what's the difference between the two? "would seem" is making an assumption; "seems" is also making an assumption. 1 it seems is neutral, flat, matter-of-fact, almost closed to further discussion. 2 it would seem is more multi-dimensional, possibly open to further discussion.

What does would seem mean?

In the first, "it would seem" is using the seventh defined meaning of would (from TFH): would aux.v. Past tense of will. 7. Used to indicate uncertainty: He would seem to be getting better.

Is it correct to say Seems like?

I find this quite slangy. In my world, "seems like" is only used to reflect a similarity to something (using "like" to mean "alike"). If you were shopping for a new computer, you might say "This one seems like the one I looked at yesterday but it's a lot cheaper." This isn't technically incorrect but isn't idiomatic.