Instead of being forced in one direction to discover the mysteries of the island and what's going on, I was told that players will have a large amount of flexibility in how you approach everything and everyone. The game, which designers Wizardbox and
Piranha Bytes have spent more than two and a half years working on in tandem, has been designed to create a true living world where everything reacts to your actions. For instance, I was told that a player could save a young woman close to the start of the game, and she'll become a companion and aid you with your moves. If you choose to leave her alone, or take her and abandon her later on, the character, and the reactions from other NPCs in the world, will respond to your personal decisions, denying you aid or even attacking you outright. There isn't a particular right or wrong way to play through Risen, and the designers want to allow the flexibility for players to make many more mature choices that aren't solely driven by violence, sex or greed to help them navigate this world. That's not to say that you can't succumb to your baser instincts; In fact, I was told that players that wanted to exercise their homicidal maniac urges could wander from one side of the island to the other slaughtering every single person and creature they meet. It would make things a bit blander storywise, but players could essentially play through the entire game and eventually reach the final boss by being the scourge of the island.
