Haven't played the original but this was very enjoyable. Definitely the best presentation in any visual novel I've seen, with solid characters and a very engaging story beneath it. A lot of it does feel like setup for what's to come in the second part, with characters being introduced and shown off but not really having any part to play just yet.
Unfortunately even without having experienced the original sometimes it's very clear what's added on for a more interesting climax or setup reasons, and at its worst the story shifts its focus from one plot to another instead of being a cohesive whole. Or in one case drags out a lot.
I still don't know if i'll go back to read the original but this definitely made me interested in far side, as there's so many more things to discover and I already considerably like the characters that will be the focus there. I'm also sure that I'll end up seeing some events here in a different light once I have the full scope, so looking forward to it.