To answer some of the other questions that were in the original post:

That stock Android menu bar is still always present. It's annoying, but can be very useful in some apps. As for rooting to fix it, the MadCatz website gives step-by-step instructions on how to root the MOJO.

Performance-wise, I've seen improvements in a couple of games. Some see bigger improvements in performance than others. Really depends on the game.

Sideloading on MOJO is just as easy as on Ouya. With Google Play pre-installed, and Amazon Appstore easy to download, finding most well-known apps is not hard at all. Also, more traditional apps could work with it, as the MOJO controller's mouse mode emulates touchscreen controls as if you were using a mouse on a PC. It makes some apps much easier to use than they would be on Ouya.

Overheating has not been an issue so far for me, and I haven't read anything about it being an issue overall.