If you've played a Piranha Bytes game (or any tier-2 RPG) before, then you know what to expect. And Risen 2 delivers.
1) A+ titles that get gobs of development money and marketing (Skyrim, the Fallout games, Dragon Age, Mass effect, etc)
2) JRPG's
3) Almost-but-not-quite games that are fine for an RPG purist, but don't have the polish to please the casual fan.
Risen 2 falls squarely into the third category (along with Two Worlds 1 and 2, Divinity 2, Gothic 4, Alpha Protocol, etc) But I'm an RPG fan, and this game is made for RPG fans. If you liked any of the games I just mentioned, you'll feel right at home here.
It's an RPG set in a pirate world. You're a pirate, looking for the ultimate weapon to use against the Kraken, etc etc. Along the way, you fight, find treasure, explore places, do a bunch of sidequests, etc. The story is adequate, the characters are enjoyable, and the sidequests are believable and generally fun.
I also liked the character building choices - you get Glory points for killing things, and these let you level up your basic Attributes (blades, guns, cunning, toughness, voodoo, etc). But to increase your skills and talents... well, those you have to buy from trainers. So leveling is somewhat two-fold (some skills you can't be trained in until a certain attribute level, etc.) I think it's a fairly deep system that makes sense. However, i will point out character building is all numbers - there's but one choice for your character's look (dark-haired male, eyepatch, etc). Fortunately, there are a ton of clothing (armor) options to customize to your liking.
Where the game falls short is combat and similar. It's more or less button mashing, and it's not very fluid. Once you get a gun and get better at blades, combat improves, and unlocking better attacks / getting better weapons helps a lot too. But let me be plain - this isn't great combat no matter how you slice it. On a scale of 1-10, it maxes out at a 7. It's NOT horrible or unenjoyable, but it's not a strong point either. Oh, and your sneaking/pickpocketing is not really handled well in the context of the world - you somewhat sneak in plain sight, and pickpocket people standing in front of them, with your skill - not the animation/etc - determining your success. The RPG purist in me writes this off as the video equivilent of the abstract nature of dice rolls in DnD all those years ago.
Another place where some will say the game falls short is in your journal and quests. Like most of the tier-2 games I mentioned above, this game will not hold your hand and give you an insta-radar to your goal. You sometimes have to actually think on where to go next, etc. I find this a refreshing plus.
I piad full price ($60) for this, as I really wanted a new RPG for the summer, and knew what to expect. I'm happy with it, but I'll be honest - unless you are an RPG fanatic, wait for a sale.
So there you have it. Risen 2 is a fun little pirate-themed RPG that has a few flaws (but like I mentioned, some of the flaws - like the lack of quest radar - are actually plusses.)