In multiple books I've also read that Ark Royal was also lost due to poor design in addition to her captain panicking. Besides that's, it's also quoted that she was lost due to an insufficient understanding of damage control, which falls under doctrine, which just makes the case worse for the Royal Navy, as if doctrine means abandoning ship rather than giving it your all to save it, your carrier isn't a good as ones from other nations.
I think that slowing the game down and having less control is important to me, as historically, commanders often have less control over what is going on than is perceived.
It certainly causes problems in my opinion that Shokaku costed the same as Soryu. The Shokaku class was much bigger and better protected than the Soryu, and that should have been reflected in cost. In fact, here's a hypothetical scenario: What if Shokaku cost 24 and Zuikaku cost 22? Now suddenly Zuikaku looks much better already.