Risen from Pirhana Bytes

[CeeKay]

hopefully they can redeem themselves after the messy release of Gothic 3.

[CeeKay]

interesting, and somewhat badly done, teaser.  some seemingly random moments.

[CeeKay]

some more footage.    getting a definite Gothic 3 vibe from it so far.

[CeeKay]

here's a few new screenshots.  between this, the new Two Worlds and Arcania it looks like we got a few decent open world RPG's coming up.

[D.A.Lewis]

Yeah, they'll come out some time or other. I have no question that those games will become a reality. But when?  I just hope Risen or Arcania allow you to climb mountains and run atop roofs. I loved doing that stuff in Gothic 2.

[CeeKay]

and it's due in October. 


it should actually be playable by mid spring 2010 

[CeeKay]

a new video.  I'm hoping they manage to recreate the Gothic 2 feel- I'm currently 40 hours into that game and only felt like I was burning out once, but that was due to me overlooking something obvious.

[ScubaV]

Everything I've read seems to indicate that while they probably haven't innovated much, Risen should be a more polished game very similar to Gothic 1 and 2.

[CeeKay]

here's the system specs:

Risen System Requirements:
Required Hardware Specifications:
• OS: Win XP
• CPU: 2.0 GHz
• GPU: Direct X 9.1; Pixel Shader 3.0; 256 MB (GeForce 7900 - ATI 1800)
• RAM: 1 GB
• Hard disk: ~2.5 GB

Recommended System Specifications:
• OS Win XP or Vista
• CPU: 3.0 GHz Dual Core
• GPU: Direct X 9.1; Pixel Shader 3.0; 512 MB (GeForce 8800 - ATI Radeon HD 2900)
• RAM: 2 GB
• Hard disk: ~2.5 GB

the install size seems kind of small, it may even be smaller than Gothic 2.

[Laura]

The new video looks great. I can't wait. Thanks.

[Greg Wak]

Interesting. Kinda modest specs. Weren't the first two games system pushers? I think this is a day one purchase for me.

[ScubaV]

Interesting. Kinda modest specs. Weren't the first two games system pushers? I think this is a day one purchase for me.

I don't think Gothic 1 and 2 were.  Gothic 3 was, but mostly because it was extremely poorly optimized.

[CeeKay]

a performance evaluation, but they are using a pretty good system to do most of it.

[Greg Wak]

That's not going to help me much as my system is not near that. The one interesting thing was that rez didn't effect frame rate much. I'm sure I'll be able to run this. Looking way forward to it especially since Dragon Age just got pushed back 2 weeks. And the screen shots look like a typical gothic game. I have really liked all 3 of these so far. Don't see how it can miss.

[CeeKay]

looks like if you live in Australia you might have to go an extra mile in getting a copy unless they change things.  PB seems to have an obsession with hookers and drugs 

[Creepy_Smell]

Was reading a thread on QT3 and someone posted this link which has 45 minutes of footage (3 15min vids). Seems to be the start of the game.

[CeeKay]

you're able to take down a wolf and an armed NPC early on in the game?  obviously PB has gone soft 

[CeeKay]

ding!  GOLDEN!  watching that playthrough got me a bit more excited.

[Greg Wak]

ding!  GOLDEN!  watching that playthrough got me a bit more excited.

You beat me to it! October 2nd! Although I never had any of the bugs that plagued the first three games it will be interesting to see if their supposed months of squashing will produce a cleaner release. Kudos to them for not holding up the pc release for the 360. I kinda wish Bioware had done that but if they had I would have been finished with DA and now I still have it to look forward to.

[Huw the Poo]

Kinda modest specs.

The PC I built last year doesn't meet the minimum specs.

[ScubaV]

Kinda modest specs.

The PC I built last year doesn't meet the minimum specs.

Dang.  How much money did you spend?  $100?  My (at the time) $800 3 year-old PC equals the recommended specs except for 2.66Ghz dual core instead of 3.0 dual core.

[Huw the Poo]

I didn't spend a great deal, no, it was just enough to be able to at least play modern games at the time.  Thankfully I've just got myself a new job so mega-PC is on its way.

