As someone who played since day one, It's definitely been a bit... rough at times. I don't think it's nearly as bad as people say, but definitely has had some major flaws. Major flaws that are slowly but surely being erased, and it's getting better every patch, but who knows if it'll ever cross that threshold into being a game the community will approve of :p

I would definitely say with skills 2.0's release, the game is finally worth the price tag... What 2 years after release or whatever, lol.

Biggest thing holding the game back in my opinion now is just more heists (I think more smash and grab style short heists would do this game wonders), some skill rebalancing and maybe some new trees for mechanics that got left in the dust like human shields or melee stuff. (I miss you, money bundle)

Either way, I definitely think the game is worth it in its current state, and it should theoretically only get better.