The demo is out! I like music in this game and some little minor details like seeing your character as full and not as chibi is kind of nice. Rockruff is cute. Also random trainers finally can spot you when you are close to them, not just when you are only front of them.
I feel game got much easier now since they give you hints which move you should use against your opponent. Don't like that really. Don't really need to study match up anymore and that's my favorite thing in the game..
I agree with pretty much everything you said.
The ambient music is amazing. I really loved it. It's obviously Ukelele based which makes it really funky. The battle music was a bit underwhelming however, compared to the latest games. Still good though.
Seeing the character having more realistic proportions is much much better than the chibi indeed. And with the customization we'll have in the full game it will be great. Although I do think the walking looks a bit exaggerated. I did miss the slow walking that was introduced in XY/ORAS. Now it's only walk/run. Wonder how chaining will work now...
I expected Rockruff to be a normal type despite the name, but it's definitely one of the best looking new pokemon. Pikipek is also cute, but the dragon was meh to me.
Indeed the hints as to what is super effective or not kills the thinking in the game. Although you only get it when you either have caught a pokemon or took a picture of it as far as I know. It mitigates it somewhat... I guess having to learn the type chart from your head is not as important anymore.
One thing I do kind of dislike is the camera angles. I feel like I want to adjust the camera the whole time. Maybe it's something to get used to, but it always seems to be at this weird diagonal angle compared to straight/direct angle of prior games. It does make sense since it's a lot closer to real 3D now.
Riding pokemon is now instant, which is great. You have a separate pokemon for that, which is not part of your normal party.
Z moves are a nice addition. It will add an interesting dynamic to competitive battling.
Since Greninja becomes Ash-Greninja on its own practically, I wonder how Mega evolution will work now...