I really like this game, the writing is the best in the Mario series, I laughed a lot while playing, and generally felt engrossed by everything that was happening onscreen. I found the gameplay pretty fun for the most part as well, the overworld bits are my favorite, letting you explore gorgeous areas in a very natural fashion. The issues only start to arise when we look at the combat, it feels like Nintendo thought they had the next evolution in RPG gameplay and tried to shove it in your face as much as possible. Now, I actually liked these fights for the majority of the game, but around 75% of the way through I grew a bit weary, with the limited attack options and the near identical tactics of the enemies I stopped finding them engaging. I find the boss fights to be great variations upon the combat formula though, and they kept me invested in the gameplay style. I think the experience here is the important aspect for me, it may not be an incredible game, but I absolutely adore it as an experience, maybe just avoid the combat as much as you can. Also, that OST is magnificent.