The only exception is that the new system still has you pick a handful of combat specializations.
Here are some screenshots of one of my builds on test. This is at level 160 on live, which translates to 103 in update 249.
The way levels and skills are set up in 249, it is easier to get yourself to the current “5 sheets and you can do everything” that we pretty much all have. That’s great for improving the NPE. Then, after that, it gets increasingly harder to get more skill points, which is just about convenience. This becomes and endgame goal to grind toward, with the end goal being having a single super sheet to rule them all, the ultimate QoL achievement.
Summary of the 249 skill system from a game design perspective:
lvl 1-50 is vertical progression to be able to do anything.
lvl 51-190 is horizontal progression to improve QoL convenience.
Cubits is a different story, but I’d like to not think about that ever again.