So as a result of my recent Game of Thrones obsession, I've felt the urge to play a game that incorporates all the badass-ery of realistic swordplay. And I've been disappointed.
On paper it should be perfect for a gaming premise, with all the action, skill, drama, technique and risk and reward of this combat style. Plus the medeival era it is associated with is one of gaming's go-to genres; high fantasy.
So why is it so hard to pull off? Every game i've tried (and I'm hoping I can be proven wrong here) falls into either a game of stick-waggling Tag where you slap them with the stick more times than they slap you (Skyrim) or else a beat em up style button masher (GoW etc). Jedi Outcast 2 at least acknowledged how deadly the weapon should be (presumably since it was a laser), but few even incorporate realistic damage and gore. Games like Assassins Creed ostensibly give control, but in reality it's a combo system and all the skill is taken out of your hand and turned into a premade animation once you time a riposte button.
No game has satisfied me by making me feel like I have total control over the blows, the skill of parrying or even the weight of the weapon itself. So is this something that fundamentally cannot be achieved with a mouse and keyboard/joypad? Or have I been looking in the wrong place? (Mount & Blade maybe?)