Part of the issue is that the gameplay and plot disagree on what the rails should look like. The plot leads you straight from the start into a fight with a party of level 5 enemies while you're still level 2. It isn't easy to get there, and you have to dodge past 1000 interesting plot hooks to do it, so the gameplay wants you to explore wherever you want, the plot wants you to die horribly.
If you go anywhere other than where the plot (a plot with a ticking clock measured potentially in seconds) is telling you to go, the strongest creature in the fight has half the hp of weakest enemy in the plot fight.
