Ok.... I just finished Ryse. I haven't the slightest idea of where that review score came from. Anybody that likes action brawlers, like God of War, will like this game. Not only is it gorgeous and controls flawlessly, it's also very fun. Not only do you upgrade your character, but you also upgrade the executions your guy performs.
While the review says that this is a linear game (that they take off points for), it is not without exploration. There are numerous collectibles to find through-out the world. There are plenty of opportunities to venture off the beaten path. Not every game needs to be an open-world game. How can you detract points because it's not open-world? Is God of War open world?
I started out playing Assassins Creed 4 and popped in Ryse as a change of pace. I played Ryse straight until I beat it. Because I am a person that looks for the collectibles (around 70 total in the game), I don't just run through the main story as quick as possible.
If played on the easier of the 4 difficulty levels, there's not much challenge with the rank-&-file bad guys. But if you play on the tougher 2 levels, it can be extremely tough. At the most, you'll have 6 guys surrounding you at one time. Trust me, you do not want anymore than that.
The game also switches things up by having you man a mounted cross bow, using archers to cover you, and puts you in phalanx formation with other soldiers.
Obviously this site is littered with whiny PS fanboys, but for the X1 gamers... don't be afraid to pick this up based on this bullshit review. I almost was and I'm so glad I didn't.