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Mount & Blade

EMAIL PRINT pc

8.8 User Score:

Mixed or average reviews

Based on 28 critic reviews
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Based on 204 votes
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Game Info

Publisher: Paradox Interactive

Developer: Taleworlds

Genre(s): Role-Playing Game

Players: 1

ESRB Rating: RP (Rating Pending)

Release Date: September 16, 2008

Summary

Calradia is a land at war, a land offering great riches and even greater dangers to the adventurers and mercenaries that flock to shed their blood on its soil. With unerring courage and a strong sword, an unknown stranger can make a name as a warrior. Raise a band of hardened soldiers, become the lord of several towns and castles, and perhaps one day you may wield the power to depose kings and crown new ones at a whim. Free-form sandbox gameplay. You are free to go anywhere and do anything you choose in a world that has more than a hundred unique locations, including villages, castles and towns. Unique horseback combat. You are able to attack your enemies on your horse, whether you’re swinging a sword, holding a lance or unleashing arrows. Highly advanced, sophisticated and intuitive sword-fighting system. Fight on horseback and on foot using an expansive variety of medieval weapons, each with their own unique characteristics, strengths and weaknesses. Be anything from a lonesome adventurer to a commander of armies or an owner of villages, castles or towns. Sophisticated AI that will provide a challenge both in combat and in the strategic realm. Freedom to interact with hundreds of characters, including kings, lords, ladies, commoners as well as heroes you can take on as companions, each with their own personality. [Paradox Interactive]

Also On The Web: Official Website

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

100

GamePro

For a game with such a heavy emphasis on medieval combat, Mount & Blade is just shy of perfection.

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GameShark

The only real problem with this in depth beginning is that it sets the expectation that the choices you make here are going to have some affect on the game’s story.

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Computer Games Online RO

Aside from that, if you’re in just for a relaxing skirmish or looking to conquer the whole world of Calradia, Mount and Blade is a stable product from early beta with great replay value which offers a level of entertainment that few titles with overinflated budgets fail to provide.

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Pelit (Finland)

A Medieval action RPG with a great battle system, and there are many ways you can play the game. The game doesn't have a storyline, which is why it becomes a bit boring and pointless after a while, but it does have many good mods and they will keep the game fresh. [Sept 2008]

GameFocus

Very fun combat, mixed into an era we rarely ever see touched in gaming and solid but brutal gameplay and the fantastic community built mod’s, gives this game a permanent place in my gaming library. Buy it.

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Vandal Online

Despite visuals which resemble those of some years ago, Mount & Blade has a very complete gameplay and economic-military management system.

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Play (Poland)

This unique knight simulator is extremely immersive and playable despite having some minor if irritating glitches. Where else could I plan my own war campaigns or rebel and found an independent kingdom? [Dec 2008]

IGN

If you can get over the lackluster production values, you'll find an incredibly well-paced and engaging game that immerses you into a remarkable world that you can do what you will in.

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AceGamez

Medieval warfare just got even trendier and, despite several major deficiencies, Mount & Blade has just too many memorable moments of glory to ignore; the price tag is worth it for the sunsets alone.

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DarkZero

It might not be to everyone’s tastes, but it makes a whole bunch of interesting and bold design decisions, and I guarantee you’ve not played anything quite like it. For those reasons alone, it gets a glowing recommendation.

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NZGamer

If you want a story-driven, graphically intensive roleplaying game, this is not going to do it for you. But if you enjoyed the freedom of Sid Meier's Pirates!, Mount & Blade is probably right up your alley.

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GamingExcellence

Mount & Blade is fun to play. It’s not good to look at.

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Worth Playing

Mount & Blade boasts solid battles and the eventual freedom to fight whoever and whenever you want while maintaining a kingdom, and it's a powerful draw.

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Gamer Limit

Considering its lackluster visuals, Mount and Blade is suprisingly addictive. The combination of exhilarating mounted combat and an open sandbox world will keep players coming back for more.

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2404.org

The interplay between mounted and dismounted soldiers, archers, knights, and the wide array of possible troops and equipment means that Mount & Blade has some of the coolest, most engrossing combat of any RPG ever.

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Boomtown

A fantastic game. It's hampered by a few problems, but nothing major. It provides ground breaking gameplay that I am sure will be imitated by others.

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RPG Fan

I can appreciate developers wanting to add more realistic touches to games, but to me realism does not always equate to fun.

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LEVEL (Czech Republic)

Vast world with working economic model, excellent mounted fight is degraded by a weak engine presentation. Only hardcore gamers can enjoy this game in the state it's in. [Dec 2008]

Cheat Code Central

Mount & Blade's strong RPG elements, in-depth army management aspects, and amazingly addictive combat system balance out its mediocre quests and half-baked sandbox gameplay.

