Risen 3 is an RPG that places you in a Caribbean-style world with many islands to explore, several factions, a huge amount of loot, monsters to kill, quests, and characters.
As a fan of the first two Risen games, I pre-ordered this one hoping for another 50 hours of great fun. And on that, the game delivered exactly what I expected, as it is very similar to the first two. So if you liked the first two, you'll like this one. If you hated them, then don't bother trying this one because you're guaranteed to hate it too.
Which brings me to the only disappointing thing about this game: the series is not evolving, it's just not getting better. With every Risen game, you get a silly main story, with side quests that range from interesting to mundane. You get characters that are developed just enough to give them "character", but not enough to get you to care about them. You get a frustrating boss fight, and a ridiculously unsatisfying dumb ending with no closure.
Pros:
1. Many islands with plenty of areas to explore.
2. Acceptable production values, for a low-budget game (decent voice acting, graphics)
3. Huge number of side quests, loot, characters.
4. A solid levelling system.
5. About 40 hours of gameplay
6. No bugs!
Cons:
1. The combat is very clunky.
2. The boss fight is far more frustrating than fun.
3. The ending is ridiculously short, unsatisfying
The combat is the biggest problem with this game, and is what prevents it from gaining more fans. Most hate it, but some like it. Even those who do like it (such as myself) will admit it is extremely clunky and can often be frustrating. One of the controversial things about it (which is the thing that I like about it) is that it seems to have no level-scaling. As you gain powers, all enemies become easier to kill. Some players find that annoying, since it makes the game very difficult at first, and very easy toward the end. But I like it because it gives you a satisfying sense of progression. In other games, levelling up doesn't matter - since all enemies level up with you. In here, levelling up really opens up more of the world to you.
Overall, I think this game (and series in general) is very underappreciated. There are many people out there who avoid it due to the negative reviews, but who may actually love it if they gave it a chance. It's a niche product; it's not aimed at the mainstream, but it achieves what it is trying to achieve very competently and is therefore a great game for the right audience.