The Age of Decadence Third Public Beta Build Released

Iron Tower Studio has released the third version of the public beta of The Age of Decadence, with the biggest change being the addition of alchemy for public testing. It can be downloaded from Atomic Gamer or RapidShare, and a torrent version is available on The Pirate Bay. A full changelog is available on the forums.

We proudly present R3 the third release of the Age of Decadence public beta. This version offers a lot of changes, improvements, and extra content:

What’s inside?

Alchemy create your own healing salve, berserk potions, acid and liquid fire vials that can be thrown at your enemies, black powder bombs, the “lich” potion, and neurostimulant.

Whereas crafting improves the player’s combat stats only, alchemy improves stats, introduces new combat abilities, and provides new quest solutions. Basically, crafting is about focus, alchemy is about versatility.

Quest changes & New content now you can score bonus loyalty points by selling info to Linos and telling him that Cado’s planning to attack the shipment. You can loot Carrinas’ body – the most requested “feature”. An escape sequence was added after you kill Carrinas. The first Imperial Guards’ quest was tweaked based on the feedback we received. Plus, your grifter, loremaster, and thief will have more opportunities to ply their craft.

System Changes different blocking mechanics, rebalanced weapons damage ranges and THC (to-hit chance) bonuses, rebalanced fast, power, and aimed attacks, rebalanced armor DR and penalties.

Interface new dialogue interface and improved font for better readability.

If you want to see the full list of changes, click here.

Why release another version?

The main reason is to test the alchemy system, which is an important aspect of the game and can affect and change every combat encounter. We tested it internally for almost two months and made a number of changes already, but a small internal test can’t compete with an open public test. Your help in this matter will be greatly appreciated and your feedback does matter.

The other reason is to test the latest system changes. They reflect the feedback we’ve received after the last release and make combat more enjoyable (assuming you liked it in the first place). We’ll continue improving the character, combat, crafting, and alchemy systems until the game is released, so it is an ongoing process. These systems will serve as the foundation for future titles (should there be future titles) and getting them right is important to us.

We’re looking forward to your feedback and hope that you’ll enjoy the beta.

PS. Thank you for your patience and interest.