Yes this game has it's flaws like a graphic which was even dated when it was released in 2001 and the pathfinding of the units is not so good but if you can look over that you'll get a really nice game. A lot of people compare it with Settlers which is in my opinion wrong . The main reason why a lot of people dislike this game is in my opinion, that they may have red somewhere that this game can be compared with Settlers and start playing it with the wrong expectations. Yes, there is a citybuilding part in this game like in Settlers but there is also a huge focus on the warfaring part. While in Settlers you simply overrun the enemy with the pure amount of you soldiers. In Knights and Merchants you'll find a high tactical gameplay in which you can win a battle with the right tactics even if your troops are outnumbered. There is an importace of knowing the strenghts and weaknesses of you units, how they are postioned, their formation, the terrain they are fighting on and so on. You'll immediately get punished if you try playing it Settlers like. This mixture of Settlers like gameplay and high tactical warfare makes this game unique, which is also beloved by it's fanbase. The fanbase is also very active today in 2013. They are still releasing unofficial patches and are programming a remake of this game. By the way: If you are buying Knights and Merchants on GOG by using the link on the remake webpage, a part of the money goes to the development of the remake.
Yes the game has some flaws but if you are able to overlook them you really get a nice an uniqe game. The Community, especially Durante who also fixed Dark Souls, is working on a resolution fix and the possibility to change key bindings. The fix is now in alpha state and works fine with the GOG version of the game. It's no excuse for the developers but you really miss something if you pass this game. It's what Alan Wake should have been: an open world horror game.
