For Sucker Punch, removing elements is not a failure, but a "sharpening" of the project. With limited time and team, the studio abandoned attempts to implement every idea. The logic is simple: by removing one unnecessary mechanic, you can better develop others. Each element was checked with the question: "Does this allow you to feel like a wandering ronin?" If not, it was removed.
One of the victims was parkour, inspired by The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Nate Fox wanted to give the freedom to climb any rocks, but the system did not fit with the game world, where there are invisible walls and closed zones.
The developers decided that a mechanic leading to frustration was not needed and abandoned it to maintain immersion. The studio believes that removing unnecessary things is not a problem, but an indicator of the right decisions.