Ryse: Son of Rome served as a launch title for the Xbox One in 2013. The game had actually been in development for several years, and it was initially intended to be a Kinect title, before being reworked into what we now know as Ryse. Developed by the acclaimed German studio Crytek, Ryse released to decidedly mixed reviews. The game impressed players with its extremely high-fidelity graphics, a trademark of Crytek, and the visceral, almost cinematic approach to combat. However, Ryse disappointed potential fans with its repetitive gameplay, thin plot and brisk runtime.
I had an Xbox One for a short period of time, but I never played Ryse: Son of Rome. I remember a friend of mine, who was a diehard Xbox fan, playing the game speaking really highly of it. But, after playing Titanfall (and absolutely loving it), I sold my Xbox One for a PlayStation 4, and never looked back. Ryse totally vanished from my memory until recently; I came across the game on Steam. So I finally picked it up, knowing all of the complaints about the game, and gave it a shot.
My main takeaway from Ryse is how great the game looks. It's absolutely stunning. For a launch Xbox One title, released over a decade ago, this could easily pass for a modern game. I played it on my Steam Deck OLED, and actually couldn't believe how beautiful Ryse looked on max graphical settings. Through the course of the game, you're taken from Rome up into the distant reaches of the Empire, in the untamed wilds of Britannia. Some of the environments that you trek through are just breathtaking. In Britannia alone, you have to battle across shipwreck-strewn beaches, verdant, lush forests and haunted, primeval bogs. The actual city of Rome itself is also so phenomenally designed. With the game's detail-rich visuals, I think you could easily make the argument that this is the best Rome has ever been portrayed in a video game, maybe second only to Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood. While the game is largely comprised of linear zones, Rome still felt like a massive, fully realized city with neighborhoods, ports and courtyards. I could've spent a few hours just walking around the city and taking it all in.
Ryse: Son of Rome is a short game, so I don't want to dive too much into the plot and spoil things. Our protagonist, Marius, is a soldier who returns to Rome and is quickly caught up in a barbarian invasion in the city. Following the attack, he's sent on a mission into Britannia to investigate what is happening with the troublesome proto-Brits. Naturally, things shift into full-blown chaos and fall apart. It's a fairly standard plot, with precious few surprises factored in. I will say, the story takes an interesting supernatural turn part of the way through, and delves into some intriguing Roman mythology and folklore, and I found those developments genuinely fascinating.
Beyond the graphics, Ryse's other trait that drew considerable praise was in its brutal, Arkham Asylum-esque, free-flow combat. If you've ever played a game with this combat system, you know how it works. It's fast, violent, kinetic and feels excellent when you're locked-in and perfectly nailing all of your blows, blocks, counters and executions. Unfortunately, this game leans way too heavily on this combat, and because of that, it loses its satisfying allure far too quickly. You are constantly fed into these repetitive, drawn-out battles and it became a drag as time went on; and that's really saying something since Ryse is only a six hour long title. Occasionally, the game offers some slightly different combat sequences that were always a welcome departure. Sometimes you're given opportunities to utilize ranged attacks, through javelins or mounted crossbows. These were fun, largely because you could kill enemies so much quicker, and get past yet another potential slog of a melee battle. There were also a handful of instances where Marius and his fellow soldiers would link up in shield formations for these bizarre, on-rails sequences where you would just move forward on a predetermined path, blocking arrows and throwing javelins at enemies in your way. These secondary combat mechanics felt a bit half-baked, and could've used some further expansion to really make them feel satisfying.
Ryse: Son of Rome is a puzzling game. I can't really recommend it, though I don't think the game is entirely without merit. It feels like all the ingredients were there for a home run of a game, and it just didn't quite come together how it should've. I just felt underwhelmed by the end of the game. If you're a fan of Roman history, or straightforward, uncomplicated action games, I think you'll find some genuine fun in Ryse. It's a beautiful game, with a fine story and solid (though very repetitive) combat. If you can get it on a sale, you should give it a shot.
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