[Binabik15]

Hmm, will try to play a bit more zoomed out not easy when you're dungeon crawling though! :D There is a shield hidden early on; somewhere around the first ruin you come across, right opposite the entrance behind the bushes is a grave with a shield on it, it's on some kind of ledge hidden away a bit, before you reach Jans house IIRC, it's the ruin with the floor that caves in, scout that area around it, it's also the first time you encounter grave motts or how they might be called

Nice, I didn´t bother with the moths, they gave me a thorough beating in the demo :lol

[Dennis]

Nice, I didn´t bother with the moths, they gave me a thorough beating in the demo :lol

Of course they did. Everything in Risen gives you a beating the first time you encounter it :lol

[John]

Pretty bad form? That's almost always the case. If you're as cheap as I am, you buy your PC games at retail.

What are the install restrictions on the retail version of the game, if any? Is there some go-to site that lists this info for all PC games?

[Asparagus]

What are the install restrictions on the retail version of the game, if any? Is there some go-to site that lists this info for all PC games?

There aren't any.

[Binabik15]

Sooo I got the shield, walked the trail, got to some ruined stronghold, killed two skellies there. Couldn´t kill the others (at least two) because they ganged up on me. Walked back to the graveyard above Jan´s house, beat the skellies there up. Got a shovel and digged up a grave, but can´t open the chest :/ Walked back to the stronghold, dug up a pirates grave, can´t open, either.

Then I finally went to the swamp, killed the worm and talked to those ugly thugs. Learned swords lvl two and sneaking, robbed some bitches clean. Then I stopped playing.

I´m pretty loaded with stuff I cant use (2 rusted bihänder, an axe, several rusted swords, two shields) and selling get´s almost nothing D:

Can I learn to lockpick in the swamp? I want to open the skellie chest, I earned it, god damn :lol

What are the install restrictions on the retail version of the game, if any? Is there some go-to site that lists this info for all PC games?

There isn´t even a cd key, pretty cool if you ask me. It´d get pirated either way and this way the people who bought it don´t have to put up with all the anti-piracy hit.

[dionysus]

Those chests are quest items in Chapter 2, probably can't open them till you initiate the chain.

[Binabik15]

Those chests are quest items in Chapter 2, probably can't open them till you initiate the chain.

So much for open world, eh D:

Nah, I´m just really proud I kicked those brittle bastards into oblivion, but I didn´t get anything else out of it. Swords that need almost triple my current strenghts and an two handed axe that only does 5 damage more than the standard word. Meh.

[K.Jack]

I did a backup/format/restore yesterday, but somehow I didn't transfer my Risen saves.

FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU

[clashfan]

I know the graphics on 360 is inferior but is the gameplay still the same from 360 to PC?

[cleveridea]

I dont know about anyone else but Demon's Souls really took my attention away from this game, and the great combat will likely make risen's look even worse. In a sense Risen and DS make a great pair - DS for combat and fast action excitement, Risen for beautiful environments and a living world full of people to interact and steal from. My wife hates when I play DS its so boring and repetitive to look at.

Evilore - what resolution and AA do you use? You mentioned 4-5 times framerate increase from GTX260. I am tempted myself to gett a 5850 (have GTX260 core i7 920) but I dont know how many games I play would appear superior at 1920x1080 No AA (personal preference, unusual I know)

[Binabik15]

Man, nothing but slacking assholes in the swamp. :lol

Gave them some meat, talked to a few guys for Branon, beat up Clay for not going to work (you have to be stern with those thieving thugs!).

Now I´ll go to the big city and see if the people there are cooler. I´ve already been to the farm before the crossroad and picked some crops, what the hell. :lol

One question: Will I be able to get more gold from selling stuff later? Like, wisdom increase or something I need to do?I have so much crap I can´t use (too weak :/), but selling is hardly worth it.

[Joseph Merrick]

Man, nothing but slacking assholes in the swamp. :lol Gave them some meat, talked to a few guys for Branon, beat up Clay for not going to work (you have to be stern with those thieving thugs!). Now I´ll go to the big city and see if the people there are cooler. I´ve already been to the farm before the crossroad and picked some crops, what the hell. :lol One question: Will I be able to get more gold from selling stuff later? Like, wisdom increase or something I need to do?I have so much crap I can´t use (too weak :/), but selling is hardly worth it.

you'll run into a lot of money later on. especially the last quests in harbourtown will give a lot of gold.

plants that give strength/dexterity/health/mana/etc upgrades are never worth selling and you should probably not eat them until getting the alchemy skill and formulas for making their effect a lot stronger either. same with materials. keep one of each type of tool and probably no point in selling lockpicks. but other than that just sell all the crap.

