Okay, guys and girls, this is my first review for the Escapist. I did a few on another site, thoroughly enjoyed it, and I want to get back with it. Lemme give you a quick breakdown on how my reviewing process works. I review by taking the different areas of a game, like music, graphical presentation, gameplay, and sometimes others (depending on how fancy I'm feeling), and reviewing them separately. Rather than average the score at the end of the review, I try to talk about how well the different features come together. Simply, I review different parts of the game and then review the game as a whole.
Now, onto the main event. Medieval fantasy settings are pretty common, aren't they? In any media, they seem to be one of the standby settings. Whether its a Tolkeinesque high fantasy or something different, it's still a fantasy setting. Mount and Blade: Warband is set in a low-fantasy setting, one without the spells and dragons and mythical beasts that one would find in The Elder Scrolls Oblivion or Dungeons and Dragons. With my review of Mount and Blade, I'd like to try to tell you all whether the game should ride away on the quick horse outta town, or whether it's the gonna come out standing once the dust has settled. Aaaand away we go! Starting with Graphics...
Graphics: 6/10
Okay, the graphics... aren't very pretty all the time. The environments can be kind of blocky and low quality. Not that this has an effect on the gameplay, mind you. But I'll get to gameplay in a minute. The graphics don't hold up compared to many of the games of today. That's my only real gripe with the game, though.
The character models are quite nice at times, but when you look at them up close in game, they're rather flat looking, with there being no real texture to the chainmail armors. The plate mail doesn't have a shine to it, and on a whole, the textures look old. This picture above was one of the better ones I could find, showing the graphics at what is up there with their best. (Above picture is courtesy of GameSpy, and belongs to them.)
Sound: 7/10
Another area where there's a minor failing: Sound. I found myself playing some Dark Moor or some symphonic metal in the background with the in-game music turned off and the battle sound turned up. The reason? Well, I had a hard time hearing the in-game music all the time, although when I did hear it, it was wonderful. The sounds of battle are what set this above a 5 or a 6, though. I always feel a thrill when I watch my group of armored grunts charge into battle, screaming like maniacs. The feeling of deadly combat is intensified when they're actually engaged in combat, with men groaning their last breaths, to screams of victory and anguish. It left a wonderful feeling, and added depth to the combat scenarios.
Imagine this kind of thing happening all over the battlefield, with troops letting out screams of "oaaaaaagh!" and "Yeaaaagh!" and whatnot. It's not as annoying as it sounds.
Gameplay: 9/10
This is where the game really shines. The goal of Mount and Blade: Warband is to rule the country. The entire country. And it's a sandbox. You decide how you play. You can side with usurpers to depose kings, pledge allegiance to a king on your own and work for him, form your own faction and alliances as you see fit, marry into nobility, or just be a petty bandit. It's got a simple charm to it. It may be confusing at first, and can be rather difficult, but once a player gets the hang of it, they should have a blast. The player, while not the hero, is one of many. Counts and Kings all have allegiances and goals, and the player can use these to manipulate the rulers of the region. Devious players may choose to spark a war by igniting a border conflict. The kingdoms all have unique strengths and weaknesses. Some have strong archers, others focus on axes and close range combat. There are some minor annoyances, such as the fact that it's hard to keep track of lords and ladies, and that you'll have to watch your party's hunger level and keep them supplied with food, but those aren't that hard to get over. The combat engine takes some getting used to, as it's in first person, with an optional (albeit kind of shoddy) third person mode, but once a player is used to it, it can be loads of fun. Another little touch I really love is that when the player is wounded (the player is wounded when they lose all their health, but they can't die) on the field of battle, if they're in first person, it remains in first person. This is a nice little touch, and I wish more games would throw that kind of thing it. The first person combat system in M&B:W is, in my opinion, on par with The Elder Scrolls: Oblivion's. From castle sieges to random skirmishes, they're fun to be involved in due almost entirely to the combat system. In the pictures above, the forces look rather small. But that doesn't mean that every skirmish or battle will have 6 guys on either side. In my experience, I faced battles of 100 and more men attacking each other. By that, I mean 100 men on each side. Not a 50 on one side, 50 on another type of division.
All armor and weapons appear cosmetically on the character, as well, and they can look pretty cool.
Overall: 9/10
That's right, this game gets a 9 of 10. Quick recap: This is based on my overall enjoyment with the game, not an average of the above scores. The game started out really small, development wise, and I actually played a demo of the original Mount and Blade. It grew into Mount and Blade: Warband, which is by far one of the best medieval games I've ever played. It eschews spells in favor of political intrigue, tosses dragons to the wind in favor of a great, realistic setting, and is better for it. As a final note, I just realized that while I wrote this review, Mount and Blade: Warband was minimized on my computer, waiting for me to get back to it. Perhaps I should. I highly recommend this game, even despite the lower quality graphics and the occasional lack of in-game music. If you liked TES IV: Oblivion's first person combat, but felt it wasn't satisfying enough, you should try Mount and Blade. If you want political intrigue, then give this game a shot too. It's definitely worth it.
