The world was a very different place when Kingdom Come: Deliverance was released in 2018. Warhorse Studios‘ overly ambitious first project wasn’t exactly what people expected, but it was certainly a good RPG. With excellent visuals for its time, and strong roleplay elements, it may not have lived up to the “realistic knight simulator” hype, but it sure sparked a very vibrant community around it. Six years later, Warhorse Studios is back to complete their vision, that they only “half-delivered” (their words, not mine) in 2018. This time, backed by Deep Silver, Warhorse Studios counts around 250 employees, and they’ve picked up their new project right where they left off with the previous one.
Thanks to PLAION, we had the chance to attend a behind closed doors reveal of Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 last week. The opinions you’ll read in this article are our first impressions and were formed ahead of the scheduled reveal on April 18.
Also, please note that we condemn any leak that tried to ruin this reveal, and the efforts of both the developers and the publisher to offer their audience a nice show like the one they put on tonight. Don’t ruin other people’s work for a few clicks.
Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 – Similar setting, new adventures
Like the first title in the series, Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 is set in the region of 15th century Bohemia, where the present-day Czech Republic is located. I know what you’re thinking: “this is exactly the same setting as Kingdom Come: Deliverance”. You’re right. According to Warhorse, Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 will do everything the studio promised but failed to deliver with the first title. However, this is not some sort of remake, but rather it’s most likely a soft reboot.
Henry finds himself back in the leading role. The son of a blacksmith whose mission is to avenge the unjust death of his parents. His story takes a dramatic turn through the player’s choices, as Henry can go from being a mercenary to a knight in the midst of a medieval civil war. Faced with enemy armies, and a whole array of betrayals, Henry’s journey is shaped through the choices you make!
Cinematic, but at the same time more hands-on than ever
The showcase we watched contained a lot of details regarding how storytelling is handled. Specifically, much of the story will now be told through full cinematic cutscenes, the total length of which is up to 5 hours. Sure, it doesn’t come close Baldur’s Gate 3‘s 174 hours of total cinematics, but it’s a significant improvement over the minimal cutscenes included in the first game.
At the same time, the first person combat looks more appealing than ever, as the trailer shows not only sword to sword combat, but Henry going hands-on with various siege weapons, like catapults! Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 is built on the latest version of the CryEngine, a graphics engine known for its smoothnes in first person action games but also photorealistic graphics at stable framerates. The combat looked very smooth in the gameplay sequences Warhorse shared, but of course, it’s hard to judge from a single gameplay trailer.
You and your trusy mount against the world
Henry’s new adventures span many different landscapes, from medieval cities to the untouched European countryside. There’s a huge world to explore, perhaps “a little bigger than it actually needed to be”, according to the developers. The diversity of the areas you visit is truly impressive, with some locations like the huge garden called Bohemian Paradise standing out, especially for a historically accurate game set in Europe’s “dark ages”.
A true RPG
At the same time, Warhorse promises true roleplay, as players will be able to freely chat with NPCs and participate in open world activities, even doing medieval jobs.
Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 – Releasing soon
Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 doesn’t have an official release date yet, but we do know that it will be released before the end of the year for Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5, and on PC via Steam. You can put the title on your wishlist now on Steam!