It's not just the same juice, it's the same mechanics behind it. Cast more magic, gain more powers. Casting spells is easy, and the powers you get are always good for you. So there is no real specialization. Or effort.
Yeah, probably. Dan does a good slice of life story, but his habit of being a such a fan of his own characters really undercuts whatever tension he tries to build when he moves away from slice of life stuff. Like the current arc. I'm much more invested in the EGS: NP right now, because it actually has more tension in it and is thus more interesting.