Risen 3: Titan Lords launched last year for PC and previous gen consoles, and despite it being the expected rough-around-the-edges game as the rest of series has been, it had enough charm and fun Action Role Playing elements to maybe make it worth your time, if you're looking to scratch that type of itch. A year later, the game has launched for PlayStation 4 as an enhanced edition promising improved visuals and an all-round a better game. The problem is that the game feels so unoptimised that it makes it very hard to recommend to anybody.
Developed by Piranha Bytes and out now for Playstation 4 comes Risen 3: Titan Lords Enhanced Edition. Upon initial release it was janky to begin with, but it launched at a good time last year as there were a lack of open-world Role Playing Games meaning it had its place and a role to play for those looking for a certain type of game. A year later though and we have games like Dragon Age: Inquisition and The Witcher 3 occupying our PlayStation 4, which makes Risen 3: Titan Lords Enhanced Edition look even worse.
The main story carries some of the pirate-themed fun of Risen 2: Dark Waters, but quickly takes new turns bringing in voodoo and a new antagonist: The Shadow Lord. Your first encounter with him results in your death, and your quest is to stop the shadows from taking over the island and also to ultimately take revenge on The Shadow Lord himself. The story quickly runs out of steam however and becomes far too convoluted to ever care about.
Animations are awkward as is combat, the story becomes slightly confusing and overall it’s a much lesser game than its current contemporaries. It could be overlooked last year, but now its flaws are overwhelmingly in your face and makes it incredibly hard to play through.
Combat is awkward and unresponsive. You hold R2 to parry attacks, tap X for a light attack and holding it for a heavy attack. Dodges can be performed using the Square button. This combat system can go from being adequate to downright frustrating, especially against anything more than a single enemy. An example I can give was early on in the game: I was walking around one of the islands when I can across a scavenger (bird-like creature). Very quickly I was surrounded by three and one knocked my character down to the ground. What followed was 30-45 seconds of him constantly being pecked by one of the birds, resetting his recover animation every time. I eventually died and had to re-spawn a fair bit back. I could literally do nothing except wait for the inevitable.
The open-world has plenty to explore and do, but there's nothing in it that will be memorable. Quests are dull for the most part and the many generic characters you meet along the way kind of all blend into one. Dialogue is written and delivered fairly poorly and you'll probably end skipping the dialogue just to receive your quest. Visually, the game is acceptable and can sometimes bring some nice vistas, but for the most part it's underwhelming. Performance is also inconsistent as a unlocked frame rate means it can suddenly go from 60 frames to 20 and below in one half-turn of the camera which is really jarring.
It’s disappointing because there’s great charm in rougher RPGs as they take an unorthodox approach with gameplay, world, and story but especially on PS4, it’s just too hard to power through to get any enjoyment whatsoever. 2015 has been an incredible year for open-world games and Risen 3: Titan Lords Enhanced Edition will never be mentioned as one of them.
Risen 3: Titan Lords Enhanced Edition walks the plank with 2/5 stars.
★★☆☆☆
Jason Redmond
Risen 3: Titan Lords Enhanced Edition at CeX
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