Do I think Nukitashi 2 is good? Definitely. Do I think it's really good? Yes, potentially a top 10 VN. Do I think it's better than the original? Not quite, but I can absolutely see the hype though.

When NUKITASHI 2 is at It's best I would say definitely has a case of being better than the original in certain aspects.

The main positive I would give of Nukitashi 2 over 1 is that the comedy as a whole is somehow even funnier. Since there's a lot more slice of life, they just focus more on the jokes and they are even more over the top with more specific unique memorable moments than even the original which i already thought was really funny.

Pretty much anything related to NLNS (characters AND the routes) were consistently great for me. To me these characters and their interactions are the life blood and why I love the original so much. The personalities are as great as ever and a few even get more development than I expected.

One unique thing about NUKITASHI 2 is that it actually covered LGBT themes, all four letters, in a surprisingly kind of nuanced way, actually delving into the psychology of said characters, as opposed to just being lazy representation or Weeb pandering fetishism. The main issue that makes it just kind of nuanced is that all the deep dives into their personalities eventually devolves into eroge fan service. Still, it's the most that I got personally invested into fictional LGBT characters which is saying a lot.

I think the main thing people are hyped for is the main sequel portion. It's a kind of weird parallel world Isekai similar to Higurashi Rei, Steins Gate, ReZero, etc. This parallel world isekai takes place after the true route of NUKITASHI 1, with the possibility (so many potential alternate timelines now) that Junnosuke did NOT get with Fumino. I wasn't a fan of this Isekai being a bad excuse to almost overwrite the true end of the original. Many times throughout this route I just thought it was just a forced way to give the "Big Three" a reason to have routes. This sequel route isn't all bad though. In fact I would say "objectively" It's actually quite solid, having good buildup, serious themes, good comedy and fight scenes. I just think some of the enjoyment was brought down by the premise in how it relates to the first game as I just talked about.

Speaking of the big 3, I'm guessing another reason why people hype the sequel because they actually get routes. While I wasn't a fan of the Isekai premise, I do at least commend the effort of Junnosuke actually having camaraderie and interactions with these three in the sequel route so the big 3 routes could at least make sense.

Sadly, I was disappointed in the big three and their routes. Rei already had her backstory in the original so there's only so much they could do with her in the sequel. That said, Her route was certainly the best of the 3, with some very solid moments, but kinda felt like it won by default. Touka got a little more backstory and depth but they also added a few more comedy gimmicks to her which I thought were hit or miss, and I was kinda disappointed in how they developed her. I never liked Ikuko and outside of learning her backstory her and her route did not make me like her more. In fact My feelings on Ikuko are even more mixed after her route.

To go on a positive note, I will say that Junnosuke is at his absolute best in NUKITASHI 2. Since every timeline is after he gets major development he gets to have great influence in the main theme of "understanding", and can switch off between the humorous man and the straight man pretty well, and in general is much less of a douchebag than in the original.

But I also REALLY liked all the after story routes related to the NLNS girls. They were all really hilarious and/or wholesome and were easily the highlight of the VN for me. I also quite liked Asane's (unlockable) route since she's hilarious, probably my favorite little sister character in VNs now.

Overall I would say I still quite like NUKITASHI 2, but it has a bunch of inconsistent flaws that make me not like this much as the original. That said, I'd say it's definitely worth reading, especially if you like the comedy, want to see an alternate version on the original NUKITASHI's plot, want to see fandisc style after stories for the original 4 heroines, and/or you want to see routes for Touka, Rei, Ikuko, and/or Asane.

I would grade NUKITASHI 2 a 9/10, because it had wholesome and unique storytelling themes, fun action whenever it showed up, but most importantly might actually be the funniest visual novel I've read to date.

Especially Misaki, who might now be THE funniest character in visual novels for me, almost any time she was on screen I was guaranteed to be dying laughing.

Speaking of, Character Ranking:

Misaki >> Hinami > Asane > Fumino > Nanase >> Rei > Touka >> Ikuko

PS

I had the privilege of doing a full PAID software QA run of NUKITASHI 2. Heavily grateful I got to do it at least once for an official VN release, especially for the sequel to one of my top three favorite visual novels of all time.