[modeps]

Temperature check please. I'm wondering if I should even bother with Risen.

[EviLore]

Temperature check please. I'm wondering if I should even bother with Risen.

Fully aroused.

[Durante]

So, I've clocked 16 hours on Risen now and I'm still in the first chapter. I don't think there will be much left to do for me later...

[WhatRobEats]

So, I've clocked 16 hours on Risen now and I'm still in the first chapter. I don't think there will be much left to do for me later...

I've just finished chapter 1 headed off to the monastery for training clocked 11.5 hours now. The environment just sucks me in and I can't help wandering around slaying beasts. I'm at level 7 or 8 I think. Many are saying the game doesn't really even begin until around chapter 3 or so.

I know from reading others posts even if you kill off all the beasts in an area when you return later there are bigger badder ones waiting for you. I'm not sure if there is a level cap though.

[CabbageRed]

In chapter four now. My opinion of the game hasn't lowered any, but I wish that they would have done something more with the craft skills. In the Gothic series, I was always hunting for some ore or 'recipe' for new weapons but I'm not seeing any of that in Risen. The jewelry bit is also full of potential but is fairly shallow.

I also should have started on the hardest difficultly because these fire balls melt the face off of everything. :P

[Saige]

I’ve never played the Gothic games but man Risen is great and the only reason I know about it is GAF.

I’m on chapter three now and so far I'm not as much into it as the first two as it seems a bit more about doing set linear tasks and not so much on just exploring the world, which is still by far the best thing about the game. But I’m not that far into the chapter so maybe I’m wrong and it opens more up later on.

The only real annoyance right now what must be a bug that does not allow me to cancel the spell that turns you into one of those snail bugs, so if I ever have to use that scroll I have to sit and wait for the spell to wear off. Nothing major but it fucks with the pacing when I'm going through a temple.

[Sinatar]

I’ve never played the Gothic games but man Risen is great and the only reason I know about it is GAF. I’m on chapter three now and so far I'm not as much into it as the first two as it seems a bit more about doing set linear tasks and not so much on just exploring the world, which is still by far the best thing about the game. But I’m not that far into the chapter so maybe I’m wrong and it opens more up later on. The only real annoyance right now what must be a bug that does not allow me to cancel the spell that turns you into one of those snail bugs, so if I ever have to use that scroll I have to sit and wait for the spell to wear off. Nothing major but it fucks with the pacing when I'm going through a temple.

Click the middle mouse button to cancel Nautilus.

[eznark]

Kind of losing steam in chapter 1. About 4 hours in. Just got the shakedown list and the sword. I spent like an hour trying to figure out how to use my learning points in the character screen. I'm dumb.

[Saige]

Click the middle mouse button to cancel Nautilus.

Thats the thing, there is not a single button on my mouse/keyboard that I have not tried. But on the bright side you don't really have to use that spell too often so I can live with it.

[Darklord]

For anyone whos finished, how long is the game? Is it one of those 40 hour epics or what?

[BeeDog]

For anyone whos finished, how long is the game? Is it one of those 40 hour epics or what?

I finished it at around 36 hours, with pretty much everything finished.

[Ceebs]

Thats the thing, there is not a single button on my mouse/keyboard that I have not tried. But on the bright side you don't really have to use that spell too often so I can live with it.

It should be bound to the same button you use to put away your weapon.

[Darklord]

I finished it at around 36 hours, with pretty much everything finished.

That seems alright. I'm planning on getting dragon age though...not sure if I can do a 40 hour + 80 hour game back to back(and between Forza 3, GTA episodes and Brutal Legend:lol ).

[Splatt]

I'm on chapter 4 with about 20 + 2-3 hours in. I did all the quests that I could find and explored the world a bit. Chapter 1 & 2 are great but I'm getting fed up with all the lizard killing in chapter 3 and 4.

