Mount & Blade (This is not a euphamism)

Another solid game that one of my friends got me into is Mount & Blade. And when I say "solid", I guess I'm lying to your face. It is a half-assed game that has tons of flaws. This can be forgiven somewhat because the whole thing was originally done by a husband/wife team, and the team still remains extremely small. But the real reason for forgiveness is because, in spite of its flaws, it is an incredibly fun game to play!

The basic beauty of the game lies in its realistic mounted medieval combat simulation. Heck, I mean, I figure its realistic but I'm no expert on the subject. Let's just compromise and say its believable, and feels quite natural.

Overall the game world is quite lacking in content, but the open-ended sandbox nature of the game gives you plenty of enjoyment nonetheless. You can start a character that focuses on earning a fortune through trade, hiring mercenaries to protect your caravan as you go. Or you can create a tournament champion who travels the world, seeking the wealth that can be earned by winning various tourneys through the lands. Best of all, you can be a mercenary captain who builds a war band and hires on to one of the various kingdoms vying for control of the region.

There really are plenty of possibilities, though I would have to say by far the best is earning a title and fief. This game really does feel like its a beta build of something a lot better than it currently is, and it is sorely lacking in any overarching plot. However, there are plenty of free mods which fix these and other problems, as well as give you tons of replayability.

The game is mostly about tactical combat, though there are RPG elements involved in how you level up and acquire various skills and companions. I bought it on sale a while back, and have been quite pleased with the bang for my buck. Currently its being sold for around $30 USD, but you can sometimes find it on sale at various digital distribution services. With all the mod support, even the full price tag isn't too bad in my opinion.

Best of all, the game has a free demo you can download and play. Basically the demo is the full game, with a very low level cap. So I recommend at the very least trying the demo.

I find it interesting how much time I've sunk into a game that feels so incomplete, but can't say that I regret it. What are some other games that have the feel of being horribly flawed, yet you can't get enough of?