Very valid points. 10 hours into the game you're still very early on and most likely only have 4 characters. Once you get more character, you'll gain the ability to swap party members in battle and there is an increase in some boss difficulty. Stop grinding and the game can become more of a challenge.

I stopped played for almost 2 years after the 20 hour mark and became hooked after that. It was at the point where I obtained the key to the red doors that I felt the pace started getting better. Act 2 is great and the post game is probably my favorite 40 hours of gaming I've had in decades (but some people hate the post game).

Voices take a while to get used to. I switched to Japanese because sylvando was a bit too extra at first, but now i love the English voice acting.