I don't have opinions on everything you've mentioned but here's what I do have.
Do you value compliance with government regulations, or look at other factors?
This is key, it shows they're taking their legal responsibilities seriously and this tends to indicate they're serious about their idea.
Which parts of the world produce the best coins? The worst?
I tend to find Asian and European based ICOs perform the best, Singapore seems to have a lot of strong ICOs, as do countries like Austria, Germany, Switzerland.
Potential coinwhales, or coinwhale limiting business practices?
It's important as a smaller investor that large investors don't get huge bonuses as well as other benefits, if they receive too large a discount they can wind up selling at a price much lower than you paid and still profit.
Names of investors behind it?
This is important within reason, if there's a notable investor and supporter then that will always help to hype a project. I prefer to look at advisors than investors.
Transparency? Github?
Key - people need to be able to see that things are set up and coded in the way they are said to be, this helps prevent mistakes from being made and also protects investors from scams.
