I just want to shout out how valuable this devlog is to other developers like myself. I think the second phase works excellent, and I agree with you that it feels like that is when the game really starts. The first phase works great as a hands-off tutorial where all the tools are laid out, and you get a pressure-free environment to learn intuitively how to handle each error without any popup dialogue, or direct instruction. That method carries a lot of weight when it comes to building the atmosphere and setting the stage too. It feels more isolated, and it also gives a little spark of reward each time you connect the dots for which tool to use.
For how objectively simple the overall loop is, the music and the environment itself feel like main characters, and the second phase got my heart rate up for sure. This is where I value the devlog and reading about your process. I know that I have the technical ability to make a game like this, but when it comes to the design choices I am eternal stepping on my own feet and struggling to feel like what I am making is a "game" and not just a series of events.
But in the end, that's what a game is, and it's those key choices along the way that provide meaning to them. It's also very reassuring and ironically - motivating to know that even the good developers out there can struggle with the same things, but you don't see or feel that in the final product.
Thanks for taking the time to write this, it gave me the motivation I needed this morning, 4 years after you wrote it.