It wasn’t clear in the beginning if I had to select a certain tech tree to climb, and if I would need to get an ability in the first tier to get the next, and if this wasn’t the case, if I could save up my shards for the next upgrade.
Turns out: Yes, previous tiers are required, but… you can change you upgrade, free and easily.
More games need to do this. This encourages different styles of gameplay. And it’s less douchey to the gamers.