The Age of Decadence

Whoever looks past the game's rough (and rather outdated) exterior will be rewarded with one of the most unique Role-Playing experiences in recent memory. Despite its long, LONG development cycle, in the end, The Age of Decadence was definitely worth the wait.

The Age of Decadence is a dream game from fans of the purest form of cRPG to others. An very interesting narrative driven title with a superb C&C system in place, a well meditated combat system and a world and inhabitants that keep surprising you at every step.

The Age of Decadence is a hardcore role-play game which leaves the player enjoy full freedom of choice. If you love the genre, buy it.

In Age of Decadence every problem has solutions that fit your character and solutions that do not. Diplomat should talk, warrior shouldn’t, and thief must remain unseen if he wants to live. Only when you know that you’ll get through alive, you can let minor things like sympathy or morality have an influence on your actions. [Issue#203, p.82]

This is a very special roleplaying experience. Technical shortcomings are more than ironed out by well written dialogue, consequences a believable world.

A great RPG is not afraid of doing things differently. Although graphically awful and even technically not perfect, Age of Decadence still is one of the most original games of its kind. It’s just not for everyone.

An ambitious game hobbled by laborious, unsatisfying combat and a "ready-made" approach to quest design that undermines player autonomy. [Dec 2015, p.58]

The Age of Decadence is the best computer role-playing game ever made. It features the most freedom and choice of any game I have ever played, it has a really well balanced and deep character system, has an extremely interesting and internally consistent gameworld and the plot is fantastic, and you can do some amazing stuff with your character and your choices. The writing is great, serious and contained, and never ever commits the cardinal sin of stupid jokes or goofy situations that indie games (and a lot of AAA games as well) usually do, and it's just the sort of game that your first five playthroughs will easily be completely different and the game will keep surprising and amazing you. This game is better than Fallout 1 and 2. It's better than Arcanum. Better than Planescape. But I only realized that for sure after my second playthrough. That's when you really see all the different possibilities The Age of Decadence has in store for you. A true role-playing game, if ever there was one!

Существуют просто Зло и Большое Зло, а за ними обоими в тени прячется Очень Большое Зло. Очень Большое Зло, Геральт, это такое, которого ты и представить себе не можешь, даже если думаешь, будто уже ничто не в состоянии тебя удивить. И знаешь, Геральт, порой бывает так, что Очень Большое Зло схватит тебя за горло и скажет: «Выбирай, братец, либо я, либо то, которое чуточку поменьше»

[7.0] Игра хардкорна своим безрассудством! Я честно пытался найти и понять лучшие качества этой игры, но безуспешно. Игра предлагает на выбор несколько предысторий для отыгрыша, но каждый вариант требует индивидуальную формулу развития персонажа, найти необходимое количество времени невозможно. Игрок становится заложником жёстких рамок ролевой системы, поведение игрока формируется на стадии создания персонажа, затем игрок постоянно сталкивается с невыполнимыми задачами. В таких ситуациях приходится сохраняться перед каждым диалогом и боем, затем возвращаться при достижении необходимого уровня навыка. Таким образом погружение в игру постоянно тормозится и откладывается на более поздние стадии прохождения. Вариативность выбора скатывается к двум классическим архетипам: тупоголовый силач или ботаник для битья. В первом случае бои будут чуть проще, но даже равного преимущества перед одним противником вы не получите, а почти всегда сражаться придётся против группы врагов. Во втором случае вариативность диалогов заметно возрастает, но череда постоянных проверок способна прервать ваш талант дипломата в любой момент. Игрой предусмотрен и вариант игры за война-дипломата, но в этой ситуации ваши унифицированные способности будут представлять ещё более жалкое зрелище, про сложные бои и диалоги вообще можно забыть. Отыгрыш роли Age Of Decadence зажат в жёсткие рамки ролевой системы и постоянной переигровки. Далеко не у каждого игрока найдётся желание и время проходить несколько раз или часто откладывать невыполнимый квест на потом. В этой игре чувствуешь себя никем и ничем, вся вариативность выбора сводится к требованию уровня навыка. Десятилетие разработки негативно сказалось на визуализации игры, Age Of Decadence уступает Bard's Tale (2004), Planet Alcatraz (2006) и прочим в духе раннего 3D, при этом дизайнеры постарались детализацию уровней выдержать максимально качественно. Музыка в игре скучна и однообразна, эффекты окружения и движения отсутствуют. Боевая система состоит из бесконечных промахов и редких попаданий, более здесь нечего сказать. Мини-карта намеренно создана для травли игрока, даже самых очевидных маркеров и указателя направления игрока здесь нет. Из достоинств отмечу качественные тексты и с оговоркой вариативность выбора. Vince D. Weller слишком увлёкся, поставив игрока в полную зависимость от ролевой системы, в такой среде вариативность слишком ограничена уровнем персонажа, не предоставляя игроку должной свободы и удовольствия от преодоления сложных задач. Понимание хардкорности в Age Of Decadence сильно гипертрофированно, даже Fallout и Planescape: Torment были куда более дружелюбны к игроку, понимание баланса сделало эти игры культовыми, Age Of Decadence останется уделом меньшинства.

