I'm with you. I think the hate is undeserved. Personally, the battle system is what made the game. No way I was about to spend 70 hours on another RPG with random battles that have ridiculous load screens between the world map and battle scene.
My biggest complaint lies with the complainers themselves. Like you said, most of them hate on the gambit system. Problem is, the gambit system is COMPLETELY OPTIONAL. I barely used it. My 3 character main characters only had 3 gambit slots used and they were all filled with attack, attack, attack, except one character had a heal. Ultimately, I had control, not the computer.
(Similar complaints were lodged at MGS4 for being able to play it like a 3rd person shooter. Again, playing that way was optional. Take some G-d-damn control of yourselves, people, and stop being slaves to your lazy desires. Just b/c you're offered a gun or gambit system, doesn't mean you have to use it.)
Like you said the battle system made exploring enemy infested areas a blast instead of an exercise in tedium like 90% of other RPGs.
My Top 5:
Shadow of the Colossus, Metal Gear Solid 3, Shenmue, Skies of Arcadia, Chrono Trigger
My 2 nex-gen systems: PS3 
and Wii 
Prediction Aug '08: We see the PSP2 released fall '09. Graphically, it's basically the same as the current system. UMD drive ditched and replaced by 4-8gb on board flash memory. Other upgrades: 2nd analog nub, touchscreen, blutooth, motion sensor. Design: Flip-style or slider. Size: Think Iphone. Cost: $199. Will be profitable on day 1.
