Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 reminds me a little bit of Dungeons & Dragons. You can play the protagonist any way you want, but the choices you make have consequences — not just for the ending but throughout the campaign.
Warhorse Studios’ next installment of the Kingdom Come: Deliverance series comes with about double the content as the original and plenty of attention to detail, especially in its interactions and how they affect your playthrough. The sequel follows Henry, the hero from the first game, on a new adventure in 15th century Europe to avenge his murdered parents. You don’t need to play the first game to jump into this one, but it did catch me off guard how the realism clashed with the typical fantasy RPGs I knew. My one-hour demo was a promising peek into Henry’s new life that intrigued me with its entertaining dialogue and quirks.
This world doesn’t have the magic of other medieval-inspired RPGs like Fire Emblem. Instead, Deliverance 2 prides itself in medieval accuracy and realism, which you feel in the detailed world and narrative design. Its first-person perspective also makes it more of a sim, though you can still see Henry in the cutscenes when they happen.
You can play Henry however you want, but the choices you make will have an influence on your reputation and how others react to you. Your dialogue and actions, which you only have a limited time to choose from, build your character. For example, if you become a bloodstained soldier that picks fights with anyone who crosses your path, others will naturally be more wary and unwilling to trust what you say. However, you might get a combat boon because of your experience. It’s always better to choose rather than let the decision timer tick away.
As a newcomer, I was surprised by how much my interactions mattered. The combat, which required some finagling with the controls rather than mashing buttons, also proved to be a challenge for me. You can’t even walk into NPCs without someone complaining. The characters felt distinct from one another, and the campy humor was a plus.
Missions also had me on the edge of my seat. Following the instructions from a disgruntled foreign swordsman, I snuck into an opponent’s house to steal their sword. I paced back and forth, nervous that I’d be discovered, especially when I swung the doors open to find sleeping grunts. I was warned to not get caught or, if I did, not kill any grunts if I wanted a favorable ending.
Deliverance 2 stands out as a world for fans who appreciate realistic, sim-like medieval RPGs, especially the kind where discovering new scenarios and exploring the setting is a must. It gave me a fresh experience I wasn’t used to, seeing the world simulated as if you were an actual person in a medieval town instead of a spectating player on the other side of the screen. By the end, I was itching to see how the next duel played out, even though I was scared of accidentally starting a riot.
Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 launches for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S on February 11, 2025.
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