Risen (2009)
Risen is a 2009 role-playing (rpg) video game made by Piranha Bytes and Deep Silver.
Shipwrecked on the island of Faranga, a nameless survivor washes ashore as ancient temples push up from the ground and the Inquisition tightens its grip on the island's one town. Risen, from Piranha Bytes of Gothic fame, drops you into a dense, handmade world where every faction wants something and your choices decide which side you serve. Combat is deliberate and punishing early on, rewarding patience over button-mashing. You explore Faranga's swamps, mines, and monastery, take on the powers waking beneath the island, and carve out a place for yourself from nothing.
Quick answers
What is Risen about?
Shipwrecked on the island of Faranga, a nameless survivor washes ashore as ancient temples push up from the ground and the Inquisition tightens its grip on the island's one town. Risen, from Piranha Bytes of Gothic fame, drops you into a dense, handmade world where every faction wants something and your choices decide which side you serve. Combat is deliberate and punishing early on, rewarding patience over button-mashing. You explore Faranga's swamps, mines, and monastery, take on the powers waking beneath the island, and carve out a place for yourself from nothing.
When was Risen released?
Risen was released on 2 October 2009.
Who made Risen?
Risen was made by Piranha Bytes and Deep Silver.
Similar games
Explore Risen guides
Risen in our writing
- Companion guide: The European RPG: Gothic, The Witcher and the Continental School
A few thoughts on Risen
Risen is for players who like a world that pushes back. The Witcher shares its muddy, morally grey fantasy where factions distrust each other and monsters are the least of your problems. Conan the Barbarian matches its lean, brutal sword-work and its sense of a lone stranger fighting for a foothold in hostile country.
Fantasy worlds splintered into warring factions who all want a piece of you
Risen strands a nameless survivor on Faranga, where the Inquisition, bandits, and treasure hunters fight over the island's ancient ruins, and every choice pulls you toward one side. The Witcher 3 and Skyrim hand you worlds carved up by rival powers, Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon turn politics into open war, and Lord of the Flies shows how fast a stranded group splits into camps.
Dark, heavy albums for grinding through a punishing quest
Risen's combat rewards patience over button mashing, the kind of slow, deliberate grind that pairs well with heavier listening. King Crimson's brooding prog atmosphere, Judas Priest's Painkiller, Moonspell's gothic metal on IX Equilibrium, and Fates Warning's The Spectre Within all carry that same weight: dense, dark, unhurried music for exploring swamps, mines, and monasteries at your own pace.
Sword-and-sorcery epics about outsiders who build power from nothing
Risen's hero washes ashore with nothing and has to earn standing among Faranga's factions through grit alone. Conan the Barbarian and The Witcher build their heroes the same way, from scratch, through violence and reputation. Brisingr, Wizard and Glass, Redwall, and Oathbringer follow characters who likewise carve out a place in a hostile land one hard-won alliance at a time.