Immortals Fenyx Rising

With a gorgeous mythological world to fight through and explore, it's a shame Immortals Fenyx Rising's puzzles are so unremarkable.

It mostly relies on borrowed ideas, but when its snarky tone isn't getting in the way, Immortals Fenyx Rising is a solid open-world adventure.

This Greek myth has a few borrowings too many.

This is a fun, vibrant open world game with a great sense of humour. I just wish it felt nicer to play.

Maybe open-world games don't need to boast 175 hours of playtime even while torturing developers with months of crunch. Immortals, and by extension Ubisoft, isn't immune to this problem, but there are pieces here that argue for a shift in the scope of a genre that has historically been more interested in simulating the minute details of a horse's genitalia than caring for the people who worked on them. Immortals makes an impression because it's not a massive game like Assassin's Creed Valhalla, even if it benefits from the many systems and ideas that Ubisoft's open-world games have refined over the years. Its sharpest ideas have just enough time to dig in before the game smacks you back down into an experience you could have anywhere else.

Rewarding exploration, satisfying combat, and imaginative puzzles converge with endearing storytelling and well-executed humor to provide an excellent open-world experience

Ubisoft's derivative gods and monsters game has divine charm, but starts to feel like a golden cage

Derivative and dull, Immortals Fenyx Rising’s great visuals can’t make up for a consistently bland experience

An imaginative, fun action game that has a nice story about family and personal growth at the heart of its epic adventure, and a good sense of humour, where you turn Aphrodite from a gracious tree back into a bitchy hot girl.

As far as next-gen titles go, Immortals Fenyx Rising is definitely one you should be adding to your list. It’s available on almost every platform – sorry, mobile gamers – and looks fantastic on the Xbox Series X, which I got to review it on. Overall, it’s a charming, cerebral and funny time-sink adventure that’ll really cheer you up and distract you if you’re having a quiet festive season this year.