I finished it last night and my opinion of it is pretty much the same as gamespots review. As a huge fan of the original I feel really disappointed that it wasn't more of the same, only more refined with tweaks to more technical things (like camera, combat etc.)

I think the game suffers from the desire to change for change sake. I know the original got slated for it's camera (and rightly so) but exploration is... it's got to be used correctly. LoS is about the story, the emotionally tragic journey of Gabriel falling into darkness through no real fault of his own. It was a powerful human story that was really well delivered. Now can you imagine the same story and experience if LoS one had LoS2's exploration? I don't think it would have worked out as well. Perhaps it could have if someone got the balance just right, but my point is, did LoS need the exploration to be great? Nope. instead it had an epic sense of moving forward, of Gabriel getting further and further away from who he was as he went into even further lands.

It wasn't all bad. The combat in my opinion is much, much better. It feels more responsive and fluid and you feel more in control. It's the same with the character's movements, much more fluid and precise, whereas in the original, you'd tap the control stick to the left and Gabriel would go nuts and run across half the screen. So it's the technical areas that they improved on. However those things alone don't make a good game.

There were glimpses of the original game in LoS2, but they were too few and far between. My favourite moments are the Toy Maker and Camilla sections, both parts when Dracula was back in the past. These were genuinely fantastic parts of the game. In general when the game was back in the past (Dracula's castle) it enjoyed its best moments, it felt like the dev team where more confident in what they were doing. But when it was in the modern era, it just felt bland, boring and it felt like work getting through it... which brings me to the major problem with the game, something that should never, ever have been included. Stealth.

The only reason I can think of for the team putting this in the game is that they were told to flesh it out, make it longer somehow. Its not a long game, I finished it on 22 hours and I kept exploring, going back to unlock secrets, tried some challengers, and even left the game running on pause on the odd occasion when I needed to do something. But it wouldn't have been so bad if they never included those guards with grenade launchers. It's almost like the writer and the level designers never ever met and both did separate things without the guidance of the other. Gabriel before he was Dracula single-handedly destroyed the Lords of Shadow, fought legions of beasts and monsters, old Gods and mythical creatures, flying dragons the size of small towns, titans and even defeated Satan and the ultimate bad guy, The Forgotten one. Combine his prowess in combat with the powers of the Lord of Shadow "Dracula" and all the powers he has... nothing can destroy him right? Well, not quite, a large man in a red suit with a big gun CAN kill him apparently... it breaks the story, it breaks the immersion and it needs plucking out of the game. It's a stupid, pointless and ridiculous decision to include this in the game and it single-handedly destroys its own ratings because of it IMO.

Overall LoS2 feels like a lost opportunity. I might have enjoyed it more if I had never played the original, because I suppose I had really high expectations. I'm sad that this game was the end of the Lords of Shadow series because it deserved to go out better.

As for the ending:

The entire game was about Dracula feeling repentant, wanting to free himself from his evil and ultimately reach heaven with his wife and son. His family were sent by God or wherever to bring him back, to put an end to the evil in the world. So when he finally defeats Satan and Zobek, the last two threats of the world beside himself, Alucard asks him "what's next?" He smiles wickedly and basically says "who knows" and walks off. So what about his feud with God who has pretty much punished him at every opportunity for doing his work? What about reuniting with his family? What about ending himself like he wanted to do all throughout the game? Nothing is mentioned, instead it's left vague and open despite the fact we know Mercurysteam isn't going to be doing another Lords of Shadow. It was a big disappointment that we never got to see Gabriel again, released from his thousand year long torture and punishment from no fault of his own. The ending of the first game was perfect, this just felt like a shallow slap in the face. If they come out with ending DLC then they can kiss my ***

I'm not quite sure I follow what you're saying. There are many parts of the map you can't reach until later on in the game when you have the ability to do so. Every secret in the game can be reached when you have all abilities later on. You're not meant to get everything one of them as soon as you can see them.