I played through the game but found that no grinding or side quests really mattered till post game. Then it was just boring acquiring of materials to have the assistant build for me.
I have bought and played this game for every major console I’ve ever owned. I’ve probably played this game more than any other RPG and I still can see myself picking it up and playing it again.
Fun game. But definitely a paywall or major time grind for new players to get decks to compete with long time players. Some variants are fun for the cards but many of them are trash.