I personally think the first one was better.  Then again, I'm not that much of a fan of VNs.
But as this second one is mostly just a bunch of side stories - there isn't much of an over-arching story.
The side stories are somewhat interesting, like they show things you don't see in the first game, as well as alternative events.  The gameplay is more minimalistic than the first, which I suppose fits in with the 'more-VNish' way they did things.

Controls are definitely way better in this one though.