[@Kymera] I picked Litten in Sun (I have to keep the tradition of starting with my favorite Element (Fire) and my usual starter type, which has always been Fire). 

I disliked the fact that it's final form was bipedal. There has been no Fire Starter that hasn't been bipedal to some degree (Typhlosion). I wish they would change this up. I would have loved another Fire/Dark type that was a cat that I could have beside some of my favorite Pokemon (Houndoom and Ninetales). It looks cartoonish, but I understand they wanted a wrestler that cemented the idea of the Fighting-type (regulated martial arts) and Dark-type (wrestling/ninja/underhanded tactics). The Psuedo circus theme was interesting, at least. I don't think he's a bad Pokemon, I just wish they didn't go in the same direction as they always have.

I liked the idea of the Challenges. It wasn't a building that was just an in-and-out thing and then you have a badge. The puzzles were getting stale (easy) and I liked that the challenges were more interactive. I'm not too strict on tradition (outside of my "needing to pick the fire starter"). I don't think they should do it again. I can appreciate it being a unique aspect of Alola. But I liked the division of Captains and Kahunas. It was a nice change and a step back from the otherwise useless badges they would give you. The "Route Kahunas" were nice little side quest as well.

I agree with the map. Each island seemed pretty big at first, but once you got through each island, you can see how small they are. The only reason they took so long to traverse was the frequency of wild encounters and the number of trainers on each route. The graphics were nice, but you're right, it was all very guided as most Pokemon games are. (A reason I wanted to make this very open in the first place)

I thought Team Skull was a unique take on the Teams of the Pokemon Universe. They weren't the real threat, they were a distraction for Lusamine to reach an end she desired to reach. I don't think they've captured the insanity of Team Leaders as well as they did in this game (if only because of the character graphics and what they could do with it). However, if they re-make Diamond/Pearl, we'd get some good crazy from Cyrus and Team Galactic. 

Additionally, I thought the post-game was light, but I understand that there was so much that went into creating this world that they added what they needed to. Though I'm not a big fan of Battle places (Tree, Frontier, etc.) I generally enjoy Battle Royals. 

Poke Pelago and Festival Plaza are interesting. EV training is much easier (after having to research how to do it). Growing Berries seems much easier and stream-lined, which I appreciate (just getting there takes some work, which I'm not opposed to). I don't care much for the Festival Plaza, but I appreciate that it's there. The little mission aspect is cute and relatively fun. I just wish you could create/develop your own shops instead of having to hunt for them and it being entirely random.

Overall, I believe they did a great job. I don't miss the 3D (never used it, anyway) or the traditional structure of things. But, like any franchise, they'll learn from this and add things that are better than what they have and enhance things that are already great. Nothing's going to ever be perfect, so I just appreciate what they've added to this generation.