ELEX (2017) (PC) (Piranha Bytes)
0I haven't played a Piranha Bytes game for any extended period of time since Risen 1, and trying to get back into the rigid and punishing third-person combat this developer is known for (on a high difficulty level, no less) can best be characterized as a humbling experience...
Way back in 2010 when I got seriously addicted to (the unofficially patched version of) Gothic 3, there was still a real sense that Piranha stood for something unique in the RPG scene by offering a lovingly hand-crafted game world with rewarding exploration and challenging combat. Since then, however, open world games have improved in general - or at the very least become a lot less sterile and generic than. say, Oblivion or Fallout 3 - and we've also seen the wonderful resurgence of old school alternatives such as Pillars of Eternity or Divinity: Original Sin. And while this might sound a bit harsh, in the current marketplace Piranha's particular brand of action RPG comes off as a somewhat clumsily executed compromise between old and new that made a lot more sense in 2006. There's still fun to be had with a new game from the creators of Gothic, of course, but I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of fans have simply moved on by now.