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Total PC Gaming

An intriguing concept. [Issue#13, p.66]

PC Gamer UK

A decent ride until you get off. [Dec 2008, p.72]

Gamers.at

This may be an ambitious project of an even more ambitious programmer couple, but the lack of budget that game suffered is unfortunately very easy to notice. What remains is an average game with awful graphics and buggy controls.

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PC Zone UK

An anorexic "Oblivion" set in a budget version of Tolkien's Rohan. [Nov 2008, p.65]

GameSpot

Mount & Blade has some innovative ideas, but still needs a lot of work.

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PC Games (Germany)

Lousy graphics and bad accessibility hinder Mount & Blade’s way to a better grade. Yet, this game will make enthusiasts happy.

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PC Format

Rough enough around the edges to replace sandpaper. [Jan 2009, p.100]

Eurogamer

There are foundations here for something really quite special, but in its current state the game is nowhere close to delivering on its promises.

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GamingXP

The most exciting feature is the mounted battle, because it is demanding and fast. Release the mouse button at the right moment to hit an enemy. If you ride faster, you will do more damage.

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What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this game is 8.8 (out of 10) based on 204 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Jaco P gave it a9:
Once you get over the dated graphics and the fact that there is no storyline, except for the one you make, you'll find a very rewarding and enjoyable game. The fighting dynamics are responsive and fun. Other games might look better, but they don't play this well. Comparing this game to Oblivion is truley misguided. Oblivion is a fun RPG in it's own right, but the combat isn't nearly as intense and rewarding as that offered in Mount & Blade. Fighting on horseback never felt this good. Battles really feel big and you'll often have a hundred men filling the map at one time all screaming and clashing steel... You won't find that in Oblivion. The only negative is the possibility that you might lose a couple of weeks of your life to this game.

Mike F. gave it a9:
Mods, mods, mods! Holy crap, as if this game wasn't great enough there are fantastic mods to beef up your gaming experience. Graphics mods, gameplay mods, total conversion mods, all of 'em. There are some very professionally done mods that add tons of new features that make the game so much more rewarding and add so much more depth that they will keep you playing this game forever. If you thought the vanilla game was 'average' or 'could have been better' I'd take a look into the great modding community for this game. You won't regret it. And, if you haven't bought this game yet, DO IT. It is totally worth it. It has so much to offer.

Hunter B gave it a9:
It's actually most like the Total War series, without the campaign mode, and where you actually play one of the characters on the field during battles. Most fun I've had in a game in ages. Game review sites have overlooked this game because it's graphics are a little ordinary...I didn't see anything difficult getting into this game at all. The AI's a little retarded, though...like running into walls/invisible walls on side of map and get stuck...altho those make great for a crouched lance mwaha.

Ryan R. gave it a10:
Are fancy graphics what makes games 'awesome' these days? -Yes, they can lead to more appeal towards the game, but I personally didn't mind the lackluster model textures in Mount&Blade. The sheer amount of stupid fun this game generated, was almost overwhelming. -The sick, almost perverted pleasure of bashing a fellow combatant in the head with a giant, bone-cleaving axe and having him slowly, but surely slump over and fall off his horse never got old. I would go as far as to say that this game will be treasured in my household for years to come. If you are reading reviews in order to decide whether or not to buy this game, take in consideration that the expansion for M&B will be coming out soon, and the models will be updated/replaced, along with some features of the game play itself. Play the demo, and decide for yourself if this game is for you...

Aaron gave it a7:
Very fun for awhile, particularly the combat as others have mentioned, but the biggest problem is there isn't enough to do. I was hooked for a day or two and then suddenly I realized I had done just about everything and there was nothing exciting left in it for me. Still, despite this and other little annoyances (including the sad graphics), it's definitely worth a few bucks. It won't last forever, but what is there is a lot of fun.

Maarten V. gave it an8:
When you start playing this, be prepared to get rolled by random bandits and massive enemy armies quite often. All part of the fun tho, because makes it more of a challenge to build your own decent army. when you finally have built yourself a decent army thats when the real fun starts. ploughing trough 200 man armies with 60 knights is just epic. The mounted combat is unique and fun (alltho the different kind of attacks and animations are very limited) and be able to have special companions adds to an allready very good game. The main downside of this game are the animations. they seem really unnatural and are very limited. But the downside is completly overshadowed by the mounted combat wich is absolutely mint. This is the kind of game where you will need to invest time in in order to fully experience it.

Dan W gave it a9:
This game is unique in setting and combat. No other game has such detailed, realistic combat on such a scale. Some reviews complain about the graphics but with a single mod it looks fine. So many reviews have totally missed the mark with this game. (On that note I think the PC zone UK review should be removed as it gives no basis for the comments it makes) This is a amazing game.

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