The game was made by a couple in Sweden apparently.
The graphics are horrible. The animations are horrible(mostly). Some of the game's features are barebones as is the interface. I wish to all that is holy that the environments were a bit deeper(such as the castles).
But I'll be damned if the gameplay isn't top notch. I'll admit I've always been a fan of the "raise your own army and do your best to micromanage it" genre, but they've really done it gracefully here. Environment is pretty freeform, and you can choose which kingdom(or kingdom(s)) to ally with, or just go your own route. Siege take over territory and cities for your kingdom. Recruitable NPCs from the taverns in each city(random spawn) that you can fully outfit with gear and fix up their stats(even buy them a good mount). Eventually you can start owning villages/cities/keeps and manage them(provided you have a character with the proper engineering skill, otherwise it takes forever).
On top of that there are already a number of mods out, including one that professes to be centered around the Peloponnesian War. Haven't tried modding it yet, but I think there's potential for it.
All I can say is, get the demo from Steam. If you decide to buy it, I'm pretty sure Steam is overpricing the full game right now at 30 bucks(was 15 bucks at sale time, yay what a sale sell the game for the normal price!), as you can buy a key directly for 15 bucks via the demo's link.
Personally, it took me a little longer than level 7 for the game to grow on me. And it REALLY grew on me at the point where I was managing a larger force with the customizable NPC recruits.
I was honestly very surprised, because during my first hour or so of playing the game I thought I was going to delete it from my hard drive after a few more minutes. Something stirred in me and I pressed on, and I'm glad I did.
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