Risen has some issues, but no way in hell is this an average "7/10" game this site will have you believe.
The issues are mostly superficial which could have been fixed with a bigger budget. My main gripe are the animations and physics. Jumping looks retarded, characters barely animate at all when they speak, and the movements are generally stiff and unnatural.
Unfortunately the game gets quite boring towards the end with a disappointing final boss fight. Still, these issues should not detract from anyone trying this game out.
[OVERVIEW]
Gameplay (8/10)
+Freedom in a sandbox environment
+Great sense of exploration
+Lots of atmosphere
+Diverse quests that fit into the story nicely
+Great leveling system
+Good selection of weapons
+Challenging combat system
+Decent companion AI
-More armors please
-Gets a little boring towards the end
-Crappy final boss
-Lock-on system is a hit or miss and gets in the way sometimes
Graphics (8/10)
+Great textures
+Great lighting
+Art design is filled with dense forests, beaches, rough bricks, and rough looking characters
+Could run better but is still well optimized enough
-Some low polygon models and weird looking grass/trees
-No free camera and poor animations make everything look pretty stiff
Sound (9/10)
+Very atmospheric soundtrack
-Which gets a bit repetitive
+Cool sound effects, monsters sound creepy, slashes sound realistic, and magic sounds boomy
+Decent voice acting (much better that Gothic 3)
Value (10/10)
+About 40 hours long
+Lots of questing
+Relatively cheap (especially on steam sale)
+Very replayable
If you haven't tried Risen yet, I strongly suggest you at least download the demo. It may not be for everyone due to lack of direction and steep challenge at the start, but if that's your thing then get it right now!