Mount and Blade is an open-ended third person role-playing game that has been in development for quite a few years now by Turkish developers TaleWorlds. It has since garnered a cult following and after spending some playtime with a beta build of the game, it's not hard to see why.

The game takes place in a sprawling medieval world with a particular emphasis on cavalry combat, which sets itself apart from the hordes of other RPG titles out there in the market. While horses and mounts have functioned mainly as transportation units in most medieval-style games, horses in Mount and Blade actually have crucial functions in combat apart from hauling your hero's butt around in the vast world. The first thing that you will notice is the high level of realism involved in horse movements and combat.

Unlike in typical role-playing games where horses can magically move off at top speed instantly, horses in Mount and Blade require a few seconds to pick up speed and similarly to decelerate to a stop. Gone too are the ballistic ponies that can pivot on the spot and change headings in a flash. Horse riding in Mount and Blade actually forces you to make arcs of turns that get wider as your riding speed increases. This injects a tactical element in combat and makes large scale cavalry battles extremely intriguing and engaging. You can also dish out a greater amount of hurt while fighting on horseback and your mounts can even knock down enemies and break their defenses.

The other big draw that Mount and Blade possesses is its open-ended gameplay. You ride around the world map with your party in tow, stopping at castles and villages to trade and pick up quests or engaging in battle with wandering ruffians and bandits. You gradually expand your party by recruiting heroes and an assortment of rank and file soldiers which can be upgraded as you and your party gain experience. What you and your fellow comrades decide to do is entirely up to you. There are 5 different factions currently in game for you to align with or otherwise piss off. Later on in the game when you gain sufficient prowess you will also be able to take part in large scale siege battles against castles of opposing factions with a chance of annexing them to your command. Strictly speaking, you will also be able to tour the lands primarily as a tradesman by gaining knowledge of the local exports of each town and where these produces are in demand. Of course, this route detracts from much of the appeal of the game.

At its core, this game is very much a stats-based game, with 4 standard fare RPG character attributes and 23 secondary skills, the proficiencies and limits of which in turn depend on the primary character attributes. There are also 6 different categories of weapon masteries, ensuring a great variety of possible character builds. One of the most admirable aspects of this game is its shallow learning curve which does not sacrifice depth of gameplay. I was able to jump straight into the game and feel right at home since a lot of the gameplay mechanics are well detailed and self-explanatory. There is also a newbie town at the beginning that gets you up to speed on the critical aspects of gameplay.

The graphics are generally stunning for an indie development. Landscapes and water in particular are gorgeously rendered and provide fitting stages for open combat. Unfortunately, much of the architecture of castles and villages are dull and insipid. This is a just a minor complaint though, but it does tarnish the overall visual appeal of the game. The sporadic orchestral scores that seem to kick in randomly have a great medieval feel to them and sound professionally done to my untrained ears. A game of such settings is also a godsend for mod makers, with the inevitable Lord of the Rings mod already making its rounds among the Legolas wannabes. A quick check on the TaleWorlds forum (http://forums.taleworlds.net/index.php) also reveals a whole host of other mods currently in development.

Overall, Mount and Blade is a stellar example of the capabilities of indie developers. It has been in development for a few years now, and each new patch brings with it a culmination of fan input and suggestions from their thriving fan base. When the long awaited version 1.0 rolls out later this year, this will truly be a game made by gamers for gamers. At a likely price of $39 (you can purchase the beta version now for $25, which will automatically upgrade you to the full version when it is available), it will also give commercial productions a run for their money.