Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm confused. Did javascript people not use a debugger before VS Code?
I am pretty to the javascript/node world. The debugging situation is pretty pathetic in my view. Most people I know use a ton of logging like we did with C/printf 25 years ago.
One common need that is a sad state of affairs in the Node world is performance tooling. It's available and competent professionals should invest in it once it becomes necessary but is a pain in the ass to setup and run.