Seriously, reading this will spoil all the V3 new content. Last Spoiler warning.
You have basically set the foundation for a new game+. This is good. It works perfectly fine and is executed perfectly, technically speaking. However, your new game+ has a lot of unexpressed potential, as you probably know already. When I have hit the new game + door, I was expecting at least a slightly different experience, while:
- the game stays essentially exactly the same, with the playing character being named differently and having a new sprite and animations (the new sprite and animations are very cool per se)
- the story has not changed one bit. Xianu sprites and name got pasted in the cutscenes.
- the Secret Keep area got a new design. Honestly, I didn't notice. It must be because I was eager to see what was different in new game+ so I missed the only part that actually changed.
- Xianu gets swapped with Juni in the Seafarer's inn so she has the love story with the npc there. Ok.
- The ending remains the same, with a new statue built in the new game+ for Xianu (very very nice statue, though)
Other people might like v3 as it exactly is and not want it changed one bit. I would personally love if New Game+ was more "+", so here are some possibilities!
- At least a slightly different story. Who is Xianu? Why does she want to kill the dragon? If the reason has to stay quite the same, then maybe narrate it slightly differently. Is Xianu's personality the same as Juni or less reckless, more calm? This can open up a lot of possibilities and would add depht to the story. Xianu and Juni's stories might even intersect at some point in New Game+.
- At least a slightly different level. New challanges (maybe slightly harder?), tiles coloured differently in areas that changed to make me understand we are in a different area
- At least a slightly different ending to reward you for beating the game again and in new game+.