[Binabik15]

you'll run into a lot of money later on. especially the last quests in harbourtown will give a lot of gold. plants that give strength/dexterity/health/mana/etc upgrades are never worth selling and you should probably not eat them until getting the alchemy skill and formulas for making their effect a lot stronger either. same with materials. keep one of each type of tool and probably no point in selling lockpicks. but other than that just sell all the crap.

Damn, I already ate two ogre roots (including the one I got from the island before harbour town, damn, I´m glad I saved before the Scorpion showed up :lol).

Should I also sell stuff like necklaces, rings and pearls? Because some of them are worth 300 gold and I get maybe 50 for them. This game needs a barter skill!

[Truant]

They seriously need to fix the fall animation. Having the character fall the same way from a 1 foot ledge and a 100ft cliff is pretty stupid.

[Naeblish]

I got lvl 7 swords yesterday, with charged attacks. Made the game about 3 times easier, i can even slay ash beasts now with some right timing, before it was near impossible. Although it's cool to finally feel strong, the challenge (and exploration) is kinda what made this game so awesome.

[Binabik15]

I just played this waaaay to long.

I still can´t decide if I should join the Don or the Inquisition. The Inquisitor seems to be a fascist dick, but guys like Cid, Weasel and the fighter leader from the swamp make me think I don´t really want to be with them, either.

I had to jump over the town walls to get back to the swamp to learn lock picking without choosing sides :lol Now I´m heading bak to town, but as I said, I can´t decide what to do now.

[WhatRobEats]

I had to jump over the town walls to get back to the swamp to learn lock picking without choosing sides :lol Now I´m heading bak to town, but as I said, I can´t decide what to do now.

Damn smart move. I wish I would have thought to do this. Now I can't open chests on my walkabouts. "I wonder who can teach me to pick locks?"

[Ceebs]

I just played this waaaay to long. I still can´t decide if I should join the Don or the Inquisition. The Inquisitor seems to be a fascist dick, but guys like Cid, Weasel and the fighter leader from the swamp make me think I don´t really want to be with them, either. I had to jump over the town walls to get back to the swamp to learn lock picking without choosing sides :lol Now I´m heading bak to town, but as I said, I can´t decide what to do now.

It does not make much of a difference unless you want to be a mage.

[Binabik15]

It does not make much of a difference unless you want to be a mage.

The second time I want to be a mage. This time a want to be a fighty fighter that slays mighty beasts with his sword (even though I´m just at sword lvl 2). I guess I´ll just go with the bandits (I´d just have to give the Don his mommies heirloom) and think lalala every time the Don is talking about getting the island back for the people.:lol

[Macmanus]

What kind of magic can you get if you side with the Don? Can I still make scrolls and what not?

Also I must be the world's slowest video game player, because I sunk about 30 hours into Chapter 1 alone.

[Dennis]

What kind of magic can you get if you side with the Don? Can I still make scrolls and what not? Also I must be the world's slowest video game player, because I sunk about 30 hours into Chapter 1 alone.

You can use scrolls.

And no, you are not the only slow player, I also used about 30 hours on Chapter 1. Taking my sweet time :D

[lastplayed]

I've been watching my brother play this on his uber PC and it definitely looks like something I want to play. Problem is, the demo wasn't really worth playing on my laptop so my only option is the 360 version, which comes out here this week.

I'm not really bothered about lower textures or graphical features, so apart from those, is it still worth playing on the 360? Are there any game breaking bugs I should know about?

I'll be happy if it just keeps me occupied until Dragon Age comes out. :D

[eXistor]

I'm shocked and appalled that reviewers don't seem to appreciate what Risen does so well. Everyone seems hung uop on the (admittedly) terrible combat system and thus they score the game fairly low. I'm 100% convinced that if you don't like the game, then it's your fault, not the games'. Combat does play a part in the game and yes it's crap, but it's not an important part of the game and it shouldn't be a big part when tallying a score. Risen absolutely nails its worlddesign and exploration-based appraoch. That is what's important in this game. Not stats or character development or combat. It's sad to think so many people will skip this game because of the mediocre scores it's getting from the "bigger" publications like PC Gamer (65% my ass).

This is still one of my favorite games this year even if it does lose steam at the end. Risen has given me what I'm looking for in games and no other game this year (except maybe Demon's Souls) comes close to delivering this. When it's time to give our top 10 lists this year Risen will be above such titles as Uncharted 2 and...well I honestly can't think of another big-name title that was worth its salt.

