I think my number of failures had afforded me an experience with each of the available upgrades, which also gave me time to understand that the poison upgrades are instrumental as they allow me to sustain damage around corners and behind walls rather than charging up a shot out in the open. For most strategies I had died on the penultimate level, but with full poison I was able to clear it with full health; ironically the penultimate "upgrade" is just a full heal, but it didn't stop me from tree-hugging the cyber-wall and easily melting through the "adds" with poison shots.
The game is a linear Nerve gauntlet blended from twin-stick and bullet hell shooters. Friendly fire is an effortless and exceptional addition that keeps the game feeling balanced on the edge of its own difficulty, but for my taste it could have been taken a step further, perhaps with a flying enemy variant who can only be destroyed from being directly shot down.
The resurgence of this style of game in the mid-2000's was predicated on the sticks de twin being of commensurate quality; the ability to move and shoot smoothly and independently was still somewhat new and Geometry Wars accentuated that intuitive simplicity in its design. The approach here is a very interesting "point-and-click" design, in that I am required to plant myself in order to shoot. I feel as though this concept has some potential along the lines of golf and Breakout, i.e. placing your position and shooting your shot to see how many obstacles you can clear. Ditch the rogue and hit the greens, my friends.