I second everything you wrote. The 1-on-1 System was a big draw for me also -- I really, really miss it.
EDIT: OK, I've spent a couple nights with 0.19.1 after putting it down when it first came out. I'm hooked again! I guess I had to get pre-Court out of my system by not playing for a bit -- then coming back as if it's a new game, and it is really. The feel is different, but once I got the feel of it it fits like a glove. I've done a bit of exploring the new content, and I now think it's a very good expansion of the gameplay! There's more to do, of course, and I still would love to have an 'antechamber' where we can be 1-on-1 with a minion and have all the same interactions we had before. The court is cool - very cool once a party starts, and it'll be even better when interactions between minions are more than bare placeholders. So I'm definitely looking forward to what comes next!
Keeperdev, you've got a great game here - thanks for all your time and effort.