hello! i appreciate your suggestions - it's rather funny, those are both things i'm addressing with my next project, with the use of the Unity engine and the introduction of a combat system (which can be disabled for those who don't wish to engage in it.)
Sometimes I felt like I wanted a run ability, but otherwise I rather enjoyed the slower pace of walking around. Combat isn't the only way to make "walking back and forth" more active. I could see something like tending plants or interacting with animals along the way, perhaps procedurally generated in a longer game (it might not be worth the coding investment in a 1-2 hour game). When I was in the stage of the game where I was actively looking for hidden items, and planting my seeds, etc, I really didn't notice how much walking about I did.