Macau was a nice experience, you can really feel the portuguese influence in the city, the sidewalks, architecture, even the railings in the hiking trail looked the same as in Azores; HK never felt "english" to me, tbf I didn't spend much time there.
But yes, it can be bleak at times. Much like Vegas, there is a very visible seedy, dark underside to the hypercapitalist economy. The city is very, very overpopulated and housing regulation is minute, manisfested in very tight, HK-like shoebox apartments and cramped alleys. That being said, the average people I talked to didn't seem too bothered, although the younger they got the more jaded they were.
Overall I really enjoyed it, I'm not much of a gambler so I never went to the hedonistic, rich, casino/golf/caviar establishments of the city, but for me who grew up in a portuguese household it was a cool experience to see the two cultures mash in unexpected ways, especially cuisine. The macau francesinha was one of the weirdest experiences I had lol.
Threw a peanut in the air to try to catch it in my mouth. Ended up getting jammed in my nose and my parents had to rush me to the clinic to take it out with tweezers. Fun day.