Thank you!
1 - You absolutely can play this with a different map! In my first draft of the game I assumed people would go out and get a map like the one I was describing - but then I wondered about the accessibility to that kind of map. I could link people to examples, but that might not solve the problem in every area. I also realized: the layout of the map and the nature of the map could heavily influence the style of play, and would marry up to the Oracle Cards in unique ways as well. My final decision was: have the game come with a single map, make notes in the (yet to be written) end of the Guidebook on how to pick a different/real world map, and also leave room for "expansion packs" that use new and different maps with strong themes.
2 - The layout for this version was mostly to decorate things, give it a prototype of the feel I want the final game to have. As such, you're spot on - the graphic design is nominal and uninspired, just enough to get sumbission-ready. :D What I'm considering for the final layout however is this (Please let me know if this sounds good!): The "Childhood Cards" will all have the look and feel of various props - baseball cards, collectible cards, a little instruction fold out for the Junksmith, etc. Whereas the "Adult Cards" will all be generic Business Cards! Then the deck of Oracles will mostly be the same, but with an actual note in the Guidebook that, yeah, they have different backers, but that's just to help telegraph what cards a player has and might play.
As far as I can tell, there's no reason to hide what cards you've got, right?
3 - your observations are perfect - thank you so much, and thanks for brevity, too! We're all trying to reply with good content, but not give each other novels to finish :D