Thanks for tuning in to my review, and I'll probably be doing more from time to time. TheAceTheOne also known as TJ Hamil , is a gamer and amateur reviewer from Illinois. Contact me at my Escapist Profile to give me feedback and review requests, should you have one. I hope you've enjoyed my first review for The Escapist. Thanks again!
Comments are welcome~
Now, onto the main event. Medieval fantasy settings are pretty common, aren't they? In any media, they seem to be one of the standby settings. Whether its a Tolkeinesque high fantasy or something different, it's still a fantasy setting. Mount and Blade: Warband is set in a low-fantasy setting, one without the spells and dragons and mythical beasts that one would find in The Elder Scrolls Oblivion or Dungeons and Dragons. With my review of Mount and Blade, I'd like to try to tell you all whether the game should ride away on the quick horse outta town, or whether it's the gonna come out standing once the dust has settled. Aaaand away we go! Starting with Graphics...
Graphics: 6/10
Okay, the graphics... aren't very pretty all the time. The environments can be kind of blocky and low quality. Not that this has an effect on the gameplay, mind you. But I'll get to gameplay in a minute. The graphics don't hold up compared to many of the games of today. That's my only real gripe with the game, though.
The character models are quite nice at times, but when you look at them up close in game, they're rather flat looking, with there being no real texture to the chainmail armors. The plate mail doesn't have a shine to it, and on a whole, the textures look old. This picture above was one of the better ones I could find, showing the graphics at what is up there with their best. (Above picture is courtesy of GameSpy, and belongs to them.)
Sound: 7/10
Another area where there's a minor failing: Sound. I found myself playing some Dark Moor or some symphonic metal in the background with the in-game music turned off and the battle sound turned up. The reason? Well, I had a hard time hearing the in-game music all the time, although when I did hear it, it was wonderful. The sounds of battle are what set this above a 5 or a 6, though. I always feel a thrill when I watch my group of armored grunts charge into battle, screaming like maniacs. The feeling of deadly combat is intensified when they're actually engaged in combat, with men groaning their last breaths, to screams of victory and anguish. It left a wonderful feeling, and added depth to the combat scenarios.
Imagine this kind of thing happening all over the battlefield, with troops letting out screams of "oaaaaaagh!" and "Yeaaaagh!" and whatnot. It's not as annoying as it sounds.
Gameplay: 9/10
This is where the game really shines. The goal of Mount and Blade: Warband is to rule the country. The entire country. And it's a sandbox. You decide how you play. You can side with usurpers to depose kings, pledge allegiance to a king on your own and work for him, form your own faction and alliances as you see fit, marry into nobility, or just be a petty bandit. It's got a simple charm to it. It may be confusing at first, and can be rather difficult, but once a player gets the hang of it, they should have a blast. The player, while not the hero, is one of many. Counts and Kings all have allegiances and goals, and the player can use these to manipulate the rulers of the region. Devious players may choose to spark a war by igniting a border conflict. The kingdoms all have unique strengths and weaknesses. Some have strong archers, others focus on axes and close range combat. There are some minor annoyances, such as the fact that it's hard to keep track of lords and ladies, and that you'll have to watch your party's hunger level and keep them supplied with food, but those aren't that hard to get over. The combat engine takes some getting used to, as it's in first person, with an optional (albeit kind of shoddy) third person mode, but once a player is used to it, it can be loads of fun. Another little touch I really love is that when the player is wounded (the player is wounded when they lose all their health, but they can't die) on the field of battle, if they're in first person, it remains in first person. This is a nice little touch, and I wish more games would throw that kind of thing it. The first person combat system in M&B:W is, in my opinion, on par with The Elder Scrolls: Oblivion's. From castle sieges to random skirmishes, they're fun to be involved in due almost entirely to the combat system. In the pictures above, the forces look rather small. But that doesn't mean that every skirmish or battle will have 6 guys on either side. In my experience, I faced battles of 100 and more men attacking each other. By that, I mean 100 men on each side. Not a 50 on one side, 50 on another type of division.
All armor and weapons appear cosmetically on the character, as well, and they can look pretty cool.
Overall: 9/10
That's right, this game gets a 9 of 10. Quick recap: This is based on my overall enjoyment with the game, not an average of the above scores. The game started out really small, development wise, and I actually played a demo of the original Mount and Blade. It grew into Mount and Blade: Warband, which is by far one of the best medieval games I've ever played. It eschews spells in favor of political intrigue, tosses dragons to the wind in favor of a great, realistic setting, and is better for it. As a final note, I just realized that while I wrote this review, Mount and Blade: Warband was minimized on my computer, waiting for me to get back to it. Perhaps I should. I highly recommend this game, even despite the lower quality graphics and the occasional lack of in-game music. If you liked TES IV: Oblivion's first person combat, but felt it wasn't satisfying enough, you should try Mount and Blade. If you want political intrigue, then give this game a shot too. It's definitely worth it.
Thanks for tuning in to my review, and I'll probably be doing more from time to time. TheAceTheOne also known as TJ Hamil , is a gamer and amateur reviewer from Illinois. Contact me at my Escapist Profile to give me feedback and review requests, should you have one. I hope you've enjoyed my first review for The Escapist. Thanks again!
Comments are welcome~
