Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord

 PC
User Score
8.1

Generally favorable reviews- based on 174 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 127 out of 174
  2. Mixed: 31 out of 174
  3. Negative: 16 out of 174

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  1. Connolius
    Dec 23, 2022
    7
    330 hours in, played throughout the early access phases as various kingdoms. Needless to say, Ive enjoyed playing.

    7/10 with a recommendation to buy the game, in fact I want you to buy the game. This isn't a deep kingdom management sim, don't expect intrigue as such. There are periods of peace and then war, that's the diplomatic extent. There is little in the way of character    330 hours in, played throughout the early access phases as various kingdoms. Needless to say, Ive enjoyed playing.

    7/10 with a recommendation to buy the game, in fact I want you to buy the game.

    This isn't a deep kingdom management sim, don't expect intrigue as such. There are periods of peace and then war, that's the diplomatic extent. There is little in the way of character development other than trying to get nobles too like you to join your armies, or you develop influence so it doesn't matter.

    What is most disappointing is the sheer potential if they were able to bring the combat and kingdom management together. Could be the best of this genre -ever- so may you lament that but then as your wading through pitch battles you forget all that too.

    Their family system has a ton of potential, and you feel they are on the cusp of something great here in a CKIII style. Hopefully there are mods for this, or DLC. If they do MB III and dont get this right then the devs have failed.

    Finally, there are some bugs. Only once did I have one break the game but id recommend keeping a few running saves going. Haven't had a problem since full release.

    Id 9/10 this if the above were addressed but Ill give it a 7 with a strong buy the game recommendation. So many hours and only a 7? Yeah, its been a really fun 7 and worth the time investment. You may buy a 9 and not find you play it as much, that is how fun this game can be so the financial investment is well worth it.

    One battle my infantry were getting pushed back hard and we were about to lose the fight and maybe the war so I brought back my remaining horse under my command had to make a quick choice to head hunt their leader who was in their rear with nearly unprotected archers or help our infantry, I shored up our inf and took a plunge into their flanks, they must have been wavering themselves despite their success it turned the tide in battle. Sure you say, sounds "fun" but we had been fighting in waves across the map for quite a long time, tide of victory going back and forth, bodies strewn about the landscape, my health was near zero and they had the numerical advantage. When the battle was over it was such a relief and buzz that other games of this genre just cant deliver, in fact its rare for any game to be honest.

    You can go archer heavy, play a defensive shell and in a massive battle watch your opponent drop while your archers arrows look like locusts descending upon your foe then smash their first wave with your infantry while you circle behind with the cavalry to stop enemy reinforcement.

    Maybe you decide to go Mongol hoard on horseback and nip the Roman-esque Empire like legions into pieces, till all they are doing is standing on a hill cowering under their shields with your horse archers wearing them out into a full rout.

    Its super cool and fun.

    If you want to experience major medieval style combat this would be the game for you, 9/10. It can be very rewarding and addictively fun. If you want a kingdom management sim, maybe still buy it as Id bet you'll have more fun than you expect.    … Expand
  2. z3th
    Nov 16, 2022
    7
    At this time, it offers less than its predecessors, but there's still a lot of good things here at play -- strategy, command, battles, RPG, and diplomacy from the world level all the way down to the individual level -- and they play fairly well for how little depth each part has. Most of the love went into the battles themselves, and they show, and they shine. You can enjoy the game forAt this time, it offers less than its predecessors, but there's still a lot of good things here at play -- strategy, command, battles, RPG, and diplomacy from the world level all the way down to the individual level -- and they play fairly well for how little depth each part has. Most of the love went into the battles themselves, and they show, and they shine. You can enjoy the game for the battles, skirmishes, and sieges alone; the Civilization-light tertiary gameplay is just light icing on the cake (though I wish there was way more icing).

