I have the 2016 iPad Pro 9.7". Bought the iPad Pro 11" and I won't be sending it back, but I also know what I am buying, and never buy a product for what it MIGHT do, I buy it for what it DOES.
Is the iPP overkill for what I do (gaming, content consumption, notes, etc)? Perhaps. Perhaps I could have gotten away with an iPad Air 4. But, I intend to keep it for 4-5 years, and I feel like the M1 will be performing better in 5 years than the Air would. I also want 4 speakers instead of 2, 120hz refresh rate (especially as more games support this) and Face ID.
Apple doesn't ever intend for you to upgrade every refresh cycle, as these updates are always mild spec bumps (and this is no different). But, coming from the A9X, I suspect I will quite enjoy the updates I have been missing out on. I could get MOST of those updates and save a few hundred by going with the 2020 version, but that will likely get updates for 1 less year, so the Total Cost of Ownership will end up being the same regardless.