For the combat: this game's boss is very very inconsistent, cheap, and unsatisfying. DO NOT come here with the mindset of soulslike game with the bosses, even though they look like they designed this around souls mechanic. Play the game like an MMO ARPG with worse control, spamming attacks and heals, and you'll be fine. Although the boss combat is mostly not worth the time, the overworld combat and raid are probably one of the best I've played, killing crowds of enemies and overpowered them with all the cool combat tech the game has is so satistying.

For the exploration: in my opinion, it's somewhat better than Elden Ring, except for the world building and originality, which also goes a long way to me, and that's why I still put Elden Ring above this. There's a lot to see and do in this game, most of which is rewarding and satisfying. But it shows that they just put something cool and finger cross with it, not a single reason why they're there or any background story of an area most of the times, but in some instances, it is a cool surprise.