Okay, so I skimmed the thread but I saw some spoilery territory, so just skipping down.
Been playing this lately, solo because I like to be able to really savor a game before I ruin it / cook it differently / whatever with multiplayer.
I solo'd the first game, and *mostly* enjoyed it, but definitely didn't give a damn about this one, assuming it was going to be a lot more like the first. But in here the worldbuilding is...actually existent, the characterization so far is leagues beyond anything 1 thought of doing, the enemies and environments are blessedly more varied, and it has *an actually engaging antagonist*.
I mean, so far as I can tell he's just a fucking psychopath, but damned if he isn't an amusing one. Much better than Knoxx or Tentatcle-thing or whoever from the first.
Anyway, nothing you don't already know probably. But yay! Always happy to see actually *important* improvements in these sorts of things.