Age of Decadence Released

[Vault Dweller]

I didn't even want to go to any temples, I wanted more city struggles and politics.

I'll take it as a compliment.

 

[Commissar Draco]

Well game would be more fun for us if it was done in VI century Rome about to be sacked for third time by Goths/Imperial Army but would be more niche and harder to sell too. Even such supposed bunch as turn based RPGs players needs their Ancient Gods and Prophecy nonsense... and I guess putting Snake People Cult alla Thulsa Doom as final Bosses would be not acceptable in today climate so we ended up with which is at least very Codexian.

 

[Shadenuat]

I'll take it as a compliment.

I'm not saying it's boring (although I find guild quest lines a lot more interesting and last temple a bit of a sudden plot retardation and classic RPG degradation into a finishing line), I just find it forced.

I think game should have spread out a bit all these secret Glow/Mariposa Base locations between classes, with God-Temple and fucking up with reality left to dumbfuck (or just magocracy enjoying) Loremasters.

I.e. ideally every "class" should have his own "finishing location"; with other classes maybe reusing it occasionally for a mini-quest or doing something different with it (where Loremaster would speak with Cthulhu in temple, Praetor would get a bomb from there to fuck up some Lord or part for a ship or whatever).

 

[Perkel]

I'm not saying it's boring (although I find guild quest lines a lot more interesting and last temple a bit of a sudden plot retardation and classic RPG degradation into a finishing line), I just find it forced.

I think game should have spread out a bit all these secret Glow/Mariposa Base locations between classes, with God-Temple and fucking up with reality left to dumbfuck (or just magocracy enjoying) Loremasters.

I.e. ideally every "class" should have his own "finishing location"; with other classes maybe reusing it occasionally for a mini-quest or doing something different with it (where Loremaster would speak with Cthulhu in temple, Praetor would get a bomb from there to fuck up some Lord or part for a ship or whatever).

Didn't vince said that originally there would be way more locations etc but due to hope and dreams crushed via reality they cut parts of the game to fit into this century.

 

[anus_pounder]

I think that ultimately the lesson to be learned here is that AoD was rushed out too early.

 

[Vault Dweller]

Didn't vince said that originally there would be way more locations etc but due to hope and dreams crushed via reality they cut parts of the game to fit into this century.

No. In fact, the original design had 20 locations, not 22. The temple was meant to be empty and abandoned from day one.

 

[Volrath]

It's not the default ending though. It's something you choose and it doesn't make you a chosen one (it makes you a moron). You don't get what you want, you repeat the Magi's mistake, only this time there is nobody left to oppose the 'god'.

What? Why?

Spoiler

I brought Antides as a lord. He ends up restoring his house towards former glory and becomes emperor of the fucking world. So what if we're puppets to a puppetmaster? In my view the situation is much better now than before.

 

[Vault Dweller]

Depends on the point of view, I suppose. Antidas does become the emperor but he isn't the emperor material. He is a puppet who can be replaced on a whim. In fact, Balzaar wants to bring order and stability, but Agathoth finds it boring.

“Balzaar wishes to put a world of chaos into order, serried ranks of slaves toiling at ziggurats, working together for the first time since your kind crawled out of primordial mud, like the gears in an intricate machine. No more wars, no more waste, just the stagnant harmony of obedience. "

In other words, under Agathoth the situation won't remain "much better now than before" for long.

 

[Esquilax]

That's like your opinion man. A huge, orderly empire instead of riviling city states, even with the Cthulhu puppeteering everything might be better than the state game began in.
Cthulhu himself doesn't even strike that much terror in his encounter, he is more comical in a sense ("I SLEPT TOO LONG!!!!! nooO!)

I don't think that Agathoth was necessarily meant to be terrifying. If anything, he is something of a Prometheus-type trickster god; he disobeyed the tyrannical Balzaar and a war ensued between his allies and Balzaar's, using humankind (the Empire and the Qantari) as proxies in their struggle. He even has something of a sense of humor as well, and in his rule, unlike Balzaar's stagnant order, he doesn't mind a little bit of chaos. On the other hand, Balzaar was of course meant to be pants-shittingly terrifying, which I think the game succeeded at.

