I have no complaints over the "stylistic differences" in NOLF2 over 1, these are just facile nitpickings IMO (The "straight" japanese villainess was used to enhance the chuckload of irony in the Ohio map. Don't you get it?) My issue with NOLF2's characters is that they simply weren't given enough time to articulate themselves. I remember reading a preview of NOLF2 which stated that this time around there won't be any dilly-dally between missions, the cutscenes will be straight to the point. I was dissapointed at that since I actually liked the dilly-dally in the original. It fleshed out the characters more and gave the missions a greater sense of relevance, in addition to adding more humor.
Don't get me wrong though, I thoroughly enjoyed NOLF2 (Even to the point that the next heavily-praised game I played seemed pale in comparison.) The unusual set-piece battles and 60s-stylized architecture alone are worth whatever little deficiencies and bits of frustration I encountered along the way.
And not playing Cate in the expansion should be a good thing, for the sake of fresh perspectives.
"Nothing livens up a robotic hymn of doom more than an amazing pair of jugs." - Brak