Ryse: Son of Rome is an action-adventure hack and slash game played in a third-person perspective. Players assume control of Marius Titus, a Roman general who is on a quest to avenge his murdered family. Throughout the game, players gain access to weapons that can be used to assault enemies or defend themselves. For instance, players are equipped with a sword that can be used to strike and kill enemies, and a shield that can be used to deflect enemies' attack and break their defense. The strength of each attack can be decided by players. In addition to melee-based combat, the game features spears and javelins, which serve as ranged weapons.
The game's combat puts emphasis on "flow", a term referring to a player's ability to move on to fight against another enemy upon defeating and killing an enemy with few limitations in between. Combat is combo-based, and rewards are given to players who are able to build a long combo. Marius can block attacks to break enemy combos to counterattack. In several segments of the game, Marius is involved in large-scale battles. Players are tasked to co-operate with, or command, other non-playable characters to defeat large numbers of enemies. The game features Kinect voice integration, in which players can issue commands to other characters to provide assistance, such as calling in arrows or catapults.
When players deal enough damage to an enemy, they can activate an execution sequence. Once the execution sequence has been initiated, enemies involved in the execution are highlighted automatically with colors by the game, and players can perform a series of quick time events by pressing the appropriate buttons. These execution sequences serve to grant additional resources to players, depending on how well the execution is performed. At any time prior to initiating an execution, the player can select one of four categories of executions to perform upon weakened enemies; the selected type of execution determines the type of resource that will be granted when an enemy is executed. Upon completing a successful execution sequence, players are granted the type of execution that was selected. There are four perks available for players. One boosts the player's damage for a short period after the execution; one refills the player's Focus bar; one allows players to regain lost health, and the last significantly boosts the amount of experience points received from the kill. These experience points can be used to purchase upgrades for various attributes, such as health, damage, or Focus bar capacity, and to unlock additional execution moves. The game still automatically completes and finishes these execution sequences when players fail to press the highlighted buttons, but provides a much smaller reward. Lining up two or more weakened enemies in close proximity allows the player to perform a double execution sequence, which greatly increases the reward granted.
There is also a co-operative multiplayer mode, in which two players team up to accomplish various challenges and fight against waves of increasingly difficult enemies in the Roman Colosseum, a gladiator arena setting. The environments of the Colosseum change dynamically in a match to add variety to the mode. Players can gain access to increasingly advanced armor and weapons as they progress through these multiplayer matches. Microtransactions are also featured, allowing players to purchase in-game upgrades with real-life currency.
Plot
Ryse: Son of Rome is set in an alternate version of Rome. The game's tutorial section depicts Marius (voiced by John Hopkins) leading the defense of Rome against oncoming Celtic barbarians led by Boudica (Rachel McDowall). Marius hands a small, nondescript sack to a subordinate with the instructions to display it from an elevated position, then helps secure the Roman emperor, Nero (Sebastian Abineri), in a private safe room. At the emperor's behest he begins to tell his story; the rest of the game is an extended flashback depicting Marius' story up to this point.
Marius begins his story as a soldier having just successfully completed his training, who is about to leave Rome to serve his duty in the relatively sedate II Legion, holding a post in peaceful Alexandria. Just before his deployment, he enjoys a return to his family in Rome and the adulation of his father Leontius (Nick Brimble), a former general and current member of the Roman Senate. Marius' visit is cut short by a barbarian incursion; a running battle through the streets of Rome results in the death of his parents and younger sister. Commander Vitallion, a friend and former comrade of the slain Leontius, transfers Marius to his XIV Legion, and promises Marius vengeance for his murdered family. Vitallion leads the XIV Legion to Britain, but the fleet is ambushed off the coast; Marius leads the counter-attack, rallying the surviving Roman troops and nearly single-handedly preventing the destruction of the remainder of the fleet, which impresses Vitallion. Marius is promoted to Centurion.
After receiving reports of a rebellion at York, Marius heads north to aid the defeated legion stationed there. Upon capturing King Oswald and his daughter Boudica, Basilius, the son of the Emperor, reveals that his brother Commodus (Gerald Kyd) has been captured by the barbarians, whose whereabouts are unknown. Basilius, threatens and forces King Oswald into revealing the location of Commodus, who has been traded to the fearsome men north of Hadrian's Wall. Basilius orders Vitallion and Marius to retrieve him. After crossing the border into Caledonia, the party is ambushed, Vitallion is taken hostage by barbarians, and Marius is separated from his legion. Marius makes his way into the enemy camp, freeing and rallying captured Roman soldiers along the way. He kills the barbarian leader Glott and rescues Commodus and Vitallion from being burned inside a giant Wicker man.
