This game was an extremely pleasant surprise for so many reasons. So I'll just get the mediocre stuff out of the way first.
The change between modern fashion and antiquity fashion was a bit glaring. I know that this is not really a free choice, as all developers rely on the availability of assets. But I still want to mention that it's unlikely that there would be two fashion types at the time, without at least mixing up. It's also quite strange to get escorted by a golden knight to meet a woman in an office dress. Or have a presumably badass war veteran wear a roman uniform in one scene and a sweater in the next.
As a VN player who pays a lot of attention to detail in VN scenes these differences were sometimes so glaring and unexplained, that they bordered on immersion breaking. An explanatory sentence here and there might have helped.
Now that we have this nuisance out of the way. Let me just state how positively impressed I am with the quality of the writing, both regarding dialogue and the plot as a whole. I've seen Netflix shows recently with worse execution. And while some twists are very predictable and only thinly veiled, they still come across as intended and planned.
I absolutely loved that the LIs were introduced slowly and not dropped with parachutes as is so usual for many AVNs. During chapter one it really takes a lot of time to even meet them. For some it took until chapter 2 to make an appearance. And this is exactly how it should be.
The renders are very decent, definitely better than average, but there is still room for improvement. The audio design on the other hand is convincing. The berserker scream in the Arena caught me off-guard and was very intimidating, but there are many little sound effects like the laughter of the senators that I found helpful to make the scenes feel more dynamic and alive.
The amount of content per update (it's published in chapters) is just right. It's meaty enough but doesn't take forever.
I enjoy that there are interesting male characters in this novel. Too often AVN means that it's basically a one-man, many-women show. Not so in New Antioch. Despite the lore reasons that explain some role reversals in this Universe, there are still amazing male protagonists. Often in the role of Arena fighters with their own stories and redemption arcs, how short lived they might be.
The MC is good looking and likable. He is a bit of a brute, but also a brooder, I like that he has doubts himself and is questioning things. He is a Chad, but not a Superchad. His weaknesses are clear. I hope they get explored more in the future. Nothing would be more of a waste than to see him rise to Superman-Status from here on out. But that's not really a fear, just a careful reminder. A strong man is allowed to have weak spots and I do think this MC has plenty of them and it makes him much more relatable and interesting.
As you can see, I have lots to say. I could add more, but I don't want to overstay my welcome. We will see where the journey goes and I will support the project.