I am not sure what the deal is with the official reviews for this game, but I for one find this game extremely enjoyable
The main attraction of this game is the fact that it is a 3rd person combat, kind of medeival game that incorporates the most realistic combat I have seen in any game. (also 1st person if desired)
You can gather an army of troops and even a couple 'hero' characters in the game to fight along side you. A player creates his own story by choosing which faction to ally with and do tasks for (which includes attacking with allied armies when assaulting castles) or one can choose no side and be more of a mercenary group of troops doing what you please.
There may be no actual storyline but in my book, that is fine as long as the gameplay is good. Luckily the gameplay is far better than expected and it is done so well. One of the aspects of this game that makes it so enjoyable, atleast to me, is the realistic feeling. There is no magic, no spiritual forces to use in this game; it is just pure brute force with armies pitted against eachother.
The graphics are decent and the battlefield layouts are fairly decent. I love the sounds and they really give you a feel of what it was really like on the battlefield back then. The music isn't half bad either. There isn't a huge variety of music but enough to keep a person satisfied as you travel the countryside.
I can only imagine what this game will be like in a couple of months when modders start to finish projects that have already been in the works before the official version of the game came out.
Perfect 10 from for the sole reason of a unique and refreshing gamestyle that has yet to stop entertaining me. All I have to say to Gamespot is get your act together.