Actually, they didn't release XIII-VS.... they released XV :P
Actually, I agree with you, for the most part. (I'm the dude who wrote the article). The past few titles in the series were the victims of those who didn't either A. understand the battle system or B. really have dark areas of their hearts they like to unleash on decent games. I think too many have such a gargantuanly high bar set for this series and anything less than it gets sent packing like a fat kid in Dodgeball.
Trust me, I don't hate the series and plan ...
I agree with you. The lack of a legitimate world map is a drawback, but I think they justified the lack of a "adventuring world map" is the fact they have more areas to explore than just towns and dungeons.