OMG, talk about a blast from the past. Good to see you around. You were an inspiration to me when I was just starting out.
But this is most likely the ctrl-n issue that's been around for quite some time. I'm not sure what version of the game it came in on but I think it was DL v1.3. It's ctrl-n itself that causes this. In this case the AI reverts to cakewalk and the game scores as if it's cakewalk but the game actually get's reported as Suicidal (or assumedly whatever difficulty level you selected).
The rise in income is the first indication that this has occured and is simply because you get an income bonus at cakewalk. This happens every so often when you use ctrl-n. You're correct, once in this mode additional ctrl-n's will not change anything.
Basically when using ctrl-n to select a start keep an eye on your initial income. Once it goes up exit and come back and start another game from the main menu because the current game is toast.
Also not totally sure if the screenshot is from DL or DA (or even TA) but I've still never seen both a precursor mine and precursor library in DL although it has been known to happen rarely in DA.
Hopefully, we'll see you around more. Welcome back.
