It's not doable because your current location needs to be in the center of the screen in north up mode but can be placed lower in regular mode. Also the non square aspect ratio of the phone screen means that you don't get the same field of view in all four directions.
Yes, this is why I usually set mine to look-forward. A 360 degree north-up view is nice, but seeing more streets ahead of me shows me more possible routes if mine becomes blocked unexpectedly.
I wish "north up" would do the same; I'm sure it's do-able.