The game has some great ideas and an admirable amount of replay value. The execution however leaves a lot to be desired. The combat is mediocre, the writing and roleplay dialogue is mediocre and the presentation is just downright ugly. Still given how unique it is it's certain to attract certain types who really get on with this games design decisions since there's really no one else offering a better alternative.

A 2020 Review - The Age of Decadence (PC, 2015) Score: 4/10 Mediocrity Score: Mediocre at Best. The Age of Decadence is a strangely unbalanced turn-based CRPG. It rather uniquely takes combat out from being the main focus and pits the player into a scenario where you can take different approaches. Touted for being a game where "choices matter", the game somehow feels so linear - locking the player into a path chosen early on. Choices in the game will keep you on your toes, that is until you realize the pattern of don't trust anyone, ever. My advice before buying is - play the demo first. Tags: The few words that come to mind are: mediocre, unbalanced, dialogue-heavy, cheap. Quick Take: Play the demo first. For the intention of being redundant for effect, if there is anything you should do before buying, it is to play the demo. This game is both very difficult and very easy. Rather unique in its approach, within The Age of Decadence you can 100% avoid all combat in the game by taking a more charismatic-stacked approach in your character build. What they don't mention is how incredibly simple the game becomes when you go for this non-combat route. It turns into a dialogue-heavy, point-and-click game where if you make the wrong choice you likely will be thrown into a combat situation where you will surely, and cheaply, die. Go with the combat route, and you are faced with a stacked-against-you RNG-based combat which is difficult to the point of coming off as both brutal and cheap. The one thing both routes have in common is the smoke-and-mirrors masking the cheap game-ending situations it constantly throws your way. In complete fairness reading reviews, watching let's plays, playing the demo, or even the reading developer's own disclaimers - potential players have been warned that "there is a good chance that you won’t like it, precisely because we took too many liberties with the established design". I can't help but feel like this is akin to being told "Here's the really over-cooked steak you ordered. There is a good chance you won't like it, but since this is all intentional - we've taken an extra heavy-handed approach with its blackened design." Yet here I am, disappointed that I paid for a really over-cooked steak that has an impressive char-broiled aesthetic. Pros: - Has an honest demo. - Multiple routes may be taken to beat the game. - Incredibly funny and useful skill/ability descriptions. More games should take inspiration from this. - Some hilarious ways to find yourself dying, made out as a fool, or being separated from your money. - Budget-friendly in cost and in required/recommended system specs. - NPCs are hilariously evil, greedy, untrustworthy, and always out to get you. Cons: - A lot of cheap situations made to make you fail while masquerading as being a "choices matter" feature. - RNG in combat is grossly stacked against the player, and always in favor of the NPC combatants. - The non-combat path becomes a trivial point-and-click game that leads to instadeath anytime you find yourself having clicked the wrong dialogue choice and end-up in combat. - Boring story with a boring end-conclusion. Dialogue becomes a chore. - The most important choice you will pick are your attribute points at the start of the game. Once you set yourself on that path, there is no deviating from it. You are locked in and cannot improve your stats in the game. - Complete exclusion of black or dark-skinned racial choices. I mention this as it does let you choose skin shades, but only of the white variety. Take this as you like. It doesn't affect gameplay, just something of note. - Lacking equipment options to suit your character with. I felt it was far too shallow. Concept: Throwback to the days of the classic-RPG. A bit experimental in its choice to take the focus away from combat and places it on the decisions and paths you take within a brutally corrupt and greedy society. Strongly driven by narrative with a big emphasis on dialogue (over 600,000 words of dialogue alone). Name of the game is, survive or die. Expect the unexpected. Unless you're not expecting to die. You're gonna die. Graphics: Nothing award-winning for sure. Still seems dated for 2015-standards, and even more so for 2020. Keep your expectations reasonable, and it will be fine. Good enough so as not to detract from the gameplay. Sound: Stellar job. Great music and sounds are very fitting. Unfortunately for the rest of the game, for me, this might be its strongest aspect. No voice-acting though. Entertainment: Letting my guard down only to be tricked again by another shady commoner led to many enjoyable and funny moments. The frustration of too much dialogue, or frustration of one-sided combat, soiled the good times that I found elsewhere in the game. I had a hard time finding a point where I felt the game was balanced. It was either too easy or too hard. Call me Goldilocks.