1eyedking said:
Maybe it is a matter of preference and perceived promise. I knew nothing of the game when playing it for the first time, and through the first chapter i was already prepared to consider it one of the best games i ever played. It seemed to be a serious story about people in a rough situation trying to survive and escape, and i liked that. I was even willing to forgive the LOUSY writing for the promise of a mature and interesting tale.
Then the plot comes around and you discover the world they created is just a backdrop: As it is the prison it could be any other place in the universe where leaving is not an option - the characters are just plot devices, and the quests have no meaning beyond to move the story along. And the longer you go the more obvious it becomes the world and its inhabitants are there just for looks, oblivious to every single development.
The plot is guided by a long string of McGuffins and Dungeons. All characters, other than maybe Xardas, could be described in one line. The interesting Back-Story never goes anywhere. The orcs actually have a culture, that turns to be little more than a way to introduce yet another treasure hunt and naming their weapons random things. The great world they built never reacts to anything, and feels completely disconected of the argument. The writing is lousy, and the presentation of the background is shameful. It is like the barrier was really a prison for plot devices and one-liners.
But then the world is great, immersive as hell during the first hours, and it really manages to create the ilussion of going somewhere. So there - I think it is a good game that did not live to its potential and whose plot sucked a lot, and more than once it trips on its own great begining.
And the chosen one thingie was not a "child of circumstances" - Xardas mentions an orc prophecy about someone coming to defeat the sleeper, and that he believes you are the one. Or something like that, i haven't played the game beyond the second chapter in a while..