I could relate better to characters in games Sakaguchi directed, but I can't really think of a comparison. To me, Nomura is still a designer-turned-director. Besides, am I the only one who likes (at least to a certain extent) his designs? Some characters are stereotyped, sure, but so are characters in a lot of successful anime nowadays. However I have to say that with time his characters tend to look more and more alike. I saw the picture of the grey-haired man from FF XIII and I went "WTF, Silver Haired Man!" before I realized the eye color didn't match.