I still haven't finished it. There was a real dull stretch from about Chapter 4-12, but once it finally picked up I've become really into it. The overall writing and dialogue are quite good, for sure.
I don't know, it's been awhile since I played the last games, but the shooting doesn't seem hugely different to me. I would still say overall it's very basic and shallow, though I still have fun with it.
One part, without spoilers, is there's a section of the game where you have the option to kill no one and totally sneak past the enemies without any confrontation at all. I loved that. I was hoping that would be an indication that more sections like as the game went on, but so far there hasn't been.