One and a half playthroughs in (got my hands on a PS5 as I was wrapping up the main campaign, figured I'd just start over and take it slower), I find this to be a massive improvement on the first game. The first game is a very good starting point anchored by two of my favourite characters in games, but it really struggles when it comes to writing about the present day and so many of the characters I would consider dull and forgettable. This game feels like a concentrated effort is made to correct most of the errors of the first game, whether that be mechanical like better melee combat or the massively improved supporting characters. Where most side quests felt like a chore in the first game, I want to do every one I come across here as they've all been far more interesting, more in line with the improved Frozen Wilds DLC but with animation that brings so much more to the table. It's been fun going through it again and doing side quests I had put off until completing parts of the main story as you do get a sense of the world reacting to your choices (such as one side quest character appearing in a main story location later now, and I'm sure more examples like this). They even managed to make me like characters from the first game I found pretty weak, while adding some new ones I really like.
It's not without flaws, while effort is made to correct problems from the first game, one writing one still remains and that's villains. I think this is less of an issue here as this game maps out a pretty tapestry of characters and dynamics between them that makes it interesting compared to Helix's stuff in the first game, but at the same time I wouldn't call any of the antagonists particularly memorable on their own. There are a lot of supporting characters I found myself really loving, but I did find one of the few I thought was memorable from the first game got handed a side quest that was very disappointing for them. There's one plot revelation I waffle on being better left with the ambiguity the narrative gives it or something they should have been more explicit with.
Overall, it's such a rich game to play with a world that feels like there's always something new to explore just around the corner. There's a remarkable sense of wonder that comes with exploring the open world. Even with its massive size, it feels dense. It doesn't have as strong of a main throughline as the first game, but the execution of the story is far better as I find the first falters a lot until you reach Maker's End and then has a not terribly interesting final boss section. I can tell I'm going to be spending a lot more time in this one than I have already and I very much look forward to it. This feels like a far more refined version of much of what was appealing in the first game. Even after I get through the main story again, the amount of side quests to do, gorgeous outfits to upgrade, and beautiful vistas to explore in photo mode will keep me very busy until New Game+ comes around.