I do have some criticisms with the game which basically amount to tone issues. The game reminds me a bit of "Bright" in the fact the high fantasy bits are a little too prominent and the game would probably have been better toning them down to make it more, "Upper Class Elves in tophats and Working Class Orcs in coal mines" and less, "Elves from Middle Earth next to cities from Victoria's time."
I think the best part of the game was having books like "The Orcish Question" where we have conversations about how orcs get raised to be educated and respectable members of society, only to be treated like garbage so they just decide to act like villains as well as things like workers rights plus the rise of steam to replace magic.
The bits which felt like they were from typical fantasy games just didn't work for me. They were also confusing as you had talk about how kingdoms of horses and knights were defeated by ill-trained guys with technology but--wouldn't the former have guys with fireballs, gryffons, and sorcery like WOW?
The villain had a great existential plan but it's also something which has nothing to do with the themes of the game of science versus technology nor did the whole "Chosen One" plot. Basically, I would have preferred something related to the Victorian Era like someone building an army of airships or something.
Hell, the "plot by the gnomes to breed a slave race of half-ogres" was more interesting than the main villains plot and could have ended up being a kind of hilarious subversion. Gnomes ending up planning to invade the world and them as the ultimate baddies.
