Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 preview: less jank, less frustration, and a strong obsession with lusty historical accuracy

In Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 two guys - Henry and Hans - pull up to a Bohemian castle with an urgent message. They're dressed like serfs, and are treated appropriately as two guards pour a bucket of excrement over the front gates and onto the duo. The two smelly lads retreat back into town, try to buy food but are too poor and smelly to do so. After washing off in a nearby water trough and slowly carrying bags of flour, the pair are beaten by soldiers and put in the stocks. The adventure seems to be going well.

That was just a small snippet of Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 - an RPG as dedicatd to the authentic medieval experience as Doom is to gory first-person shooting. It's a game almost entirely devoted to bringing 15th century Europe to life, pulled back only for the sake of the player's entertainment and patience. Through this balance the developers are Warhorse Studios have built itself a solitary home in the wider RPG landscape right now. A lone tower that provides a blend of old world charm and new world convenience that frankly proved tantalizing.

This will sound familiar to those who played the first Kingdom Come: Deliverance, as you should expect from a direct sequel. But, it's worth noting that some of the improvements made here go beyond the typical. Not only does this game look and perform considerably better than its predesessor, it's had an animation overhaul, a combat refresh, the settlements are more vast and densely populated, the crime system is more comprehensive with tempting rewards and harrowing risks. The leap from the first game to this is a wonderful achievement.

Games can overcomplicate for the sake of depth, sure (I'm sure you can think of one of two games that have shot themselves for the sake of complexity), but Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 manages to land perfectly in the sweet spot, right on the edge of going overboard.

The game is not a all-encompassing medieval siumator, though. There are gaps in what it allows you to do, use, and see. But what it does, it does well. Every avenue for play - be it fighting, armour, dialogue, getting drunk or pickpocketing - has layered systems that you can sink your teeth into. Each have its own dedicatd level, providing various benefits and boons to those willing to dive into a particular style of play. If you wanna be that stealthy archer a la Far Cry, you totally can. If you wanna be a witty drunk, congrats mate, there is merit to that too.

This naturally presents a sesne of openess to the game that goes beyond just having vast fields and city streets to run down. It extends to the quests and Henry's own characterization. Here's an example; during the preview we were tasked with setting up a challenge between a duo of germans and the town's local swordmasters guild. To do so, you must steal a sword, but how you do so goes past a sneaky versus combative approach. Whether you kill the guard inside the swordmaster's residence has an impact on the outcome, as does whether or not you poison the wine at the tournament after you steel said sword. You can even get blitzed yourself, leading you to stumble into a melee with your blury camera making fighting hilariously difficult.

It provides Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 character, which is present in spades. The game is immediately distinct from its contemporaries, and all the richer for it. While the preview was fairly linear, the temptation to go out and brawl strangers, sneak into their houses and steal stuff, and crash into the local tavern for some fun was hard to disregard. This - to me - is a sign of a truly entertaining RPG. The first game had this, too, granted, and it's probably a major contributer to its success. But finding it present here, expanded and improved, was really, really encouraging.

But, similarly to the first game, there are elements here that folks may not like. The humour that drives much of the exploration and even the main narrative is plentiful, but inevitably will turn some away. Very early on, you're lured away from camp with your brother-in-arms, Hans Capon, because he hears women washing clothes nearby, leading to a horny shagger stealth section where you must throw stones to distract a lady in order to get closer to getting your end away.

I didn't mind this personally (in fact, I found the relationship between Henry and Hans genuinely entertaining), but it's worth bearing in mind if you're a sensitive sort. If you think your constitution might be a bit too delicate for this kind-of laddy banter, play a bit of the first game for and sample its jokes - you'll find much of the same here.

Then there's another possible bump in the road. Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 holds authenticity and realism at its heart, and the balance between historical accuracy and fun factor was held up as a major focus for the game. I feel the dev team has done a good job, and this dedication to a realistic depiction of medieval Europe only makes the game more bountiful and unique. However it's a double-edged sword; the monotomy of authenticity is something players will have to deal with. It's a sword that's sharp on both ends, fittingly.

For example, the game has a very detailed weapon and armour system. Light armour exists, as does heavy plate. But wearing heavy plate requires you to equip protective clothing underneath it, and only certain weapons perform well against certain armours. This adds to that depth I talked about earlier, but for some this may prove a bit too laborious, having to manage several seperate weapon and armour sets to cover all basis. In addition, this isn't the sort of game where Henry can fend off 15 guys at once. Lu Bu he is not, so a slower - more realistic - approach is mandatory. You cannot kill swarms of guards, you cannot pickpocket without careful planning, and you can't create potions and brews without going through a lenghty alchemy mini-game. Just like, uh, real life.

To some of you out there, this sounds mint. Exactly what you've been looking for. Me too, for the record. I love Warhorse Studios' dedication to keeping things realistic. However it's no secret that this level of detail will act as a brick wall to fun, rather than a ladder to it. I can easily forsee the act of having to carry heavy bags of grain from a cart to a storeroom standing out as the antethesis of fun, rather than a component of it. There's only so many quality of life improvements Warhorse can add without detracting from its core values, and if you're reading this you probably already know what side of the fence you're on.

But also, regardless of how you feel, it's something that I think is truly needed right now. We're in an RPG renaisannce right now, both of the first-person variety, as well as third-person and CRPGs. There's never been a better time to release an RPG, and dare I say there's never been a better time to release Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2. If the success of Baldur's Gate 3 and Elden Ring prove anything it's that there's a real hunger for RPGs that aren't super easy to blast your way through, that offer some friction.

Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 is offering something totally different than those games, but that same friction is there. The game is offering something no other big game studio is, at a time when people are happier than ever to try out new and interesting experiences.

Kingdom Come: Deliverance already proved its worth, shipping over 6 million copies in its liftime, and I feel strongly that this sequel will perform even better given the current environment its throwing itself into. It's very similar to the first game, but of a higher quality. There's less jank, there's less needless frustration. It looks better, it plays better, there's more to do and more way to do it. Having only played a few hours of the game I can't see the homerun here, but I can see the pitch going straight towards a charged bat, the swing looks good and the crack of the ball is all but certain from where I'm sitting.

More than anything I'm happy that Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 exists. I'm happy the studio didn't sand down the edges of authenticy in order to cater to more people, and I'm happy it's been given more staff, money, and time to make this sequel. I wanted to play more after the preview ended, I wanted to play more once I got back home, and I've wanted to play more ever since. It's absolutely a game worth keeping an eye on.

Kingdom Come Deliverence 2 launches on February 11, 2025 for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC. This preview was based on a gameplay demo played in Czechia, with transport and accomodation provided by the publisher.