Satisfying brutal combat makes you ask yourself how sadistic you are.
Some of the biggest complaints I have heard about this game is how buggy it is, and after playing it through twice, I must assume they fixed it ten times over before I got my hands on it as bugs were a rare occurrence for me (though they did happen, even if they weren't a big deal).
As far is story goes its fairly basic and mediocre at best. Don't bother playing this for the story despite the fact its an RPG.
Speaking of RPG, it does have only a few RPG elements at best. You can spend skill points on special abilities in one of three tabs, each with separate skill trees. Its best to focus on certain skills as you will not be able to get everything. There are skills that make you better at melee combat, bow and arrow combat, various spells, and special abilities. Some of these can be upgraded for greater affects and some require other skills preceding them.
The game runs on the Source engine, which for the time was still a pretty good looking engine, and the game itself was very good visually but it has aged a bit, but as I said, this game has been out for some time. I could explain the lighting and effects but if you have played or at least seen other Source engine games like Half-Life 2 or Counter-Strike: Source, then you can expect it too look about as good as those games.
The sound is a little better than I expected. The clanging of steel on shields and wood sounds as it should. You can hear your character's heavy breathing after some intense running. The hisses of spiders ready to ambush you around the next web covered corner is unsettling.
The game play is excellent. Mainly from the warrior stand point. See, in Dark Messiah: Might and Magic, there may not be classes you pick, but most of the armor you find will only be wearable if you have certain skills and it all seems to fall into three basic categories: warrior armors, thief or assassin armors, or mage robes. I mainly played as a close up warrior guy but I would use stealth in extra dark areas where I could and occasionally use magic to throw out a little extra damage or heal myself when I had the chance (and the spells).
I mainly focused on sword play, in which you get up close and personal. You have a variety of weapon options available, swords, swords and shields, staves, tools, etc. You also always have the "almighty boot". Any time during combat you can press a key to deliver a low blow with your foot to do extra damage, knock and enemy over, or, most importantly, send them flying back with Source engine physics for hilarious results. Many "lulz" were had with the boot. One common example is punting enemy soldiers into conveniently placed spiked fences (,which I should note, as they are spiked all over on the SIDES, and can be found everywhere throughout the game just leaning against walls for no good reason). You can also punt enemies off of roofs, into each other, down stairs, and of course, into the edges of things for those "OHHHHHH!" moments.
The actual combat where you use weapons like you are intended can be just as brutal. You don't just simply click and click until you or the other guy dies. Various movement inputs can cause different attacks, while not that different, may work out better than others. Plus you should also know when to block, especially for players using more thief or mage oriented characters. You also have the option of picking up items in the environment like boxes and throwing them at your enemies. Often times you can find jars filled with oil, throw them at your target, then light them on fire with something like a fireball spell, or by lighting an arrow in a nearby torch and hitting the target. You are even awarded for dismemberment's with a brief slow motion death sequence to better appreciate your form of vigilante justice.
While I may not have had the bug problems so many other reviewers have had, doesn't mean you will have as bad a time with it as they may have but you may also have problems with it. But it's hard to say. Regardless, Dark Messiah: Might and Magic is a fun FPS/RPG/Brawler that delivers great combat. My only problems with it may be the lack of replay value. It has online play but no one is ever playing it so I can't really say if its good one way or another. I think its worth checking out and its not gonna get much cheaper than it is now. You can find it on Steam.