    However, the combat remains leaning on the side of awful. It works enough to keep you playing, but it is riddled with clunkiness, unintuitive controls, and inaccessible mechanics. Coupled with "realistic" difficulty settings which really aren't all that realistic, and you're in for a bad time as you face off with enemy combat AI that has impeccable, perfect timing, aim, and cadence every time with no variation or humanization, and is rather player-centric -- you will somehow get singled out every time in the middle of a dense crowd, especially from archers, and especially when charging with cavalry from behind and suddenly everyone with their spidey senses turns to face you to spear you off your horse with perfect timing and distance. Even the lowliest of looters will destroy you if you're not cheesing in some way. The answer, of course, is to lower the difficulty, but the next level down is such a drop in challenge and difficulty you've little choice but to bear with realistic in hopes one day the evil bastard who handled the AI in the game will realize it is, indeed, extremely overtuned.

    Still, all that won't fix combat's fundamental design flaws though, but many veterans have sworn by it putting years into it to become unstoppable in multiplayer, so perhaps it has enough merits to attract loyal fans.

    Just don't expect any substantial content updates at this rate.    … Expand
  3. Soullex
    Nov 29, 2022
    7
    İlk çıktığında bakmıştim bi benim beklentimi karşılamıştı. Yakın zamanda tekrar bakıcam ozaman güncellerim.
  4. vova22379
    Dec 6, 2022
    6
    ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
  5. Harthik69
    Jul 9, 2023
    5
    Average Game. You can play for couple of Hrs. But not that greate. Ok to play in future just to experiecne nostalgia
  6. WiredMonk
    Aug 13, 2023
    5
    Could and should be much better. The overall setup leans into a successful game, but hinders itself with being too complicated, buggy and lacks almost any level of guidance. There's enjoyment to be found, if you're willing to read the encyclopedia or hours and hours on youtube, trying to figure out how every little thing works, but you don't know what to search for unless you know itCould and should be much better. The overall setup leans into a successful game, but hinders itself with being too complicated, buggy and lacks almost any level of guidance. There's enjoyment to be found, if you're willing to read the encyclopedia or hours and hours on youtube, trying to figure out how every little thing works, but you don't know what to search for unless you know it exists. It's a weird carrot on a stick thing, except you don't know what the hell the carrot even is unless you find it on youtube. I've mastered bandits. I've mastered arenas. I've mastered field combat up to 100 troops. I still know very little on relationships, how skills should be chosen, why/when/how to attack non-bandits, siege combat and the list goes on. There's some excellent content that goes through each in depth, but I'm not playing nearly as much as I'm having to learn the game. I'm starting to just miss fun at this point of several days of "playing". I'm sure I'll figure more out in the future, but now I just need to play a game and enjoy my time instead of nights and nights of research.… Expand
  7. fnenamg
    Sep 8, 2023
    7
    The first few hours are enjoyable, but after a certain point, it becomes repetitive.
  8. rakhador
    Aug 13, 2023
    7
    Güzel bir oyun olsa da selefinin özelliklerini dahi taşımıyor, pek bir şey eklemiyor.

Awards & Rankings

36
#36 Most Discussed PC Game of 2022
2
#2 Most Shared PC Game of 2022

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
77

Generally favorable reviews - based on 21 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 17 out of 21
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 21
  3. Negative: 0 out of 21
  1. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    Jan 24, 2024
    80
    The game offers an incredible amount of options, and if you don't enjoy the campaign, you can have a blast in the elaborate battle mode, where you'll command up to hundreds of warriors and work together to destroy enemies, protect villages or conquer castles. [Issue#324]
  2. Multiplayer.it
    Jan 16, 2023
    80
    Mount & Blade II Bannerlord is not an easy game to get into, and several of its mechanics are not introduced very clearly. There is also a lot of repetition, at multiple levels of the game, between side quests and repeated events. At the same time, however, it gives us access to a large sandbox that immerses us in an all-too-believable medieval world and allows us to transform from a simple country mercenary to a lord, enjoying large-scale battles and watching our kingdom grow.
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  3. Riot Pixels
    Dec 31, 2022
    81
    Mount & Blade 2 transports us into an endless chaotic world full of events, battles and amazing adventures. At times it feels like a victim of its own complexity — some of the game's intricate systems don’t mesh together or never work as advertised, the economy is flawed, there’s a frightening dearth of conventions… Yet this elaborate medieval world will eat up at least a hundred hours out of your life.
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