Well, I've always found the references in SH2 kinda useless background story since you could pretty much guess wth piramide head was all about a few encounters in. I also remember that there was a secret ending where you could resurrect his wife with some gem in a island and, if I'm not mistaken, there was something cult-y about it. (But) It all felt more like a "hey there was a previous game ya know?" wink than something proper.
Yeah, we kinda end up agreeing to disagree on most things but hey t'was a neat discussion nonetheless, even if mighty bitchy.
Btw dunno if I missed it but I really don't wanna read that wall of text all over again
which platform you played it? Cause it worked like a charm on my PSP so no lag whatsoever. Oh, and if you like subtlety then Homecoming is not for you -- it even has a few SAW-like moments.