I wonder if this is at all related to any of the short stories that came out of Visions.

It's good, has all the elements of previous GITS series with a new addition. Don't expect it to change your life though.

2045 is later in the timeline. IMO she does look younger because of character design changes.

Might be because the character designer changed from the original series. I'd been a fan of Ilya's work before he got the job so I'm a little biased here.
anilist.co/staff/133092...

Was SAC_2045 bad?
anilist.co/anime/106154...

I would have loved to hear this anime get pitched.

I’ve been waiting for more of this for so long 🥲

I've been meaning to get into that franchise, starting with the books.

Is there anything in particular that made the game stand out to you?

For real, teared up a little reading.