I've played LGE for 10 hours, I'm on my third gym match ( I'm taking it slow, leveling up a good deal of pokemon that I switch in and out of)- and have a pretty solid idea of the game and where it is heading.
Overall, the game is much better than I had initially expected. There are flaws in leveling / grinding and the difficulty curve goes wonky in places- the most challenging experience I've had was with a coach trainer's rattata while playing with an under-leveled team, 0_0.
The game is beautiful, the rides are hella cool, it tugs at your nostalgia strings while offering new game play / stories. I've found myself playing with a bunch of random teams and using pokemon that I've never cared for in all my years of playing pokemon, which has been refreshing (weepinbell's animation is so fuggn cute).
Honestly, the game is getting a much worse rap than it deserves (it is no where near as hands on/ handholdy as the previous recent titles, offering simple 'help' options for those who need extra info on basics- rather than beating it into us via unnecessary cut scenes or gameplay). That being said, the difficulty (or lack thereof straight forward difficulty in battling) is a serious strike against the game. I can see how one could blow right through the game with a developed primary team (why is eevee a monster?) and after a while, catching pokemon over and over again to turn into candies or grind lower level pokemon becomes a minor chore, as addictive as a chore it might feel- it still is not as great or good even as it could have been had they integrated wild battles into the game with the Lets Go mechanics.
I haven't been using candies, usually have eevee sitting out of my team unless I'm playing with my core team and, for once, appreciate exp share.
I know a lot of y'all will never give this series a chance, but sincerely, it's been a really nice trip back to kanto.

Pic unrelated