Oh, it fails on the GPU by the way.  Mine's a 7600 GT.

[Sarkus]

My PC meets the recommended specs except for the CPU, where I have a quad core that's slower on a per core basis.  Assuming the game uses all four cores, that will probably offset the higher recommended speed.

Thus, my May 2008 $600 Dell seems to be fine for another holiday season, as long as I don't upgrade the monitor.  And if I do that, I think that a video card upgrade would probably be all that would be needed. 

[Turtle]

So, how are the controls this time around?

[TiLT]

Simple. You only have to press Alt + Page Up + 5 to swing your sword left, and Backspace + Scroll Lock + Tab to swing it right. Goes without saying, really.

[Razgon]

you DO know I'm actually sitting here, trying out those key combos right now?

oh, and its possible to do, I just dont know how I'll keep a hand on the mouse at the same time ;-)

[CeeKay]

don't forget the new movement controls.  w moves the left foot, e moves the right, and you have to hit them in perfect rhythm 

on a serious note, I don't think I heard anything about the controls yet.  I know they were blasted for the Gothic 3 controls, but I'm kind of hoping they have alternated control options like they did in Gothic 2.

[JCC]

Simple. You only have to press Alt + Page Up + 5 to swing your sword left, and Backspace + Scroll Lock + Tab to swing it right. Goes without saying, really.

I admit I LOLed at this. Well done.

[CeeKay]

from the WTF files, my local Gamestop is not taking pre-orders for this.  they said the option to do so isn't in the system.  anyone see any digital download sites that are planning to have it?

[WYBaugh]

from the WTF files, my local Gamestop is not taking pre-orders for this.  they said the option to do so isn't in the system.  anyone see any digital download sites that are planning to have it?

Steam has it for an October 2nd release.

[CeeKay]

from the WTF files, my local Gamestop is not taking pre-orders for this.  they said the option to do so isn't in the system.  anyone see any digital download sites that are planning to have it?

Steam has it for an October 2nd release.

thanks, I just checked that out.  I imagine they'll correct the release date as it isn't supposed to ship until the 6th, and hopefully they change the price too as I've heard it's only supposed to be 40 bucks.

[TiLT]

Risen's release date IS October 2nd. What's this about the 6th?

[CeeKay]

Risen's release date IS October 2nd. What's this about the 6th?

never mind, got my dates mixed up  

and looks like the 40 buck price on GS is a special deal.

[Greg Wak]

Yes Gamestop preorder for 39.99 is a sale price. Of course then you don't get to play it on release day because it only ships on the second. I think for ten bucks off I can wait a few days to play it. The reviews make it sound just like Gothic 1 and 2, and none of them have mentioned bugs. I am so all over this.

So gamestop charges tax for internet orders now? Between that and any shipping increase over the minimum means I'm not saving much even with the sale. I think I will go B&M and be washing up on that island Friday night.

[Destructor]

So gamestop charges tax for internet orders now? Between that and any shipping increase over the minimum means I'm not saving much even with the sale. I think I will go B&M and be washing up on that island Friday night.

You must have a shipping facility or something related in your state - otherwise it shouldn't be any tax.

[CeeKay]

So gamestop charges tax for internet orders now? Between that and any shipping increase over the minimum means I'm not saving much even with the sale. I think I will go B&M and be washing up on that island Friday night.

You must have a shipping facility or something related in your state - otherwise it shouldn't be any tax.

I think if they have a store in your state then they have to charge sales tax.

[EddieA]

Steam has posted the manual for the game.

[CeeKay]

Steam has posted the manual for the game.

cool, we aren't stuck with the Gothic 1 control scheme.

[Greg Wak]

Yup, they do have stores here in Illinois. I orderd from steam. 5 bucks off and no tax, plus I should get it on day one, unless a million people are doing the same thing.

[TiLT]

A Norwegian publication just gave the game a score of 9/10, saying that the only reason it didn't get a 10 was because it didn't innovate. It's like the older Gothics, only a lot better, according to the review.