Got my hands on an early copy despite the game not launching until the 22nd here. The combat is very solid. Everyone has very basic combos, then all of a sudden you get to Dante who has a ridiculous amount of combos you could pull off. Can't comment on the online as it won't accept my online pass yet. I'm guessing some might know but the character combo training and character challenges are separate. There's a lot of content here, but unlike smash which has more fun unrelated modes like target practice, the modes all here seem to be purely to make you a more competent fighter. Really seems like it's trying to be more like a traditional fighter than a brawler.
My problem with the balance isn't with the supers at all, it's with some of the characters movesets in general. Some characters like Dan just don't seem to be able to stand a chance against mobile characters like Dante or Raiden in 1v1 scenarios due to how slow, predictable and limited his attacks and mixups are. Big Daddy tries to overcome this with the super armor on his square attacks. Though I'll admit Dan would be great for 2v2, so perhaps that's what they were aiming for.
The unlockables range from great to, pointless. Titles are unlocked via online tournaments only. Would have really liked to have unlockable songs from various IPs but oh well. The character unlocks themselves are nice though. Hopefully the next smash does something similar with characters costumes, and victory poses and music.
I'd expect quite a few critics being unhappy with the gameplay, and claim it suffers from identity crisis. Perhaps Omar has won them over.
