NONLINEAR LINEARITY
[...] Certain dangerous areas will only become accessible after completing an important (main)quest, which will, like in Gothic 1 and 2, start a new chapter. So more story and player control, but won’t this mean less freedom? Piranha Bytes says no because there is an elaborate quest structure with choices which may have huge consequences. You’ll have to decide in the first few hours which group to join: the rebels or the inquisition? Depending on your choice you’ll have a different story which a completely different ending. This however won’t mean you’ll not be able to get quests or trade with the other side. In the volcano stronghold you’ll find not only inquisition troops but also clerics which are masters in magic and have their own plans for the excavations.
The side quests you can undertake can, like the main quests, be solved in different ways and can unlock different story elements. There is for example a quest where you’ll have to solve a murder in the inquisition headquarters. Investigation of the crime scene will point in the direction of a smuggling gang. Which raises the question who to trust? How do they even get their goods past the guards? And wouldn’t it be more interesting to join the gang instead of playing Sherlock Holmes? Many questions and opportunities all from one quest. The developer made about 300 of those extensive quests which will all be more elaborate than those of Gothic 3. Watch yourself however, cause Risen has a dynamic reputation system which will not only keep track of your reputation within a certain community, but also from individual people. Diplomacy and choosing sides in an important part of the game. Not to worry however, because there are several possibilities to work with people from all sides, so you’ll never end up the loner no one will talk to.
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