I'm at the end of the game but didn't finish the final "dungeon". I did, however, complete all of the shrines and a decent chunk of the Palace of the Dead. Everyone has Winged Rings, so even the AI can complete most of that dungeon at this point.
I like most of the gameplay improvements/changes, but the in-battle cards ultimately didn't really improve or sour the experience beyond cluttering the battlefield. I'm still absolutely too stupid to understand the intricacies of the story, or maybe I just find it too much like a boring historical drama to retain.