You asked in the recent update on idea to improve gameplay so, here’s an idea… well, two ideas rolled into one, really.
Firstly, the ability to create “parties” that can go exploring without being tied to the main village/town. They build little fireside camps for the night, scavange for berries, hunt with traps over night.
The second part… having to complete quests that require roaming across the map and doing Stuff™.
Edit (Next Day): couldn’t think of the phrase when i posted yesterday… “Explorer Groups”…