Mount & Blade (2008)

I loved Mount & Blade. It is a RPG game in which you are in full control of the direction you want to go in. Create a character, drop somewhere on the map, and start your journey.

There is no story or plot in Mount & Blade. It is completely up to you what you want to do next. Recruit men for your army, visit castles and cities to receive quests, gain favor for one of the five factions on the map, join their ranks, become your own lord with land and tax income, the possibilities are endless.

The mechanics in Mount & Blade are very simple and easy to learn. On the world map, you can travel in any direction and you encounter various activities, caravans, bandits and Lords from different factions. You can enter cities to join tournaments, buy stuff, sell stuff and gather some gossip about ongoing wars and events around the world map. Although the game has no official ending or goal, the way to play is to gather as much renown as possible by killing bandits, winning glorious battles against other factions and do good to the people and peasants. This way, other factions notice you and grant you land, titles and positions.

Each faction has its own units and “theme”. The Kingdom of Nords and Vaegirs are both north themed and consists of stereotypical Viking and north men units.

The Khergit Khanate are nomads and horse people from the Steppes and present a variation on the ancient Mongol empire. Then you got the Rhodoks, which can be traced back in name and units to the Rohan empire from Lord of The Rings.
The units and their appearance does remind heavily of this comparison. Lastly, you got the kingdom of Swadia, which (in my opinion) is just a stereotypical, standard medieval nation, that resembles ancient England, because of their superior crossbowman and cavalry.

The most fun with this game is just exploring, helping people, earn gold, expand your army and get renown throughout the map. You are constantly managing your supplies, keeping your soldiers happy and overall, just be a Lord, mercenary or free roaming scoundrel that is control of their own destiny. I can play the first Mount & Blade for hours, without it ever boring me.

The graphics in Mount & Blade are crude and a little ugly. However, this is one of those games in which I don’t care one bit. The framerate and animations are smooth, and that is what counts for me.

The music is a little generic on the world map and in cities, but the battle tracks are great. When you hear those trumpets at the start of a huge battle, you know it is going to be epic.

There are some small issues with the game. For starters, a specific quest is broken beyond your wildest dreams. This is a quest in which you need to chase/guide livestock around. This can be livestock from farmers that you can return, or cattle for the army you are serving. Controlling these cattle, is almost impossible. Make one wrong move, and they are gone forever. And even then, you never know where they will walk off too.

Lastly, the combat is a little vague. I learned that the only reliable way of hitting an enemy, is by swinging your sword from the right. All other directions feel inaccurate and stiff.

But overall, Mount & Blade is a great game. Simple, easy to learn and hours of fun.