Vikings is a good game. It's not great, but it's fun and entertaining. The graphics are decent. There is very minimal character customization, and that's not a problem for some folks. Particularly in a game like this-you're not zoomed in on your character, so not as big of a deal, but I would like to see a little more. If nothing else, some different faces. The game does have some unique features, however. The exposure mechanic adds a certain tension that is lacking in most non-survival type games. I find it interesting that you are collecting blood in lieu of experience, however the flaw in this is the way you collect it. It comes along in bubbles that float, and you have to get near them to collect it. The problem is; it's easy to miss them-especially if you're using a ranged character, and even more of an issue is sometimes they land in unreachable areas, robbing you of that bundle of experience. That can be annoying, but it hasn't happened enough to make the game unplayable. While the game boasts a 'class-less' system, it really isn't. You can put the points anywhere you want, but the skills-passive or active-are weapon specific, and there is no way to 'unspend' points-even if you haven't left the 'upgrade' screen. In my opinion this negates the purpose of an open skill tree. The keyboard controls are....less than stellar, and there doesn't seem to be a way to personalize your 'quick-slots' , so you are basically stuck with your skills in the slots the game chooses. Seemingly in the order you unlock them. Not a fan. Here's the other problem I have: The combat works better with a controller, but inventory/vendor management is awkward with the controller. So I use the controller for combat, but the keyboard in the village, which to be honest, is a bit of a nuisance. I love the lore, and it kept me playing. It's a fun game, but I wouldn't recommend it at full price. Grim Dawn is a better find for your money, in this genre.
I was pretty hyped when I started reading about this game, but overall, it was disappointing. They tout a vast array of skills available. Yes, there are. But many of them are only marginally useful, often for one particular quest. I'll use stealth as an example. I typically play ranger/rogue type characters, so I built one. There is no sneaking around, reconnoitering an area, picking your target. There is a dialogue page, that offers a choice to sneak into an area. You either succeed, or fail, which means you fight, or you run away. Fighting is rarely a good choice in this game. Particularly if you are given a choice. Which, for all the talk of choice/consequence in the game; there really isn't much of either. You are plagued by dialogue skill checks, that are ultimately simply scripted 'choose your own adventure' style events. They typically seem to end in a fight, a locking out of another approach, and more than occassionally a scripted flat out death with no option to even try and fight your way out. There are no dungeons to speak of, nor is there much in the way of exploration. There is very little 'treasure' to be found, and most of what you do find are seemingly random artefacts that do...something...to a machine...somewhere. Maybe. If you pass a skill check. The storyline is lackluster at best, with no real impetus to follow it, and very easily broken. 12 hours, I completed the storyline, by complete accident. I simply found the location I needed to go to, and went there to try and explore, only to get locked into the endgame sequence. The one thing I can say about Age of Decadence, is that it takes a fresh apporach to combat. I like the way the combat system works insofar as instead of going through a skill rotation, you can choose a type of attack from fast, to power, to aimed shots. All with different action point costs. (Aimed shots are your friend here. If you have the skill). The problem is, there really isn't a whole lot of it. While I realize there are people who don't always want to play a combat character, personally, I play RPGs for combat of one form or another. It's an interesting setting, with an interesting combat system, but an overall disappointment.
