Paradox Interactive announces Mount & Blade is heading to stores this year, after being on sale on GamersGate for some time now, which apparently has been a beta all along. They say: "After several years in BETA, the game is close to completion and scheduled for a worldwide release during Q2, 2008." Here's a bit more:

Mount&Blade is a single-player, third- or first-person action/role-playing game with a focus on medieval combat. Developed by the Turkish development house TaleWorlds Entertainment, the BETA version of the game has received acclaim worldwide by gamers impressed by everything from the realistic horseback combat to the sandbox gameplay. The latter enables players to roam the map freely in a medieval world that offers options ranging from hunting down bandits, trading for profit in the game's deep economical system and becoming a commander and taking part in the wars ultimately becoming a great lord of the realm.