When I first played the first version of the demo in the previous feedback quest, at first I thought the game was only based on exploration, as you'd get to battle muuuch later. Then I tried an updated version where there was two modes, exploration and battle, and honestly, separating both didn't really convince me. But now, you've found the right balance, well done! It's much faster to get to the first battles as you don't get so side-tracked.
Just as previosuly, I love the art, sound, atmosphere (or atmosfear?) and the story just want to make you know more, what happened to the humans, etc. Oh also playing fully with a controller is absolutely great as far as I'm concerned!
That being said, as mentioned below, maybe introducing combat earlier, in a more basic version, would be ideal, so the shift doesn't feel so sudden. But well, who am I to talk when I have turn-based battles ONLY for the main antagonist in Nobody's Quest xD.
Anyways, great job as always!