Set several years after the end of Risen, raging titans have devastated the world and pushed humanity to the brink of existence. Subsequently, monstrous creatures have risen from the watery depths of the sea and their attacks have brought all seafaring to a grinding halt. The hero, now a member of the Inquisition, is sent out to find out how to stop the chaos caused by these creatures from the deep. His quest begins with rumors that the pirates who frequent the southern islands are the only ones who know a way to get rid of the creatures once and for all and end their reign of terror.
With an all-new pirate-based theme, Risen 2: Dark Waters aims to combine the most loved classic RPG gameplay mechanics of the original Risen with a fresh theme and setting on a huge variety of themed island locales. A third-person role-playing game set in a dark and gritty universe, Risen 2: Dark Waters maintains the most immersive features of the original Risen, with multiple approaches to every challenge allowing players to shape the game world based on their own decisions. These choices will serve to unlock new paths, features and additional skills for the character. Together with a highly interactive environment and a full day/night-cycle affecting countless aspects of the game world, Risen 2 will be set in the most immersive RPG game world so far.
"Mixed reviews" aptly describes what most reviewers here and elsewhere on the internet think of Risen 2. Mostly I loved it. I bought Risen 2 after the first one or two patches, so most of the complaints in the first few days of May don't apply to the version I played.
My eye-hand coordination sucks, so I avoid games that require quick reflexes. I don't mind the lousy combat or the difficulty blocking so long as just hacking away suffices. Sure, it's hard to dodge monsters, and the combat system often ignores pressing the spacebar (used to kick) and the "E" key (to fire an off-hand weapon or launch a dirty trick). You have to PAUSE for a second or two in the middle of a fight BEFORE pressing that key to get Risen 2 to respond. But mostly I found Risen 2 forgiving of my lapses. I played the game in Normal difficulty and did well.
I really enjoyed the plot. There were certainly enough plot twists to keep me going. There's one exception: Risen's treatment of the African, face-painted natives was often jarring and condescending. Yet at other times they were the wisest NPCs in the game. Their origin story is bizarre: 1000 years ago all humans were slaves of Mara, the game's villain. When she was finally imprisoned, one group separated itself from the rest. They developed a separate language, became a separate race, developed voodoo, and created a primitive hunter-gatherer culture to boot. Really, in 1000 years? Please.
My major gripe is the end game. Like so many other RPGs, for some reason the game authors decided they needed an arcade-like sequence at the end. It would take me an hour of fruitless aiming and firing to get past that point, even in Easy mode. Blecch, not worth it! I bailed out.
There are a couple of other arcade-like minigames in Risen 2. One is the drinking game: trying to grab bottles of rum as your mouse becomes increasingly shaky. That was fun. I found the shooting game (trying to hit clay pigeons flying across the screen) just frustrating, but luckily it wasn't necessary to advance the plot. The GameBanshee review recommends switching to Easy mode for the shooting game, but that didn't help.
I have a few other quibbles. Magic was abolished after the events in Risen 1, and the only remaining magic-like facility is voodoo, which is pathetically weak. Firearms are slow and awkward to use. Like ranged weapons (bows and such) in other RPGs, they are much less effective at short range. I found the enemies on the Isle of the Dead overpowering and had to switch to Easy mode. There are only enough experience points in the game to maximize one of the skill trees; you'd need three times as many to max out everything.
Finally, one thought: in addition to the usual ghouls and other undead, the game offers undead spirits, who play a supporting role but are mostly a plot device. It would be intriguing if the spirits became a much more powerful and effective resource available for your use in a subsequent game, but of course hard to control. Currently, undead spirits are all ancestors of the natives. Their temples dot the landscape, but the native religion is poorly developed. It consists of putting precious gold artifacts in underground stone temples and then whining when people keep stealing them.
Pre-order Bonus Content: Treasure Isle DLC pack
Embark on a brand new adventure in pursuit of the legendary treasure of Captain Steelbeard. Join Captain Steelbeard's daughter, Patty, on a journey to an unknown island that offers new environments to explore and many puzzles to solve, treasures to loot and mysteries to unravel. An all-new exclusive legendary item awaits those who have the courage to undertake this quest.
Minimum Specifications:
- OS: Win 7, Vista and XP
- Processor: Dual Core with 2.1 GHz
- RAM: 2 GB
- Hard Drive: 5.5 GB
- Video Card: 512 MB Radeon 3870 / GeForce 8800 GTX1024 MB Radeon 4890 / GeForce GTX 260
- Additional Info: DirectX 9.1c - DirectX compatible sound card
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