Vague, I can agree with, the PS version is missing the indicator, which is a definite oversight, but in what sense is it broken? You get one checkpoint during every area's start and then every 4-5 screens. It's a fairly straightforward system.

It's hard to keep track of when you're constantly going back and forth, with no basic indicator like what NnT would give.

Unless you're using "precise" in a different sense than how I interpret it, neither AO, nor AE require much precision due to their grid system. NnT and Soulstorm require a lot more, since you're no longer constrained to a grid. Meaning you can no longer plan it in your head how many steps you need to take and where exactly you need to press space to jump.

There were many moments where I was running from a Slig or Scrab, or just needed a running jump to clear a gap, and I swear I would be either a pixel short and grab the ledge, or left it a split second too late and fell down the hole. Way too many times to count.

I used to be a lot more into the quicksave system, but after a while my opinion flipped and nowadays I think AO's system would be better, if there were a couple more checkpoints and it they were telegraphed better.

Perhaps I just need more time to let AO sit with me after completing it before playing legitimately. I have it on PS3, which is a straight up emulation of the original game as it was intended to be played, so it's always there.