Thank you! Very thorough and useful.
You're right that the game should evoke a bit of that "old mysterious game where it's not always clear what to do" vibe, but I find that it's a bit overdone now and it's frustrating players. I'll probably tone it down further going forward.
The opening sequence in particular I thought it was a cool way to "cold open" players into the game's world and lore, but it's just turning out confusing. I will heavily change it or take it out altogether too.
Anyways, thank you again for your time!