3/5 ★ – SheikhYabooti's review of Ryse: Son of Rome.

In all honesty, I’m surprised that “what if Call of Duty was a hack-n-slash action game?” hasn’t resulted in something very much like Ryse before. Still, even now, this seems like the only version of that idea, which is a big part of what makes it so fun to play. And it is fun, even if it’s really short and simple and relies much too heavily on the technology that Microsoft was showing off here (it was an Xbox One launch title, but you’d never be able to tell if you didn’t know.) It still looks consistently great and absolutely fantastic in spots. And it’s still highly playable — not that it was ever the best game mechanically anyway. But I like the simplicity of the combat. It isn’t as rhythmic as something like the Arkham system (an inspiration, clearly, especially in the parries) but it isn’t as attritional and combo-based as a straight actioner like God of War or Devil May Cry. It finds a pleasingly weighty middle ground and focuses heavily on the execution system, which is jam-packed with a load of stylish-looking and satisfying kills. It’s probably a bit relentlessly bloodthirsty for some, but I found it all quite cathartic, to be honest. The combat also has a fun gimmick in being able to select one of four systems that your executions contribute towards — health regen, focus build, XP gain, or damage increase. That adds a bit more strategy to it all, though I rarely made much use of Focus so tended to neglect it. It’s also a pretty easy game so there isn’t much need for experimentation. There aren’t many enemy types so once you’ve got each one down you’ll be sorted for virtually the entire game. Story-wise, it’s the typical “Roman realises Rome is bad” narrative, but in this case he develops a personal vendetta against Emperor Nero and sees him as a kind of violation of Rome’s principles, so he doesn’t actually turn against Rome itself. There are some supernatural flourishes involving the Roman pantheon and the legend of Damocles which helps to liven things up a bit, but it’s mostly a straightforward tale of revenge. I liked it — it had some good turns and excused some nice set-pieces — but I don’t think it’s what anyone is here for. As for what they ARE here for, Ryse still provides it. Just don’t expect it to provide anything more than that.