RYSE: Son Of Rome (Game Review)

Men, here beith a game that makes you feel like a Gladiator or a man with the strength of 300! Where blades bleed and shields shatter and the courage of one man can lead an entire legion into the heart of battle against the Celtic Barbarian bastards, for we are men of ROME!
Actually this isn't working (this whole ancient dialect thingy I'm trying to do) so let's get down to bloody business in one of Xbox Ones beloved masterpieces from the men at Crytek (who bought you The Crysis Trilogy), here's an ancient tale of revenge, war and full on carnage in RYSE: Son Of Rome!

The game is told from Roman Centurion Marius Titus (in a "In medias res" which means narrating a story through the mid-point instead of the beginning) who tells the greedy Emperor Nero his story that durates 10 years prior to their situation at the moment with the Celtic Barbarians overrunning the palace. The cutscenes show the story through Greek/ Roman statues carved on a very very long wall (Roman Transition) while Marius narrates his history from losing his family to barbarian scum to immediately joining the 14th Legion to help serve the empire and soon lead up to where the beginning fight took place. The story proved how spoilt and rude the rich really are, how soldiers are fighting for a sad and tainted cause that makes their love for Rome something worth losing (if that makes sense).
Also another small spoiler is the mythical tale of "Damocles" and a Goddess known as "Nemesis" help make the story's purpose towards Marius more personal as well as more historical.

 

The graphics are astounding (I mean what else are you to expect from those beautiful High Definition graphics that were in The Crysis Trilogy?) The landscapes were beautiful, magnificent and realistic thanks to how much effort the creators have spent putting into this graphical war game. The detail on Marius is accurately detailed like when his Armour glistens in the sun and soon after a important moment in the story when he comes out of a muddy river, his character is so detailed it looks too good to be real (weird moment to compliment the character though). One of my proudest moments in the game was witnessing the blurry graphics brighten up and glow as I stepped into the Colosseum and see the field switch around like a 3D chessboard with different environments to make it more challenging than just a huge sandpit. The bloody content is so awesome and it's what I think draws gamers to this along with the HD content, I mean with all the slaughtering, throat stabbing, decapitating, arm slicing combat that strongly emits an ancient Romanian age of combat. This is what makes this such a definitive game for the Xbox One.

 

The controls are fairly easy (they just take a whole load of time and patience to master) but this game tests all your "cat-like reflexes" as you press A to block, B to dodge, X to slash and Y to kick/ break defence and RT to enter execution mode and press Y or X according to the enemy flashing colour as you watch them die a painful death at the hands of your mighty sword! You also get to man the "Scorpion" a powerful bow that helps you sniper out the oncoming fools who will soon fall to your arrow.
I loved the design on making the Health and Focus, a sword that was red for health and white for focus. Smart design no doubt about it!
Another different mechanic in the game is ordering your men to create a formation (preferably a "Turtle Shell" formation to creep forward, while holding down the A button to shield yourselves then holding down RT to aim and throw your spears at the archers). Also you can call your soldiers to fire a rain of arrows "Fire Volley" during huge fights. Lastly you must remember to switch between gaining "Power", Focus", "XP" or "Health" by using the D-Pad to help you stay alive and gain your chosen remedy after killing and finishing combos successfully.

One thing that puzzles me and because of the way I think, I wonder how in real-life and history could men have the stamina and strength to fight for ages and ages, taking slashes and continuing on their chosen path. I doubt even Adrenaline Rush could keep men going (video games and real-life combat are far too different to compare). Where do men find this strength and will to fight on and on without rest and recuperation and not even a tea break?

The combat was heavily criticised by everyone for being "too repetitive". Well I agree but then again I suppose it's easier than the fighting games that involve button bashing combos and luckily this game helps simplify it all to just 4 buttons that help you slaughter and kick ass. The style of combat is amazing as it shows real ferocious sword and shield attacks which proves the game has taken real fighting style/ techniques that are used in films like "Troy" and "Gladiator" I feel (Marius reminds me of the legendary warrior Achilles!)
When Russell Crowe said the famous quote in "Gladiator" - "Are you not entertained?" I felt that it was necessary to reply with "Yes I am entertained! Thank you for asking"!

I am happy but I also sigh a little as the combat wasn't something to be totally amazed by when it comes to controls and a bit of free-roaming but as for performance I think it was flawless but quite hard to keep up the combos (for achievement purposes) because the "fat barbarians" with sword and shields and the "heavy barbarians" always broke my combos when I was aiming for the 100x combo, but luckily so far achieved mostly 30-55x near mid way after practising and learning each class of barbarian's attack style.

Upgrading your skills and perks are vital in order to survive the onslaught that awaits you and if you should die, you can upgrade yourself then before continuing. You can pay for upgrading skills with "Valor" (XP you earn) or with "Gold" what you buy on the Xbox Live Marketplace (yeah like I'd do that?!)
A lot of achievements are awarded to the players if you are willing to scour, scavenge and search every nook and cranny of the locations. Scrolls from dead soldiers, Shields (Vista) and Chronicles are everywhere and luckily can be identified by a green aura that glows when you are near them. I must have taken far longer than expected to collect them all plus if actual gamers were watching me, they'd probably think I was a nutter just taking my time by travelling the corners of the areas looking for crap.

The levels range from Roman palaces to Sherwood Forest, later Northern Forest (that looks very much like Mirkwood from The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug) and soon a siege in York, Britain and the final levels well you'll have to see for yourself (you even get the pleasure of a trip to a very explicit strip club).
The Multiplayer is what keeps the hype of the game going after it's limited 8 levels. You step into the Colosseum and hear the crowd cheer as you get ready to give them a show of your skills and let your victims taste your blade. Choose a Roman God to support as well as reward you with tidings that will benefit you to keep on going.

Finally to conclude this tale, the ending was not bad (fairly like Gladiator, in fact the whole tale was like Gladiator to be honest). Settling the score with those that deserved to die was the right choice it seemed. The final kill was creative and impressive to see "a stuffed pig skewered for the world to see"! Thus concludes my review on a ancient tale that can only be re-lived on the Xbox One.