Day 71: Ryse: Son of Rome Review

 
Ryse: Son of Rome is a third person fighting game from the creators of Crysis and Far Cry. Just like the aforementioned works, Ryse is a viscerally beautiful experience. If you're new to the Xbox One console, then this is a great game to show off what the next gen hardware can do. The environments are as detailed as any film set and the frame-rate and motion blur create an epically cinematic-like experience.

Unfortunately not everything about the game is as top notch as the graphics. While the flow of movement and controls are great, the actual gameplay quickly becomes repetitive. At a point about half way through the 4+ hours of campaign, you have already learned how to do everything in the game and have faced off with all of the enemy variations. While the quick time executions are enjoyable at first, they do become someone monotonous as you begin to see repeats of the same animations over and over.

The story however remains on-par with the high bar that the graphics set. Even though it is cliche and draws a lot of inspiration from the 2000 film Gladiator, there is something extremely rewarding and compelling about it. The characters are believable and the dialog is excellently delivered by the voice actors. A major part of the story's believability has to do with the setting itself. The locations that you visit feel real and even though you're usually restricted to a certain path, there are so many details in the distance that it's mind boggling.


Objectionable Content


Violence
Limbs are hacked off, blood sprays and occasional beheadings all occur in the game. There's no option to turn off the gore or any way to avoid it. It's not as over the top as it could be, but it is a pervasive element of the game.

Language
A few F-bombs are dropped and there's a smattering of other swear words throughout the game, most of which occur during the cinematics.

Sex/Nudity
There is one graphic scene of sex and nudity, as topless women are dancing for the Emperor's son. It's the only instance in the game and it's shockingly unnecessary.
  
Conclusion
While the game is definitely an enjoyable jaunt into an entrancing time period, fueled by jaw-dropping graphics and beautiful landscapes, there really isn't enough of Ryse to keep you coming back for more after you've completed the 4+ hour campaign. There is a multiplayer component, but I found it to be more of an added afterthought from the developers. If the objectionable content doesn't concern you, then I would recommend renting Ryse, if for nothing else than to revel in its beautiful state-of-the-art graphics and well-wrought story. 

3 / 5 Stars
+ Outstanding graphics
+ Cliche, but entertaining story
-  Repetitive and simple gameplay
-  Unnecessary nudity