Once you get past Dungeon Lords' beginning town, you'll pretty much be free to explore a wide-open world with two main plotlines and multiple side quests. You can go through the game with other players, moving your character back and forth between single and multiplayer games and saving your character's progress as you go along. This freedom will also apply to character development. Any character is free to pursue any skill or use any item. Specialization is encouraged by the skills you buy with your experience points, some of which will be cheaper for certain classes and races.