I'm getting closer to the end. I take back some of the few criticisms I have voiced (though really, my only real complaint was the overall game length. I was fearing that it might be too short, not giving itself enough breathing room to properly develop itself, but that is not the case).
This game is a masterpiece. The last few hours and play sessions I've had have completely and utterly taken me for a spin. Really driving home the fun journey I've had so far. I spent my whole weekend glued to my TV. Hell, I was stuck playing for 12 hours straight because I genuinely couldn't let go. I love the story and cast so much. The combat is the best, the archetypes bring so much variety. The world, art, lore, presentation. It's all so carefully and lovingly made. Everything comes together so beautifuly especially towards the end where you feel the game's charm at its peak. The game feels like you are playing through a beautifully written fantasy novel.
I was initally worried and anxious that the game would lose steam after a certain point in the story which I won't name here. But nope, shit only gets more real. If you ever feel like "wait.. this is it?" just know that the answer is probably no. And yes, the side-dungeons might be a little lazy and copy-paste, but they do not overstay their welcome nor are they really bad in any way. You can choose to engange with the goons or just blitz to the boss, and looking back, I like that option. It's nitpicking of the highest order at most. For instance in Persona 5, which is my fav Atlus game, I actually hated Mementos. Fuck that place. Yet, it wasn't enough to have an impact on my feelings about the game, same thing here. In contrast, the main dungeons are really great. Especially the one in Brilehaven.
Katsura Hashino, Shigenori Soejima and Shoji Meguro have once again proven to me that they are at the top of this industry. I'm looking forward to finishing it this week. Will probably post a more lengthy post later.
I do however want to add that I also fully understand some in this thread that aren't thinking so favorably of it. Some of you guys mentioned the dialogue and how you skip them, or other design choices. I think it's fully understandable, I have yet see any outlandish complaint, which is cool to see. Just wanted to mention that.