[Binabik15]

You can use scrolls. And no, you are not the only slow player, I also used about 30 hours on Chapter 1. Taking my sweet time :D

Not even low level magic stuff? Lame. That doesn´t make my decision easier.

I've been watching my brother play this on his uber PC and it definitely looks like something I want to play. Problem is, the demo wasn't really worth playing on my laptop so my only option is the 360 version, which comes out here this week.

It´s not playable without chugging on my laptop, so I have to play on my brother´s pc when he´s away. Not a great situation to be in, but with uncertainity about the German Windows 7 for students, the unavailability of Radeon 5850s and the i5 750 melting through mobos I couldn´t even get the pc I want to play this.

So Risen is for me only a short interlude, afterwards it´s back to being a console peasant.:lol

[Q8D3vil]

hi

i was thinking about buying this game but i heard the optimization is very poor
i have gtx 295 - i7

do u know what the range of fps i will be getting ?!

i was hoping for 60 fps but i dont think its possible from what i heard :/

[Truant]

hi i was thinking about buying this game but i heard the optimization is very poor i have gtx 295 - i7 do u know what the range of fps i will be getting ?! i was hoping for 60 fps but i dont think its possible from what i heard :/

I had around 40-50 at max settings running 1650 x 1080, with 16xAF and 4xAA/SS combo on my Vista 64-bit setup, same basic specs.

[Durante]

i was thinking about buying this game but i heard the optimization is very poor

That's simply untrue. Considering the graphics (particularly in terms of lighting) it delivers and the fact that it's a completely seamless open world game (more so than eg. Oblivion) the performance is actually really good. I have a Core i7 and a GTX260 and my FPS always stay well in the playable range at 1920*1200 with max details and 4xAA.

[Dennis]

I'm shocked and appalled that reviewers don't seem to appreciate what Risen does so well. Everyone seems hung uop on the (admittedly) terrible combat system and thus they score the game fairly low. I'm 100% convinced that if you don't like the game, then it's your fault, not the games'. Combat does play a part in the game and yes it's crap, but it's not an important part of the game and it shouldn't be a big part when tallying a score. Risen absolutely nails its worlddesign and exploration-based appraoch. That is what's important in this game. Not stats or character development or combat. It's sad to think so many people will skip this game because of the mediocre scores it's getting from the "bigger" publications like PC Gamer (65% my ass). This is still one of my favorite games this year even if it does lose steam at the end. Risen has given me what I'm looking for in games and no other game this year (except maybe Demon's Souls) comes close to delivering this. When it's time to give our top 10 lists this year Risen will be above such titles as Uncharted 2 and...well I honestly can't think of another big-name title that was worth its salt.

Good post and I agree completely. Some games just don't get a fair shake by reviewers - most likely because they are not big budget hype games.

I also agree that while it loses a little steam at the end, the game as a whole is a fantastic RPG experience.

[Binabik15]

Good post and I agree completely. Some games just don't get a fair shake by reviewers - most likely because they are not big budget hype games. I also agree that while it loses a little steam at the end, the game as a whole is a fantastic RPG experience.

According to wiki Piranha Bytes has 21 employees. That´s probably less then each of the console manufacturers´ viral marketers on gaf.

I hate the hype based review system. Well to be fair: hype AND swag based review system.

[kinggroin]

23 hours in, chapter 2. I think after a bit of exploration (the gigyr quest was awesome as awesome gets), I'm ready to search for the rest of the t-stones I have one from the inquisitor and one from don's camp.

Anyone have suggestions as to which temple to start with?

[Zefah]

I'm shocked and appalled that reviewers don't seem to appreciate what Risen does so well. Everyone seems hung uop on the (admittedly) terrible combat system and thus they score the game fairly low. I'm 100% convinced that if you don't like the game, then it's your fault, not the games'. Combat does play a part in the game and yes it's crap, but it's not an important part of the game and it shouldn't be a big part when tallying a score. Risen absolutely nails its worlddesign and exploration-based appraoch. That is what's important in this game. Not stats or character development or combat. It's sad to think so many people will skip this game because of the mediocre scores it's getting from the "bigger" publications like PC Gamer (65% my ass). This is still one of my favorite games this year even if it does lose steam at the end. Risen has given me what I'm looking for in games and no other game this year (except maybe Demon's Souls) comes close to delivering this. When it's time to give our top 10 lists this year Risen will be above such titles as Uncharted 2 and...well I honestly can't think of another big-name title that was worth its salt.

