; lost my save or progress wiped.”

   699 weighted in the first sweep2,474 weighted in the full atlas31h median playtimebugs crashes saves

   Run resume, Suspend and Continue, the Club Card cloud save and error tracking all landed after the August tracker was written, on top of a deterministic sim with regression tests.

   Saves, resume and the Club Card

   AugustNEEDS-WORKNowShipped

   85% our estimate

4. 04

   Content drought

   “Repetitive after hours; nothing left to chase.”

   601 weighted in the first sweep2,229 weighted in the full atlas16h median playtimecontent drought repetition

   School Run, grades, elites and the deck are the answer so far. More playable characters is still the long-term fix, and School Run pacing has not been through the lab.

   School Run, grades and elitesThe card deckBosses and the held bell

   AugustAT-RISKNowWatching

   55% our estimate

5. 05

   Difficulty wall

   “Sudden spikes; too hard then too easy; no difficulty options.”

   352 weighted in the first sweep1,648 weighted in the full atlas28h median playtimedifficulty curve

   Two passes in August, then grades, carry, Study Hall mercy and Clutch in September, each with a measured table on the mechanics page.

   How difficulty is tunedStudy Hall mercy and Clutch

   AugustFIXEDNowTuned

   85% our estimate

6. 06

   Monetization

   “Cash grab, pay to win, ad spam.”

   308 weighted in the first sweep776 weighted in the full atlas48h median playtimemonetization DLC

   The web build has no store or ads. The store shells added an opt-in rewarded revive and a rate-limited interstitial, which crosses two of the August hard lines. We are tracking that here.

   The store rules

   AugustSAFE (guarded)NowWatching

   65% our estimate

7. 07

   Readability

   “Can't see the player or projectiles in the swarm; cluttered screens.”

   298 weighted in the first sweep863 weighted in the full atlas14h median playtimeUI readability clutter

   The spawn rules and the density taper are measured. Late-run readability on a phone is still a manual check.

   Spawn rules and the density taper

   AugustAT-RISKNowTuned

   70% our estimate

8. 08

   Late-run performance

   “FPS collapses when the screen fills.”

   212 weighted in the first sweep890 weighted in the full atlas27h median playtimeperformance late run

   Entity caps, the frame-rate governor and boss model eviction are in. iPhone heat and frame rate are measured by hand on a real phone.

   Web first, phones second

   AugustSAFE-ishNowShipped

   75% our estimate

9. 09

   Controls and aim

   “Clunky sticks; no control options; bad auto-aim.”

   204 weighted in the first sweep345 weighted in the full atlas7h median playtimecontrols input

   One-thumb mode, matching button positions across devices and gamepad bindings shipped with browser tests. We have tried a narrow range of hardware.

   Controls

   AugustSAFE-ishNowShipped

   80% our estimate

10. 10

    Audio and music

    “Repetitive music; no volume sliders.”

    109 weighted in the first sweepaudio music

    Sliders, eight hourly music beds and nine boss cues are all in.

    Music and sliders

    AugustNEEDS-WORKNowShipped

    90% our estimate

What Reddit request threads ask for

• runs anywhere1,613 weightedWeb first, phones secondShipped
• build craft depth1,489 weightedThe card deckWatching
• difficulty honest1,353 weightedHow difficulty is tunedTunedStudy Hall mercy and ClutchTuned
• atmosphere story1,166 weightedOne night, ten roomsShipped
• co-op multiplayer949 weightedThe ClubPartial
• meta progression520 weightedPeriods, stars and the coin bankTuned
• active skill combat377 weightedCursed Energy and the five things you can doTuned
• short runs185 weightedPeriods, stars and the coin bankTuned
• controller support175 weightedControlsShipped
• character variety104 weightedThe ClubPartial
• boss encounter design83 weightedBosses and the held bellShipped
• meaningful choice62 weightedCursed Energy and the five things you can doTunedThe card deckWatching
• no monetization54 weightedThe store rulesWatching
• no grind52 weightedPeriods, stars and the coin bankTuned
• hand crafted content25 weightedOne night, ten roomsShipped