It seems sometimes that people are too shy to just admit that really liked this album, like it was something not very well received socially. I mean, if you love ABBA, why don't you say it OUT LOUD?
Well, I like the album. Don't love it, but like it a lot, especially after I've made my own edit version where I've trimmed a bit of the solo sections here and there.
Their online antics do not affect the enjoyment of the songs for me, but it probably made it harder for many other people to enjoy them.
I've seen mentioned more than once in the pre-release time an album that came out the same day as PS - Vuur's "In this moment we are free". It's a decent hard rock / prog album by Anneke Van Giersbergen, who is one of Arjen Lucassen's frequent guests / collaborators on the Ayreon albums, and they even made a wonderful album together, The Gentle Storm.
Now, the album is quite okayish but it's nothing earth shattering. Imagine a scenario where Anneke would have had a fallout with Arjen, and would pump up an album as the "answer to Ayreon", that would "claim back the throne of sci-fi rock operas" or whatever... and come out with just an album that not the entirety of the fan base would like... wouldn't that have been a major self inflicted PR nightmare? now people who don't like the album are just that, people that don't like it, they're not adding fuel to the fire criticizing her for "going to war" with Arjen and then not delivering something that coudl truly rival with him.