Most of the issues I've heard people mention about it tends to mostly do with the production, and stylistic direction going a bit more proggy, plus keeping the elements developed through NiMe and ANatO instead of going back to their older SFB/IftOS sound which quite a few fans had been hoping for.

As for what I think, the production isn't nearly as bad as some make it out to be, but it certainly isn't BG's best produced album. The youtube uploadings certainly don't do it justice, and my CD of it was a purchase I'm very satisfied with.

About it's style. If you already like ANatO, NiMe, and are welcome to a slightly different take on their sound in some of the songs, as them being a fair bit more proggy in tone/execution (less so in song arrangement i.e. really long stuff/fiddling with verse/chorus/bridge/solo/etc. sort of stuff,) then it should at least be likable to some degree.

Also, it actually took me quite a while to really appreciate the album, and I'm not entirely sure why, but it was the same with a few of their other albums, and I'm glad I stuck with them, and this one, because it shot up from being one of my least favourite albums of theirs along with FtB, up to not quite a favourite, but a really solid release in their career. So, I think it certainly warrants a listen for any Blind Guardian fans who've liked any of their stuff at least since NiMe, if not earlier.