[2019] Thoughts on the Alpha so far

So far the alpha has been both enjoyable and frustrating, but that's what an alpha is for. Here are some things I think are great about the game and some things I hope they change:

PRO'S

1. It's not Pokemon. This is probably the best, as it's a nice shakeup from playing the new generation of PKMN games every year.
2. Music is nice. It's fits well thematically
3. Switch to 2v2 battle system is interesting, and seems like it has the potential for a lot of strategy.
4. Removal of battle RNG is lovely, and I'm happy that it's all been standardized in terms of damage.
5. I love that TemTem evolve in the middle of battle.

NEUTRAL

1. Evolution requirement change (levels gained after acquired, not specific level obtained) is a nice thought, but with evolution level requirements for certain TemTem being at ~30 levels gained I don't feel compelled to stick with someone with a boring kit/theme that long. This also plays into strategy and tactics being a more real part of every battle, as I feel compelled to dump everyone who can't pull their own weight. Really feel like the requirements should be lowered for the vast majority of TemTem that have evolutions that benefit their kit.
2. The Graphics are 'fun', but they lack the fidelity of newer games. I feel like this might limit the creative ability of the artists at some point, but there are probably many ways around this.

CON'S

1. With the stamina system battles take longer than they do in the inspiring game. Because of this and a high amount of TemTem trainers on the routes, each route/cave/dojo has been a literal slog of fighting the same battles over and over again. With longer battles I believe they would do better to reduce the amount of trainers to bring up the pace of the game.
2. Story is incredibly uninteresting thus far. I'm going to chalk this up to alpha, as I'm fairly sure that most of the components are removed so that we can test mechanics more than anything.
3. Capturing TemTem is a chore, as the stamina system provides many opportunities where they knock themselves out, leading to frustrating moments with rarer encounters. How is this going to work if/when legendary TemTem are introduced?
4. Difference in stats on a level by level basis make me feel like power growth isn't all that substantial. This is likely just leftover conditioning from the other game, but I'd like to feel stronger if I put in the time to raise my levels. Although, wild TemTem give so little experience that I likely won't put in the time to do that. This also plays against the idea that I should want to battle and level my team to evolve them.
5. Although it's different from pkmn, I don't feel like it's different enough. This is pretty nitpicky of me, but I was genuinely hoping for something a bit more fresh.
6. No 'home' type item. I really hate having to walk back to town. *NOTE* Found out the smoke bomb does this. Originally thought it was just an item to use to escape from battle
7. Backtracking

THINGS I HOPE TO SEE

1. Wider variety of available TemTem before the first dojo. The entries feel pretty stale here.
2. More story. This is one of the best ways they can distinguish them from the competition at this point (and who knows, it's probably already in the works since this is just the alpha).
3. Since this is a new franchise, I feel like it would be a great idea if Typing was displayed somewhere on the combat screen. Not knowing a TemTem's type until they use a move (and even then it's not clear sometimes) or until you capture them isn't as fun as it was 20 years ago.
4. It's hard to tell what I have selected in the menus and in battle. Perhaps a colored border around the selected icon?

There have been a few examples of newcomers challenging Flagship series in recent years. I'm just hoping this doesn't become another Dauntless/MH fiasco. What are your guys' pros and cons?