The devs are currently massively against unit icons from what I gather, which I can see the pros and cons for. They want to have the player view a massive battle from a high up vantage and see the individual mass of armies colliding instead of watching dots flicker out of existence. However I will admit it it horrendous trying to even differentiate between your own units let alone make an accurate assessment of an enemies composition. Personally I think the minimap should show where higher concentrations of units are located and where the dreadnoughts are sitting. Maybe with the meta unit mechanic in play we could have icons symbolising the meta units, i.e. Seige dreadnoughts have a seige icons etc. That way we could distinguish between where our defensive and offensive forces are sitting and adjust accordingly. This idea might require a few more dreadnoughts with unique traits and a few more types of base defenses but I'd love to hear thoughts? 

Also there must be an easier way to place down metal extractors it's a tiresome chore placing them all down, might want to consider the way PA handles lots of them, could make things easier for the player?

Thanks for the response guys!

I certainly understand some players might have an aesthetic reason for not wanting to have an overlay or unit icon. As someone else has mentioned, perhaps offering the best of both worlds, a toggle button or setting in the options menu to change between overlays/icons to distinguish units, and none to provide the epic visuals. That way everybody wins, giving the players the tools and customisation to play the game as they see fit is always good. Giving a different colourisation for each unit type could work as well, I look forward to seeing whatever solution you come up with!

I would also suggest the same with the minimap, displaying units on the minimap to allow for better map awareness and coordination. That could be customisable too.