That being said, I do agree that the end content was lacking, the endings too bare-bones (I would have loved to hear about what happened to the various locations I visited throughout the game), and the game loses steam (i.e. the same level of detail and player options) once you head to Ganezzar.

 

[Darth Roxor]

People complain about the final temple being underwhelming and empty, but it's not like the stuff leading to it is much better in the first place.

So you have two choices to get to it:

1. Go through a completely linear scorpion genocide simulator or activate some shit to just walk above it.
2. Go through a completely linear mech genocide simulator or ask a dude for some shit to just walk through it.

dis is compelling

 

[Jaedar]

People complain about the final temple being underwhelming and empty, but it's not like the stuff leading to it is much better in the first place.

So you have two choices to get to it:

1. Go through a completely linear scorpion genocide simulator or activate some shit to just walk above it.
2. Go through a completely linear mech genocide simulator or ask a dude for some shit to just walk through it.

dis is compelling

There is one more option: activate the teleporter at the top of Zamedi.

 

[Vault Dweller]

People complain about the final temple being underwhelming and empty, but it's not like the stuff leading to it is much better in the first place.

So you have two choices to get to it:

1. Go through a completely linear scorpion genocide simulator or activate some shit to just walk above it.
2. Go through a completely linear mech genocide simulator or ask a dude for some shit to just walk through it.

dis is compelling

Can't wait to read the review.

 

[Darth Roxor]

There is one more option: activate the teleporter at the top of Zamedi.

yes well lorecrafting

 

[Mozg]

There is one more option: activate the teleporter at the top of Zamedi.

What? How you do dis

 

[Shadenuat]

In other words, under Agathoth the situation won't remain "much better now than before" for long.

So he's chaotic as humanity is and peace would maybe last for a while - just like irl. I don't see anything extremely negative about the choice.

yes well lorecrafting

Really, rad scorpions are way less dumb imo than mystical lasers lowering your maximum HP forever. Like you already have a lot in most builds ffs.

 

[Jaedar]

What? How you do dis

I think lore+int=19 and having read stuff in Merus library about how to hack computers.

yes well lorecrafting

Doesn't need a single point of crafting actually.

 

[likaq]

Can't wait to read the review.

I have infiltrated Roxor's head and liberated 3 last sentences:

This is literally the worst crpg I’ve played to date. That’s right, I even had more fun with Pillars Of Eternity - at least it was a fun romp, as opposed to this lifeless, uninspired husk. Disappointment, thy name is Age of Decadence.

 

[a cut of domestic sheep prime]

So you have two choices to get to it:

1. Go through a completely linear scorpion genocide simulator or activate some shit to just walk above it.
2. Go through a completely linear mech genocide simulator or ask a dude for some shit to just walk through it.

dis is compelling

You would prefer a large, pointless maze filled with trash mobs like in Baldur's Gate et al?

Also, I haven't been through the scorpion area, but the mech area isn't linear. You can ignore the spear or you can go get it and open up other options. You also have a choice of how many lasers you go through.

Granted, there is only one way to get to the temple through there though, but that only makes sense as why would there be two ways to the same location? And wouldn't that still be linear? Reminds me of the Vermire map in Mass Effect 1 that had false branches that gave the player the brief illusion of choice before returning them to the same path. AoD's non-linearity in getting to the final area(s) is more about the choice in which gateway to the final area to use and not multiple paths in those gateways themselves.

As I understand it, the ways to the end area are as follows:

Spoiler

the hell gate - either go to the temple or give the guy the spear and ignore the temple, having the guy perform the ritual on you instead.
the river
Zamedi

Seems pretty non-linear to me on the whole, if not in each map specifically.

 

[anus_pounder]

Speaking of the Agathoth endings - ending spoilers obviously

Spoiler

Its flat out stated he improves you so that you can rat-diplomacy your choice of leader into bending their knees to him without having to go through skill check hassle. Then what happens? Does Agathoth 'augment' the chosen leader as well or are you just taking them to him to bend their knees? I ask, since all the endings seem to imply you're a superior...creature? to the leader. You don't have the legitimacy in the eyes of the world to become the leader yourself, but at 'worst' (Paullus, House Aurelian), you're a highly trusted advisor that is shown special and unique respect, and at best you're either straight up the power-behind-the-throne (Antidas) or the real day-to-day decision maker (Meru). I ask since the endings imply some 'divine' assistance. Meru shits out plagues, Antidas and Galius become tacticool geniuses and Paullus rolls a 20 on diplomacy checks with the lesser nobles earning him the legitimacy as a dictator. If they are 'augmented', then why are you still hanging around? Why not just get rid of you and pass orders on to the chosen leader yourself?

