Descension, strives to be a game about story, and as such it also strives to be a game full of choices. In an effort to make this more intuitive, most areas of the ship and the game mechanics are designed around Three possible paths to completion.
In RPG games there is the Mage class, the Warrior Class, and the Thief Class. Let this serve as a metaphor for these game play styles, and it is up to the player to choose at any given time what playing style they prefer. In contrast to a typical RPG game, the player isn’t forced into one mould or another, but rather the game will adapt to their preferred playstyle, unlocking skills and areas only accessible to those proficient in their preferred skillset, especially towards the end of the game, where certain story arcs are only available to those with certain levels of proficiency.
Working in tandem with these styles, the player will become more proficient and their subsequent skill base modifiers will allow them to further excell in those playing styles they practice the most. This is all done under the hood, with only a few indicators to que the player as to their ability levels in each area.