I can't help but be fond of Piranha Bytes.

I mean, sure, nowadays, the only thing it has in common with the quartet that gave us Gothic 22 years ago is the name; and, yeah, they have been making pretty much the same game since 2001... But for all their flaws, they remain one of the few semi-indie studios that stubbornly persists in realizing its own ideas. Which, in a world of franchises, remakes, prequels and pervasive market-research-fueled "innovation" is no small feat.

So even though, with every new game, the Piranhas merely rehash the same t(ried/ired)-and-true Gothic formula (competing factions/a global crisis/open world exploration), at least the worlds their games take place in are their own and varied enough to be interesting – and ELEX is no different.

The seventh (!) Gothic remake, ELEX is set in the world of Magalan: an earth-like planet that used to be home to a thriving civilization slightly technologically ahead of our own, before a comet strike gave it a one way ride back to the dark ages. The comet's impact was threefold: first, it drastically reduced Magalan's population; second, it brought the titular Elex – an alien element with miraculous properties; and third, it fractured the cataclysm's survivors into four disparate factions, each with their own idea of how Elex should be used to shape the world.

So, true to Piranha form, you get: the Berserkers – medieval technophobes who count on bows, swords and magic for survival and use Elex to grow "World Hearts" — giant plants which slowly reintroduce greenery to the barren planet; Mad-Max-ian Outlaws, who hang out in desert scrapyard strongholds, gleefully resort to chain-swords and guns, and use Elex to produce drugs for profit and entertainment (as you do); and Clerics – the most technologically-advanced of the three factions, who also (hilariously) happen to be religious fanatics...

Though they have little in common, the one thing the three factions do agree on is their dislike of the Alb: former Clerics who found that eating Elex makes you Stronger Than Your Average Bear and, subsequently, decided to "gather" all Elex for themselves (naturally, preferrably, by force).

If the Alb sound like baddies, don't be too hasty to judge: in a neat twist, the player character – Jax – happens to be an Alb commander who crash-lands in the wilderness during a solo mission and – away from Elex influence – turns out to be a pretty decent guy.

In terms of gameplay, ELEX doesn't stray too far from the Gothic blueprint.

Jax is (clunkily) controlled from third-person, can jump, climb, sprint, dodge and has two attacks: an LMB combo and a special (strong) attack that charges if you time your combo right. Combat, while slightly more streamlined than previous Piranha attempts – is still poorly implemented and clumsy, which wouldn't be that big of a deal if it wasn't for the fact that combat is what you do the most of in an ELEX playthrough (what dialogue skills are available in-game are – oddly enough for such a well-written game – severely uderused).

There's a crafting mechanic that lets Jax upgrade weapons, or make potions, ammo and jewelry. It's not too involved, but offers a little more gameplay latitude than past Piranha outings.

World exploration still rocks as much as in previous Gothic/Risen titles and while the world of Magalan isn't as big as other, more modern, productions, it's big enough you won't run out of places to go too quickly (depending on your playstyle, a single run could last between 50 and 90 hours). World design is also much more elaborate than your run-of-the-mill, Bethesda Vista of Boredom, with one-of-a-kind locations and enough unique assets to make exploration intriguing.

By far, the best, most fully-realized aspect of ELEX, however, is the writing. From Jax himself, who – with his neat mix of "blank slate" and "former drone coming to terms with These Things Called Feelings" – is the best nameless Piranha PC yet; to Companions Worth Knowing (like the endearingly reasonable Duras, adorably faithful C.R.O.N.Y., lovingly unhinged Nasty or perfectly logical Falk); a Plot Worth Playing, that is well-structured and bound to keep you on your toes with exciting developments; and a fully-realized world with deep lore, a functioning society That Makes Sense (TM) and quests that offer a surprising amount of branching and varied endings.

One thing I've always liked about Piranha Bytes characters was how "normal" they were. Not boring – not overblown walking clichés – they've always straddled the middle ground and seemed all the more human for it — and whether you are courting one of the two romanceable characters or simply gabbing with a minor NPC, ELEX conversations all come across as ones that could, conceivably, take place in a given situation. You can tell all writing was handled by the same, competent, team and at no point will you be unpleasantly jarred by a tonal shift that veers wildly away from a character's personality (here's looking at you, Johnny).

Another deviation from past titles is the fact that, instead of being limited to a Single-Faction Solution, Jax ends up uniting disparate members and Forming His Own Band at a spot called Origin, which – eventually – becomes a place to call home.

Finally, in another Piranha Bytes first, ELEX can continue to be played after the main plot ends! Not only that, but – instead of merely letting you roam over static set-pieces you've seen before – the game shows you the outcome of the ending you chose (which I think is something more games oughta do).

No two ways about it, ELEX is an odd duck.

On the one trotter, it's the seventh iteration of the same formula Brüggemann, Hoge, Nyul, and Putzki set down in 2001 and offers little in the ways of improvements or variation. On the other, however, it's the most fully-realized version of said formula – with a world, plot and cast of characters that top anything Piranha Bytes has done before. If you can see past the clunky controls, the homebrewed engine's quirks and bugs and the occasional lack of polish, there's a really great time to be had, traipsing across Magalan and watching a former Alb grow more human with every interaction...

If you like open world exploration, good, consistent writing and likeable characters; are a fan of Gothic or Risen but are ready for something different; or simply want to check out an interesting world that's more unique than most, give ELEX a try. It might not be anything new, gameplay-wise, but – when a formula works – sticking to it is not necessarily a bad thing.

Pig Recommends:

• -if you've never played the original Gothic, it's (still) well worth a playthrough; it's very clunky by modern standards, but it offered gameplay that had never been seen before (such as trainers for skills, combat that didn't have to be lethal, thoughtful level design that kept exploration fresh and interesting and a world that changed in the wake of quest developments); Gothic 2 is more of the same, with few improvements; as are the first two Risen games (though Risen 2 also has pirates — which I found endearing to no end);