Thank you for playing and your thoughtful feedback. After the jam I’ll experiment with different fire rates and other ideas I’ve had to thin out the number of opponents on screen when you get hit.
The shield when you respawn is critical for keeping on top of the chaos. No new robots will spawn until you drop your shields, and you are invulnerable until you do. So you can bide your time until it is safe to drop your shields and for the robots to have gathered where you can take many out with a volley of shots, clearing the screen and giving you some breathing space to take on the next wave.