On a side note, am I the only one happy with the non-god endings?

Spoiler

Just got the consul ending in the House Aurelian path. The ending implies thats already a sweet deal. I don't see why my intelligent, charistmatic, persuasive, eloquent, streetsmart rat-diplomat of a character wouldn't have a chance, hypothetically speaking, of earning the ranks mentioned as being higher than Consul.

 

[AwesomeButton]

2. Go through a completely linear mech genocide simulator or ask a dude for some shit to just walk through it.

A what-genocide? My hardcore 10 dodge mercenary went through the mechs like a blue steel gladius through butter. Didn't even break a sweat, they were falling with 4-5 hits

 

[Vault Dweller]

Speaking of the Agathoth endings - ending spoilers obviously

Spoiler

Its flat out stated he improves you so that you can rat-diplomacy your choice of leader into bending their knees to him without having to go through skill check hassle. Then what happens? Does Agathoth 'augment' the chosen leader as well or are you just taking them to him to bend their knees? I ask, since all the endings seem to imply you're a superior...creature? to the leader. You don't have the legitimacy in the eyes of the world to become the leader yourself, but at 'worst' (Paullus, House Aurelian), you're a highly trusted advisor that is shown special and unique respect, and at best you're either straight up the power-behind-the-throne (Antidas) or the real day-to-day decision maker (Meru). I ask since the endings imply some 'divine' assistance. Meru shits out plagues, Antidas and Galius become tacticool geniuses and Paullus rolls a 20 on diplomacy checks with the lesser nobles earning him the legitimacy as a dictator. If they are 'augmented', then why are you still hanging around? Why not just get rid of you and pass orders on to the chosen leader yourself?

They are not. Kill Meru-Balzaar, take his place and the ending will show you how it works.

 

[Shadenuat]

Lol The Jew quest line is the best.
Don't know if I want to start others since that one just shits on every character including my first assasin-bro.
Expected from a salesman I guess.

I think playing Jesus was even too over the top, just how much more salty a writer can be to religion and people beliefs?

And then

Spoiler

merchant becomes pope and gets all the jewgold

 

[Cassidy]

I think that ultimately the lesson to be learned here is that AoD was rushed out too early.

Should it have waited until every micro-issue is solved in a Friday of 2030?

 

[Darth Roxor]

Doesn't need a single point of crafting actually.

I think lore+int=19

You would prefer a large, pointless maze filled with trash mobs like in Baldur's Gate et al?

no i would prefer something well-designed

but its okay you wouldnt understand

 

[Daedalos]

So I finished my 1st playthrough now as House Daratan and started a second as the Imperial Guard.

Overall this is a pretty fine game.

The character creation system is very well thought-out

The combat is complex enough to warrant careful considerations when engaging also with uses of poisons and other tools too.
The non-combat route was also seems rewarding in terms of lore, persuation, streetwise etc.

I found the story okayish-to-good. This being the fact that I'm not terrible crazy for fantasy/post-apoc setting in this post-roman age. I'm not sure how terribly original I feel about the story, but it feels carefully written and it shows much love from the devs.
The writing is very good, and there's quite a big deal of exposition in the game, though I didn't read through all of it. Most of it is fitting and well-worth a read-through.

Something I didn't like, was the graphics, art design and stilted animations (especially combat animations), that make the game look like a kind of B grade title from the early 2000's. Obviously I didn't expect CRYSIS 5 graphics, but regardless, it IS something you notice and drag down the game for me at least in terms of presentation.

The camera work, while free, kind of make me wish it was locked camera in 2d isometric, instead of 3d.

The sub-plots and quests are pretty fun and there's a good deal of C&C to be had from the different approaches.

The music and sound effects aren't terribly inspiring either. It's not bad, but not exactly something great either.