I never played the first, but I love the second.
Here is a recap of my time with GRAW 2 so far.
I popped in the game as soon as I got home, my internet was down so I couldn't get on XBOX Live. I decided to play single player. As Captain Scott Mitchell, I sat in a jeep being driven by a nerdy private who was marveling over a recently completed mission. As all cut scenes in the game, it was interactive in that you can look anywhere you want, I looked out at the beautiful Mexican Desert. I was blown away by the graphics.
After the cut scene, I was thrown into training, which each section ending with me in someway killing a group of Hispanic rebels. Once training was done, the first mission started. Fighting rebels in the streets using some awesome technology, with squadmates or alone, was awesome. Then I unlocked the sniper, I had some real fun. The graphics are mind boggling only seconded in my game collection to Gears of War. It sounds great too, from the thousands of bullets wizzing past your head to squadmates crying out for help after being shot down by a sniper in need of a medic. Then there is multiplayer. I finally got live working. There are some great modes in multiplayer. From fighting a free for all, to a king of the hill style match, to fighting non-stop for a half hour, multiplayer is great. The levels are huge, and I mean huge, making any Gears of War levels looking so small its sad. With up to 16 people playing at a time, the action never stops. And I've made fast friends and found myself in a clan.
All of this in my first 3 days of playing,