There's no Dev and balance feedback thread so I will post it here.
As a newer player I very much like the direction game development is heading - constant small to big improvements to actual gameplay are being done very frequently, with focus on how to make the game more interesting and make people actually log.
New ships are coming seemingly out of nowhere - the Gallic heavy transport and 3.6ker were such a pleasant and unexpected gift, so was Civ GB rework etc. etc.