Age of Decadence - Preview @ RPG Codex

The RPG Codex published another preview for Age of Decadence this week. Its almost the same as the last one just updated based on the current Beta build.

There’s still a lot to come content-wise, but what’s here is already a pretty deep experience. There’s plenty to do and see, a ton of quests with a ton of ways to solve them. Ultimately, there are some flaws with the second most popular vaporware game in RPG Codex history, and to be honest those flaws are significant. While the writing itself is excellent, and will probably set the bar for the industry in a way similar to how Planescape: Torment did, there is an element of game that’s missing. In some ways it feels like I’m reading a choose-your-own-adventure book rather than playing an RPG. All the parts are there, but they feel rather disjointed and not a cohesive experience.

Perhaps that’s a result of choices and consequences as the central focus, rather than building a strong core system and adding choices and consequences from there. The vision of a variety of viable gameplay styles being effective in a reactive setting was accomplished, but the final product (or final early access product, more appropriately) doesn’t fit together as well as I’d like.

How you end up feeling about this game is going to greatly depend on what you value in your RPG experience. If you’re the type that can’t help but replay Planescape: Torment; the type to slog through the festering pile of … I’ll generously say “mediocrity” that is Alpha Protocol; the type that values choice and consequence and story above all else, then this game will definitely scratch your itch. You should circle Thursday on your calendar and take the day off to play it.

If you’re the type that really values a more cohesive experience and generally doesn’t value storytelling to the point where it will excuse gameplay flaws, you may have a hard time enjoying this game. There’re some elements here that are still pretty good, and Vince tells me that he plans on improving the combat AI and other elements of it before release, which may help in the end. But until you read how it comes out on release by some other intrepid reviewer, it may be wise to just keep waiting for Grimoire.

More information.

"While the writing itself is excellent, and will probably set the bar for the industry in a way similar to how Planescape: Torment did…"

Keep dreaming boy, keep dreaming.

You reply to an in depth review with one liner… care to post your rebuke?

The codex does publish some very good reviews, IMO.

Shame the forums are full of people shouting "faggot" and "retard" at each other.

I certainly don't hope Torment set the bar for writing. I'm not a big fan of needlessly verbose and pretentious stuff.

Originally Posted by DArtagnan
I certainly don't hope Torment set the bar for writing. I'm not a big fan of needlessly verbose and pretentious stuff.

I'm not going to say the writing for Torment was great. I am going to say there's not a lot of good writing in games, period.

Originally Posted by screeg
I'm not going to say the writing for Torment was great. I am going to say there's not a lot of good writing in games, period.

I'd agree with both of those claims

I was quite excited about AoD after playing the demo, but that seems like ages ago. This game is becoming the Duke Nukem Forever of crpgs.

Originally Posted by JDR13
I was quite excited about AoD after playing the demo, but that seems like ages ago. This game is becoming the Duke Nukem Forever of crpgs.

Quite. And while Planescape set the bar, Shadowrun Returns had excellent writing, as I remember. I cannot vouch for Age of Decadence, but I have been waiting on progress for some time--rather play the full release than the pre-release copy.

Never underestimate the future. The door is "Kick"-started open for indie development, and now not only Steam supports it, but Sony and Microsoft.

Imagine Minecraft. 100x over. You only have to slog through a ton of coal to get the diamonds beneath.

Even Zelda had an origin.

The only limits are imagination.

And mainstream publishers, which are rapidly becoming vaporware, due to the outmoded system which now uses Kickstarter and digital distribution to bypass third-party vendors that release WWII Simulators every year.

Lastly, the Codex doesn't have censorship. I simultaneously admire and loath it, for it supports net neutrality, but if you can wade through the trolls, you find a number of good ideas and developers posting on their forums. I prefer to be an observer rather than a participant. "Not my circus, not my monkeys."

Originally Posted by Void000
Lastly, the Codex doesn't have censorship.

It does. When the trolls get really intolerable, they edit their posts and ban them. Then they join up over here, and party hard in the Controversy forum. Some of our finest members are banned Codex trolls.

Wasn't this supposed to get released last month? I mean the full release.

Originally Posted by DArtagnan
I certainly don't hope Torment set the bar for writing. I'm not a big fan of needlessly verbose and pretentious stuff.

PST was the first virtual novel, though we didn't know it at the time

Originally Posted by luj1
Wasn't this supposed to get released last month? I mean the full release.

Yes the game was supposed to get released in March, but it seems the game has been delayed again. I would like to say I'm surprised by this but I'm not.

Me neither. Despite the awful camera and dated graphics, I've enjoyed AoD a good amount. Loved the setting and writing i.e. drowning in absolutely outrageous walls of text .

We haven't announced a release date yet. Our last main obstacle is the third city as cities takes a LOT of work. We started working on it in June and hoped to release before the end of the year. Then we'd have needed 3 months to do the rest.

Unfortunately, for reasons that were not entirely in our control, we weren't able to finish it in the fall. We released a rough beta in Jan, hoped to wrap it up by mid-March, now we're looking at mid-April. We're almost there (with Ganezzar) but not quite there yet.

Once it's done, we'll need 3 months to do the remaining 3 locations, plus a month or so to tweak and polish (balance, difficulty, reputation, etc).

Sounds like 6-12 months to my jaded ears.

I'm curious to check it out upon release, even if it's not really my style

Oh well.

In some ways it feels like I’m reading a choose-your-own-adventure book rather than playing an RPG

Elaborate on the difference please.

Because that's pretty much what a P&P experience is like. You shouldn't attempt to always go against the string of events set up by the DM, but you have plenty of choices.

Originally Posted by Sacred_Path
Elaborate on the difference please.

Because that's pretty much what a P&P experience is like. You shouldn't attempt to always go against the string of events set up by the DM, but you have plenty of choices.

I don't know how your PnP sessions ran, but in mine - the DM didn't present a handful of events or responses that I could choose from. I invented my own - and the DM improvised in response.

It's not exactly a small difference

Also, if the DM tries to force players to act in a specific way or say specific things - he should leave the DM seat immediately and go sit in the corner of shame.

Originally Posted by DArtagnan
I don't know how your PnP sessions ran, but in mine - the DM didn't present a handful of events or responses that I could choose from. I invented my own - and the DM improvised in response.

It's not exactly a small difference

Ok, elaborate on how that is not an RPG within the confinements of digital games - or how many CRPG's have you played where you have unlimited choices?