Yeah, a few things here.
First, some of the clone Browns are more interesting than the pre-retooled MX Browns.
Many people find the OUTEMU Browns to be more tactile. I found Kailh Browns to offer that extra bit of tactility, that makes them feel more substantial. However, the ones I demoed must have been worn-in, because they were smoother and nicer to operate than the fresh Kailh Browns I tried in hotswap - they were grittier and heavier than I would have liked. The Kailh Browns I demoed in-store were mounted in a low-profile alum "gaming" keyboard, and my hotswap was a similar, but not identical setup. I think the keyboard type and break-in makes a difference with those.
As for Browns being dependent on keyboard construction, that's probably true. The earliest Browns used softer plates, half-plates, or went plateless. Now they are jammed into aluminium and even steel plates in tight and strict set-ups. Some people who used Vints say that the modern mounting style of Cherry Browns is just harsher than in the past.
Vint Browns are said to be both smoother, and slightly more tactile than any modern MX Browns. I guess maybe they were closer to Zeal V1? I guess with the OxBloods, maybe we'll find out.
Yeah, mount style seems to be significant. And if the OxBloods work out, someone will have to throw them into a J80 / A06, so we can get a more throwback type setup.
A switch that may succeed at being a 'better Brown' is the Everglide Jade. It uses the Rara stem, which is a shaved-down T1 to have tactility at the intensity of MX Clear instead of T1. It is further put in a linear housing, so it's not getting T1-leaf tactility. It's like a Brown with a sharper, more pronounced bump, and is smoother. Once lubed, it sounds and feels great, offering just enough tactility, a little more satisfying than MX Brown.
The only problem is that it wobbles a bit. So you might have to film them. The next generations of switches using the Rara stem may improve upon this.