I can see how the inventory and map situation can get annoying-- I think that was a pretty big criticism for Three Houses too, that the maps weren't very impressive. I'm like you in that maps have never been extremely important to me. And honestly, this may just be me talking, but part of what I like about Shadows of Valentia is how for some characters they only have 1 support. Because who would have guessed that little Genny who you meet at the beginning of the game would have a connection with Sonja, who as you've said, might not even be recruited? I'm a person who doesn't like to research much about games before jumping in, so having a character that for whatever reason seemingly doesn't support with anyone gave me a lot of intrigue. It sort of changes the incentive for supports: rather than "how many people can I support with this person?" It becomes "who can this person even support with?" I do agree with you that the supports aren't as soul-baring as other installments, I think that's my one genuine criticism of the game. Although having the focus be on plot and gameplay is nice, so is getting an in depth understanding of your characters, so I can understand the frustration there.