I’ve spent my summer playing and completing 2018’s Kingdom Come: Deliverance in preparation for the sequel to the first-person historical RPG. By the grace of God, I overcame 50 hours of peasant labour in the hopes of starting the second game with a promotion. Henry of Skalitz, an orphaned blacksmith’s son and unlikely protagonist of Warhorse Studio’s Central Bohemian tale, only smells a brief whiff of nobility as a squire before quickly being plunged back into rags.
Set only days after Henry departs in the previous game to deliver a message of allegiance in nearby Trosky on behalf of his lords, he is set upon by rampaging bandits who see him thrown off course. Young Henry has already survived raids, ambushes, and near-daily brushes with death. Despite this, he’s back and duty-bound for dozens more hours of helping every wayward soul he finds before his mission is seen to.
One of the first lessons for our benevolent rapscallion is discovering what happens when he cops an arrow to the shoulder while bathing. In a shrinking Mario fashion, this early wound sees him drop ten levels after starting the game at 15. He also loses all his shit, so now Kingdom Come: Deliverance II will have players return to the first game’s pockets-empty peasant mode tutorial. Picking flowers, labouring over sourcing alchemical ingredients from various towns, and settling marital disputes. Your activities in this first zone around Trosky often only begin mundane before reliably swinging you into some involved plot mired in the likes of the Inquisition, excessive drinking, or thievery.
I just thought he looked a bit like Zach Jackson
You’ll be pickpocketing and stealing so much in this game because it might save hours of busy work. Befriend the millers, learn the arts of the rogue, and be prepared to steal on behalf of desperate people. Be careful though, there’s no ability to quicksave and roll back the ensuing panic of a failed theft.
Henry remains the affable buffoon. Our first hours have him beating up messengers for fun, scaring tavern wenches while covered in shit, robbing plenty of graves and generally succumbing to youthful whims. More the comedy for us, though, as the writers here have a wickedly ironic sense of humour that sees no good foul-up go unsmelt. Combined with the first game’s divisive limited save system and a world rearing to react to your every misstep, you must accept failures as both player and Henry to find this game’s specific rhythm. Short of death, you’re not going to see a game over screen. Rather, immersive reputation systems are in place so that the people in a given area see you dealt with appropriately if loved or hated, for you choose how to resolve your objectives.
Stealth has markedly improved in the sequel, seemingly even more so than from my hands-on time in December. It is now possible to throw stones to mislead characters and even use distractions like getting your dog Mutt to cause a scene. Previously, Henry could only passively stalk folks and wait idly until they moved into position for a good thieving.
Several different outfits can be switched between when outside of combat, with situational kits now possible for Henry. The game suggests having an outfit for combat and exploration, discreet rags for stealth, and something bougie for social occasions. This solves a big gripe from the first game, where changing outfits for a quick sneak could take entire minutes in a busy inventory.
The perk system is brimming with amusing role-playing potential
As a role-playing game, Kingdom Come: Deliverance II is hitting all the right notes. It is all too eager to pull me in eight different, dramatic directions by randomly talking to any NPC who will give me the time. Loot always makes in-world sense, whether it be rifling through the bloodied remains of a deceased huntsman for a few groschen or exhuming a marked grave in the woods for a legendary weapon. Entire quests may be passed with speech checks, with unexpected ramifications occurring throughout my lengthy playtime. This is meant to be a relatively small world, and you will constantly bump into acquaintances dynamically going about their business in surprising ways, and playthroughs will differ as major events go quietly missed in the background as time passes.
Often the pace of Kingdom Come: Deliverance II could be described as languid. Dare I say, boring even. Yet, Warhorse is uncompromising in reminding the player of the importance of the tedium of medieval life. You will be forced to become familiar with Bohemia’s flora and fauna early on, both vital to the lives and livelihoods of the people you encounter. Mundane details are met with important quest lines, making it easier to buy into this world I’m inhabiting despite my relative ignorance of this place and period.
Previewing on PC has been positive. I have had no noticeable issues playing at 4K with a 4070, everything set to ultra and a little DLSS performance assistance. This is a game of predominantly lush and detailed open-world landscapes: countrysides, forests and creeks so convincing that they have lulled me into hours of virtual wanderlust. It simply looks and sounds fantastic, at all times.
What they don’t tell you: find a spade early and get rich
As a little treat, I also recommend using a controller on PC. Warhorse has put in work in the haptics department. Practically every interaction, menu, rattle and breeze has some finely attuned feedback that stirs to life using a Series S|X controller. I would feel fundamentally disconnected from the more kinetic systems like smithing and fisticuffs when playing with the keyboard and mouse, though the lockpicking minigame seemed easier with a pointer.
During my 20-plus hours so far, nothing has made me doubt that there is anything less than an excellent game ahead of me. Warhorse has absolutely pushed the boundaries of what big-budget first-person RPGs can be, at the same time iterating with consideration to every criticism of the first game. We will see a comeback of first-person RPGs in 2025, but I suspect they’ll be hard-pressed to truly compete with Kingdom Come: Deliverance II’s level of detail and simulation.
Kingdom Come: Deliverance II will launch on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC on February 5.
Previewed on PC using code provided by the publisher
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