Risen

[Darth Gavinius]

Risen by Piranha Bytes is the first of the games I have played from the studio more famous for the Gothic games.

The start of the game is rather cliched with the nameless protagonist washing up on the shore of the mysterious island of Faranga. The initial hours of the game are mostly about survival, Risen allows the main character to kill animals for food - which is required for healing in the early game. The animals are tough and Risen does not break you in lightly.

The island of Faranga is packed with things to do, so long as you have the necessary skills. Animals can be skinned for trophies, there are a wide variety of plants that can help restore health and later these can be used to brew more potent healing draughts. Iron or Gold veins can be mined for ores, which are traded for sword blanks or used to make powerful amulets.

There are many paths to take in the game and it is up to you where you try to go... and I say try. There is no level scaling encounters in Risen, choose the wrong path and you will die - a lot. And for me this is one of Risens great charms. The game has three main factions and how you are ties to these factions is largely determined by the forks in the road - take one path and other skills get locked until later or completely.

The combat mechanics can be clunky at first, if you only have a sword - you cannot deflect the attacks of the animals and running into more than one or two wolves in the first few hours usually ends badly. If you rely on dodging, getting your bearings again for an attack can be tricky at first. If your character picks up injuries, he wont be able to run/walk or fight effectively and the best tactic for a number of fights is to lure enemies one at a time or find a high place they can't reach and pick them off with ranged weapons. Trying to take any potions in the middle of a fight is suicide as your character has to stop to take it (kinda like real life).

The magic system in Risen is simple in terms of the lack of spells but there are very few spells that are not useful. Magic consists of casting from scrolls or runes. Playing the later stages as a Mage as I did, made many encounters later in the game a lot easier. If you focus only on one or two of the offensive spells - you can destroy just about anyone.

Risen is a dark fantasy world - there is a little too much swearing and some of the voice acting is dire, but the atmosphere of the world is very very good. If you want to beat someone up to take their stuff, you can - or you can kill them once on the ground, the latter usually results in you own death. The quests are another of Risens stronger areas, so many modern RPG's consist of endless collect quests and while these do play a part of the Risen repertoire, many of the quests have multiple ways to complete or twists where you can change sides if it suits you.

Leveling up in Risen is different. You gain XP for killing things and meeting objectives. When you level up you are rewarded with Action Points, these can be spent on raising your stats or gaining new skills at a trainer. So unlike many RPG's - you don't magically get better at something, you need someone to show you how best to do it. This is both good and bad - piss off the wrong person and you might struggle to find someone to train you in the skills you want to learn.

I am deliberately not giving much away about the plot - all I will say is that once I starting playing I was hooked. The combat although clunky at first forces you to be clever in choosing where, when and how to fight - using terrain and close spaces to your advantage. The game does not take itself too seriously and can be funny at times and there are some good standout characters.

Graphics: 3.5/5 - The character models for NPC's can be repetitive but the Island of Faranga itself is a believable paradise. The sunsets and the weather system can catch you at times, in the same way Skyrim does.

Gameplay: 3.5/5 - The gameplay takes a lot of getting used to. Some people will tire of the grind that Melee combat can become - but if you get creative with combat and mix up different styles - the game gets more fun.

Sound: 3/5 - The voice acting is a hit and miss affair. There are a few familiar voices in the cast such as John Rhys Davies, Lena Heady, Andy Serkis and Alix Wilton Regan (Comm Officer in Mass Effect 3) and they do justice to the roles they have. But most of the characters just sound grumpy and swear a lot. The sound effects for the beasts, the music and the weather all do a good job of creating an unforgettable atmosphere.

Roleplaying: 4/5 - This is probably the strongest area of the game. Faranga starts of huge but feels so small and familiar by the end. There are a lot of things to do and kill, lots of skills to be learned and you can interact with most people.

Pro's - Something a bit different. An open(ish) world with en emphasis on the story it is trying to tell - where you decide how the story will unfold and where you stand. There are very few bugs - and the ones I did have - killed me in such ridiculous ways I had to laugh.

Con's - It has a lockpicking memory mini-game that will grate on the nerves after a time. Even if you are sneaking some of the beasts/People seem to have incredible hearing.