I don't think we will get it cheaper than other games, at least not here in Switzerland, but that's not such a big deal to me. Fine, I'm glad it's no letdown. Overworld would have been nice, but Baten Kaitos and others have worked good without one, so I don't think that will bother me.
For the fighting, I always went to battle with Lloyd in ToS, so this won't bother me either. It sounds annoying though if you want to fight with other characters.