Age of Decadence has a lot going for it. The combat is quite realistic and absolutely brutal in a way you don't often see in fantasy RPGs - if you're going to pursue the violent resolution then you damn well better be a good fighter! If you enjoy collecting and crafting gear then there's plenty for you to do there too. Unfortunately, combat and crafting seem to be the only areas of the game allowing for any real player choice. When it comes to dialogue, your choices will often result in consequences that seem totally random and that you could not have predicted. I suppose this is pretty realistic - butterfly effect and all - but since combat and just fighting your way through a quest is rarely a viable option it means the game quickly becomes entirely about save scumming, optimizing your character build to pass skill checks, and grinding your way through dialogues until you've found the right set of "choices." It's a lot like playing DnD with a DM who can't handle players who won't play the campaign the way the DM intended. If it weren't for all the railroading, this would be a stellar RPG...everything else is there, but the lack of freedom in dialogues and scripted sequences really brings it down for me. The most fun I had in the game was in the arena, because like I said the combat is great (arguably the game's strongest feature).
