The linearity of this compared to the first really bugs me. Once you figure out the 'correct' way to bypass a room it just trivializes the whole game. Also so many moments where you can instantly fail the mission, and the less said about the voice acting the better...I think the music is the only superior aspect
I dunno why you think like that. From time to time Pandora tries it hand at non-linearity with some amazing extra paths which are not evident, especially the electrical cable trick to avoid the submarine shootout completely or the whole roof parkour allowing you to skip the 1st part of the street section near the TV station level. The fight with syrians could be done via ghost stealth all the way aside from the elevator segment. Also this is like 1 of 2 gam,es on the whole planet where enemies react to your laser sight and you can use it for the new stealth passages on your way. The 1st could have dreamt about such stuff, even including it's Mission Pack locations.
but this was a good game in my opinion.
i wonder how the first compares to this