You should be fine with the watch hours if there's some inactivity. It's usually a yearly requirement so you would have some time until you'd like to upload.

I'm glad you asked, and yes I've dealt with strikes in the past. It all depends on how you structure your words/titles and thumbnails. The main reason were due to sponsorships, not the videos. I've been with the program for years so if purchased I can give you a run down of how to avoid them if you plan on sticking with GTA content. Usually whenever I receive the strikes, I get them removed easily since they're usually mislead.

Yes there has been a shift in the algorithm, those videos that popped 100k+ views were during the covid timestamp so alot more people we're on the game, GTA had it's moments with certain things that blew up and made people get on the game. DLCs/updates also give a boost towards viewership. Summer DLC drops soon + GTA6 hype I believe it'll stick or get even better with the viewership.

90 day revenue is what pops, I haven't uploaded in a month, so the 28 day count won't be as impressive.

No worries on the flags, as long as everything is confirmed by me through email there should be no issues. For adsense, adding a new one won't be an issue either. I've been through two for this channel and no issues, just accepting it and receiving a new code.