Now that I have played through it twice, I really don't think the combat system is all that bad. On my second play through I was kicking ass even at low levels because I had figured out how the combat system works. It is that animations that are awful and they make the whole combat experience look kind of amateur.

Risen is definitely one of my favorite games of the year so far. Right now it is probably tied for #2 with Uncharted 2 and Batman right behind my #1 game which is Demon's Souls. I suspect my list might change a bit with Dragon's Age, Borderlands and Torchlight, though.

[Zefah]

hi i was thinking about buying this game but i heard the optimization is very poor i have gtx 295 - i7 do u know what the range of fps i will be getting ?! i was hoping for 60 fps but i dont think its possible from what i heard :/

You probably won't get a constant 60 fps, but the game is optimized very well which actually came as a huge surprise from considering the developer. The world is seamless but there is little to no 'hitching' when moving throughout the world. If you ever played Gothic 3 you would remember how the game constantly locked up when loading new resources. This just doesn't happen in Risen. I was probably getting an average of 30fps at maximum settings and 1920x1200 resolution with occasional dips below and occasional jumps to 60ish and my system is worse than yours.

[Binabik15]

Didn´t EviLore get 100+ fps with his new 5870? I think he mentioned it somewhere. This game seems to be one of the few that aren´t optimized for nvidia stuff only.

I have joined the Don now and bought super expensive hunter armour (shortly after buying seaman clothes...I was tired of the shipwreck look), beat up some gnomes and levitated to a sword in a gravestone and was told by the Inquisition head honcho in harbourtown that he saw me going into the volcano with the Inquisitor. Which I didn´t. Because I don´t even now where the hell he is :lol Do I really have to walk all the way to the volcano keep for a little chat? Those whiterobes still attack me.

The pirate girl was quite pissed that I´m one of the thugs now.

[brain_stew]

hi i was thinking about buying this game but i heard the optimization is very poor i have gtx 295 - i7 do u know what the range of fps i will be getting ?! i was hoping for 60 fps but i dont think its possible from what i heard :/

Even if your performance is low, there's very little varyability in the framerate, it stays in the same sort of area throughout. So it feels much smoother than other games with a similar average framerate. Risen has the most complex and beautiful lighting this side of Crysis, so obviously its no pushover requirements wise, but you're more than fine with that hardware.

I was able to enable transparency supersampling on a GTX 260, and still be pleased with performance @ 1080p so that's decent optimisation in my book.

Honestly, do you really need to ask if a game will run fine on a rig like that? You know the answer already.

[Minsc]

Didn´t EviLore get 100+ fps with his new 5870? I think he mentioned it somewhere. This game seems to be one of the few that aren´t optimized for nvidia stuff only. I have joined the Don now and bought super expensive hunter armour (shortly after buying seaman clothes...I was tired of the shipwreck look), beat up some gnomes and levitated to a sword in a gravestone and was told by the Inquisition head honcho in harbourtown that he saw me going into the volcano with the Inquisitor. Which I didn´t. Because I don´t even now where the hell he is :lol Do I really have to walk all the way to the volcano keep for a little chat? Those whiterobes still attack me. The pirate girl was quite pissed that I´m one of the thugs now.

Yup, this game benches very well on the 58XX series cards. If you're looking for a graphics card and wanting to play Risen, it's a very good match. The 5850/5870 should decimate StarCraft 2 and Diablo 3 as well (not to mention Dragon Age, and it delivers a nice 60+ in Dawn of War 2)... :)

[WhatRobEats]

Yup, this game benches very well on the 58XX series cards. If you're looking for a graphics card and wanting to play Risen, it's a very good match.

I can vouch for this. I know it is quite a leap but I went from a 9600 GT @ 25-30 FPS to my 5850 (which arrived thursday last week) with everything maxed it is running Risen at 70-75 FPS. I can totally see a 5870 getting close to 100 fps.

God I love this card. It has decimated everything I've thrown at it so far. I can't wait for it to eat up Dragon Age.