This game... Just clicked for me so perfectly. It is a super fast-paced game with satisfying combat and controls. The variety in weapons is the star here, and not since early ARPGs have I been so invested in loot. The sheer amount of content is staggering, though you are easily able to do 100% in one playthrough (with a few replays of missions). The Japanese setting is also a big selling-point for this game as well with the locations and enemy designs being so unique and fun and different than the vaguely European fantasy most soulslikes have.

Viking Conquest is without a doubt one of the best expansions I have ever played, it adds so much and is set in one of my favorite periods in history.

I will say, though I love this DLC, it is essentially just an official mod, and it's even made by a modding team, not TaleWorlds. So, if you're tight on money, you can find mods of similar and even greater quality than this one, but I still love it.

Warband is an amazing game, however it is very much lacking in unique quests, characters, and features. Viking Conquest expands upon all that Warband did right, better sieges, better quests, better cities, better character customization, better characters and so much more. It also adds several new things, a story mode and various sandbox modes, unique quests, religions, personality types, dungeons (kind of), holding court in your castle, making your own settlement (a refuge), sailing and ship combat. As well as various smaller features, like more loot (a whole lot), various ways to increase your soldiers' morale, happy widows, alcohol (which was in the base game but only for trading), having a kid, etc.

This expansion honestly feels like the prototype for Bannerlord, as so many of its features were carried over to that sequel.

Viking Conquest is a must have for any Mount & Blade fan or nerd for the time period.

I bought this day one of early access becuase of how much I love this series, but it's not the best in the series... But damnit it's so close.

It's good, I think the combat feels more fluid and impact heavy than Warband, shield bashing, bracing, couching, and all the directional swings and their tying animations look great. Sieges are also a large improvement over the first game, no longer will you only have one ladder that you're pushed off of constantly, now they're action packed and awesome affairs. This game is basically a visually refined Warband, most features are retained, some new ones are added. if you enjoyed Warband, you'll enjoy this. But... Early game and late game suck. The middle game is the only fun part, as early game has few too little ways to earn money and renown so you'll find yourself grinding the same four quests or doing hundreds of tournaments. And the late game really breaks down the AI. Sadly the modding community for this game isn't as expansive as Warband's.

For now, if you want a modding scene, stay with Warband as this has yet to have any full big total conversions release, (although there are some EA Warhammer, Samurai, and Rome ones, but not nearly as complete as warbands). It is a good game, just could be better.

Mount & Blade: Warband is without a doubt one of the best medieval life sims ever made if not the best. This game should honestly not be as good as it is. The graphics are ugly and the animations are strange and stiff yet it owns it. You can do anything in it, it's insane. What do you do in this game you might ask? Anything. What do you mean by anything you may ask? ANYTHING! Do you want to be an infamous raider who enslaves villagers and sells them into slavery? You can. Do you want to be a merchant who travels from one place to another selling goods in an everchanging amazing economy system? You can. Do you want to be a King who destroys all other competition and controls everything? You can. This game's freedom is what makes it truly amazing. This game's lack of story is it's story. Every playthrough is like an entirely different game, not one playthrough or experience will be the same. The combat is great, the mix between action and strategy is genius, the economy system is realistic and can be changed and influenced dynamically by the player or NPCs, the character creation is great. This game is truely a treat for any RPG fan, especially those who love to roleplay and immerse themselves into a world. You can be anything and do anything. And with the abundance of mods for this game that is especially true. Conversion mods that add such settings as: Lord of The Rings, Game of Thrones, Warhammer, various different time periods in our own world from Ancient Rome to Renaissance Europe to the Crusades to the Wild West. There are even mods that add new and original worlds such as Perisno and Pendor with their own lore, characters, and style. And the game's expansions are amazing, Viking Conquest adding a new humongous map that takes place in our world during the Viking age, Viking Conquest adds so much and is an impressive and great expansion. Napoleonic Wars adding a new multiplayer module that is extremely fun and expansive. This game is a must have for any RPG or life-sim fan.

Replayed on PC:

I loved Shadow of Mordor and actually bought Shadow of War on release date for my PS4. I've always been a fan of Tolkien, I'm one of those who re-read the books every year or two, watch the movies multiple times a year (Extended of course) and while this game of course isn't lore-friendly that does not detract at all from it's brilliance, the nemesis system is revolutionary and can hold the game on it's own, the combat is fun and addicting, simple but when up against a Nemesis can be actually hard and require thinking and out of the box tactics. The story is so-so and I particularly don't like the ending, (although the voice acting is fantastic, kudos to all of the voice actors, I'm very fond of Celebrimbor's voice and Talion's. In addition, the cinematics are to die for and are engaging and stylized to no-end). But this game isn't about the pre-made story, it's about the stories you make within the systems made. And those stories are fantastic. It's like a good sandbox game like Kenshi or Mount & Blade or Crusader Kings. Everyone will have a different story of that one Uruk who was a thorn in their side or particularly memorable.

Within 4 hours of this replay I already had a memorable rivalry of an Uruk and his blood-brother. Being killed multiple times by one or the other constantly showing up to protect the other one. And before moving on to the next zone I decided I absolutely had to kill one of them and leave the other suffering, and so I researched the more powerful one's weaknesses, snuck up on him during a feast, and had a long hard fight with him trying to abuse his weaknesses. His brother showed up to try and save him halfway through, through blood, sweat, and tears I killed the feasting Uruk as he died he told me he was just disappointing he'd be the brother who dies, and not the brother who gets to revenge. Dying with a smile, sure he would be avenged as he had been saved many times before, I then chopped off his arm and leg as his brother became enraged, I had to flee, but with the satisfaction of revenge. Great game. Buy it.