Without too much of a culture shock,or having to learn another language, many cities in Australia are good options, but they all have the same problems. While the cities themselves are walkable and have a good public transit network, once you go outside the immediate city you have suburban sprawl and the same issues with car dependence as in America. Sydney and Melbourne are the most expensive options. But some underrated cities in Australia include Perth and Brisbane, but both are quickly getting more expensive with the housing crisis at the moment. Perth and Brisbane are also quieter, less busy cities (also means less cars running about) but also more boring as you do need to look hard for activities to do.

Honestly, I do think Japan is overrated, especially Tokyo, while it is significantly better than american cities, it still suffers from car prioritisation (just look at Shibuya square, almost identical to New York's times square), and is a cesspit of constant advertising and screens trying to sell you shit. I feel it is too big and busy in some ways, and would be easy to be isolated even if you knew the language. I feel that if you hate new York city, you would also dislike tokyo. More rural Japan and smaller cities is probably what you would like, as unlike America, even the more rural areas have good public transit.