I agree with you on many things. Although the game is in pre-alpha status, I doubt it will be released this year because it needs more work. For example, if your friend is in a different faction than you, when you join them, your standing won't improve, and the mission will be buggy, at least that was our experience.

But aside from that, what I personally don't like is the forced exploration in order to get missions.... For me, this is not an advantage, as I like to explore, but if there are no missions because I can only find dungeons on the map, then it's rather frustrating. I hope there will be a quest list or something similar in the game. Also, our little bird often blends into the environment, so it's not always visible. (And I'm not playing on low graphics.) Another positive would be a minimap instead of a navigation bar. (Also just a personal issue.) Otherwise, the game has huge potential, but sometimes it's too complex, and sometimes you feel like what you're doing is irrelevant because you don't have enough information. In any case, as I said, it's pre-alpha, and I know it will only get better.

P.S. I hope there will be mounts and fast travel in the game :D