This game is a fantastic. As the description and many reviewers indicated, it isnt an action game primarily. Its story driven and you play it for the atmosphere. The graphics are stunning, and the music is epic.
The exploration sections of the game are kind of just mindless item searches...but I still had fun because i enjoyed flying around. I know some dont dig the controls, but I actually liked them. Its a nice sense of flying and you dont have to leave your finger on the screen thankfully as itd block the great visuals. (Ive never played a game where I thought reaching the boundary of the stage was still beautiful).
On the other hand, I found the action sequences to be intense. They were not particularly tough, but they were exciting. The controls change, but it makes sense cause now you need full control over the crow, and its so fluid (think star fox style, on rails but with free movement).
So bottom line is, the game is awesome. Its a shorter game, but theres a scoring system in the game, so score attacks can flesh out the game, if thats your sort of thing. But more importantly, the game is not meant to be like some fast paced shooter. Its an experience IMO, sorta like playing The Unfinished Swan or The Path, but this is actually more gamey than either of those.