At E3 2013 Microsoft featured Ryse: Son of Rome as a game that would show naysayers what the Xbox One was capable of; however, the general consensus was that the game had quite a ways to go before being a must have title.

Yes it screams "I used to be a Kinect game", yes it's limited in story as well as combat and yes, you've played many, many games like this previously, better games with more systems and gameplay but...but...crucially, Ryse: Son of Rome looks breathtaking.

Demonstrating a positively Emmerichian grasp of history, Ryse: Son of Rome dares to ask the question 'what if all of Rome's Imperial age took place over the course of a simple three-act revenge story?

Nailing a double execution and watching Marius flit back and forth; gutting two men simultaneously

Killing the exact same guy five times in the same fight

" Ryse: Son Of Rome " has probably been the surprise game of 2013 for me. Ridiculed by the press since it was re-announced at E3, and followed by a fairly disinteresting showing at Gamescom, I didn't initially have a lot of time for the game.

Crytek leaves behind the shooting of 'Crysis' for its historic entry in the Xbox One launch lineup, opting for spears, shields, swords and Marius Titus, a Roman soldier hell-bent on revenge.

Ryse looks spectacular, as you'd expect from Crytek, and the basic combat is extremely satisfying - even if it doesn't evolve much over the game. Meanwhile, the Gladiator Mode gives the game longer appeal, but is poisoned by randomised, monetised, loot.

Well; it looks great; The combat basics are great; Excellent; well-acted story

Combat doesn't evolve; Cheap instakill moments; Elephants

Extremely brilliant graphics... Very intense ... And very enjoyable. Don't get me wrong it has it's flaws (single player could be longer, and with lots of room for improvement for a potential sequel). It's single player story and gameplay is very good.

Ryse: Son of Rome is a bombastic action title filled with bloody battles, cinematic encounters, and gravely sounding centurions barking orders about glory and empire, but it's also very repetitive.

I was really impressed with this game and it is probably the best game I have played on the Xbox One and it is one of the cheaper games for some reason so I urge you not even to think twice about buying this game!

If you thought you would like Ryse but listened to the reviews like myself and didn't pick it up, honestly the game is far from those scores. I picked this up at a decent price and the game exceeded far beyond my expectations.