Risen releases subsequent week, on January twenty fourth. It is a violent and unforgiving, but deeply immersive and fascinating RPG, which additionally occurred to be launched 14 years in the past.
Reissues aren’t precisely unusual today, however one thing about this one intrigued me. It isn’t a remaster or remake, only a port for PS4, Xbox One, and Change, with a modest replace on PC. Though it nonetheless has gamers – the Steam model nonetheless will get about 100 concurrent copies per day – it isn’t fairly the enduring success that Age of Empires 2 was. To be trustworthy, I am unsure it was even a giant hit at launch – it actually acquired a somewhat blended reception from critics.
So why re-release it virtually unchanged in 2023? Clearly, on some stage, writer THQ Nordic is hoping to make some cash from new gross sales – I am not solely naive – nevertheless it hardly looks like an apparent money seize. Was there a social media marketing campaign by followers? Or elevated curiosity by an influencer? Does this set the stage for a sequel? I felt there needed to be a much bigger cause behind this seemingly innocuous launch.
Not precisely a high-profile thriller, however I believed it would not harm to test it out. After formulating a extra diplomatic model of the “Why would you try this?” query, I despatched an electronic mail to a THQ Nordic spokesperson. The reply was a pleasing shock.
“[For] A number of years, THQ Nordic [has been] Observe the so-called “asset care” technique. We frequently port outdated video games to new platforms or [e.g.] 2018 introduced a patch for the then 17-year-old Desperados to run correctly with Win10.
“We expect it is vital to deal with outdated IPs, particularly after they nonetheless have avid followers. The primary Risen was an incredible RPG that adopted the design path of the Gothic sequence and deserves one other shot, particularly from a console model. That was in 2009. It was a fairly dangerous port. This new model makes Risen absolutely playable on all well-liked console methods for the primary time.”
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Is it actually that cool? It is somewhat heartening for a writer that has an energetic coverage of doing proper by its again catalog, particularly provided that it is a assortment that THQ Nordic acquired in 2019 together with a variety of others, somewhat than one thing in-house. At a time when massive publishers like EA and Ubisoft are glad to easily shelve IP, ignore their previous video games, and even discontinue new releases that are not working immediately, this is a take a look at gaming historical past. It’s refreshing to see.
As for whether or not a sequel to Risen is within the works, there aren’t any plans in the meanwhile – however they have been eager to remind me of the in-development remake of its shut sibling Gothic.
“At this level, we do not have anything to announce concerning the Risen franchise – however by no means say by no means. We do not suppose many individuals actually anticipated a Gothic remake, and it is now in full manufacturing. So let’s have a look at what’s subsequent.” “Awaiting for Risen.”
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Let’s examine, actually, and for these tempted to return to Risen on PC within the close to future, this is what you’ll be able to anticipate from subsequent week’s free patch:
The PC replace options some gameplay fixes, gamepad/UI controls, and achievements, in addition to full compatibility with trendy {hardware} (together with Steam Deck) utilizing DirectX 11 and 64-bit technical structure.”