@themasterds: I think this isn't a case of the game not being right as much as it's just not the right type of game for you. I experienced none of the issues you described. I've never had a problem with saving and progress. If your "notoriety" is too low then just do some of those short instances of saving victims - you rack up points really fast and then no one will call the cops on you almost ever. There is also a great way to quickly travel around the city and it's the fast travel hideout system. Unlock CtOS towers and you'll gain access to hideouts. It works perfectly - I set up my waypoint, fast travel to a hideout closest to it and the route is still in place, perfectly seamless and wonderfully executed.

There is melee when you're dealing with enemies. When civilians call the cops you can likewise run up to them and melee to knock the phone out of their hand without receiving negative karma. You want stuff to shoot? There are tons of side missions like gang hideouts that revolve around shooting. Likewise the main campaign has plenty of shootout moments. Why would you want to go around mindlessly killing NPC's? I mean you still can, and when the cops - i.e. guys with swords - show up you can shoot them too.

It just sounds like you want to play an Assassins Creed game and not this one.

The more I play Watch_Dogs the more I really like it and can't quite understand the disappointment. It's a really well made game with a ton of content and fun missions. The main campaign is actually quite varied and you're never doing the same thing for too long.