I deliberatly did not read any of the other answers, to keep me as unbiased as possible. Even at the risk the points may be duplicate.
Oh, and right now I am in chapter 3, I expect to continue this weekend. Hope the feedback is helpful even though I do not fulfill the condition in the heading...
Taleweaver wrote:What did you think of the plot, by and large? What elements did you like, what elements didn't you like? In five attributes, how would you describe your feelings towards the story?
I'm speaking strictly about the story aspect here. Completely ignoring art, music and gameplay, how would you rate Seasons of the Wolf as a fantasy story?
Actually, sorry to say this, I do not like the game as much as the Story of Loren, of Bionic Heart 2 or like Adrift. I believe there are two issues here: The story itself does not really give me a goal which I am working towards, and there are some elements which kick me out of my immersion. To elaborate:
Goal
Somehow, there is never anything which I (or the party) seems to be working towards. They survive, but they do not act. OK, in the first act it is not so bad, there I get to learn the world, the persons etc., and the first act is relativly short. But in the second act, there is no clear long-term-goal byond surviving the arena. When getting out there, it is outside intervention which the player does not really see coming. Then there is the third act, where anything I do I do for the loot, and maybe I feel grateful to Merrow etc., but anything I have seen (storywise) feels like unconnected fluff which does not propel the plot. It makes me feel (forgive the pun) adrift a bit.
Breaking Immersion
There are a few instances where art and writing do not match. E.g. the picture of a brig (two masts, square sails) which is called a "five mast schooner". Which would look a lot different. Why the text could not have been changed to match the picture I do not understand.
There is the question what goals in life the various nasties (four houses, yerrin, whipboy) have. They come across like they are evil just to be evil. And to proove to each other they are even more evil. Since they are the central antagonist group, their motivation seems to be lacking. Possibly you have more in mind, but this is how it feels to me - and it leaves a hole which yanks me out of going with the flow.