ID:111325
 
So, I've determined that I'm addicted to Mount & Blade: Warband.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with the game, it's the first expansion to Mount & Blade, which was developed by the Turkish company Taleworlds (which I recall reading was began by a husband and wife?). The game itself is set in a fantasy realm called Calradia, the population of which is comprised of six warring factions, each based off a different group from history. It's basically an action-roleplay game, and is completely open-ended. For the sake of time and space, I'm going to stop there. If you'd like to read more about it check out Taleworlds.

But I'm not addicted to just the game. I'm also addicted to the dozens of mods. Everything from the British Isles in the 7th century, to Europe, starting in 1257, and even a 1700's North America mod. For the most part, they're all great. For example, my favorite file is a character named Jean de Leureau, a Crusader seeking forgiveness for his sins. The game is simply addicting.

Here's what makes this game so awesome. You're just another person. When you start off the game, you're weak, alone, poor, and have nothing to offer society. You have to work your way up in the world to accomplish whatever it is that you've set for yourself. Whether that be to amass a trade empire and be the wealthiest man/woman in the land, lead a band of mercenaries, be an infamous bandit, or be a king. You can do it. Another thing is the sheer number of different ways in which you can do things. For example, if you wanted to become a king and rule your own kingdom, you could incite rebellion, join with another kingdom to conquer your enemy, or find a pretender to the throne, and help him rise to power. So many possibilities.

And I didn't even touch on combat. Just for a basic overview, it's extremely in-depth, and is skill based. There are several different types of weapons, generally One-handed, Two-handed, polearms, thrown, bows, and crossbows. Ranged weapons take ammo, most thrown weapons can be used as melee weapons as well. The damage a weapon does is relative to character stats, location hit, and the range of the attack; that is- The closer the range is to the max reach, the more damage it does. So, if I have a two handed sword that's a metre long, hitting someone 30cm away isn't going to do a whole lot of damage, but if I bring the blade down closer to the tip, the force of the swing will split their skull in two!

But, enough of my rambling. I can go on about M&B:W for awhile. If you'd like to see the game in action, you can check it out on my livestream or you can go out and buy it. The game is also available on steam.
Mount & Blade is pretty amazing. It has to be one of the most realistic medieval fighters out there, which is pretty darn cool. I can also go on about M&B:W for a while