Really fun, simple alternate way to play! The timer really adds tension, and I like the little details like the HUD being "desynced" in Special Stages. I can see lots of cool new features coming in the future as modding the game becomes easier and fleshed out! Battle Mode may be great as is, but I'm curious what you could do with it!
Only issue is as of the release version you can still spot the vanilla Rings & Lives icons underneath the new HUD. I can't wait for future updates though!