Everything We Know About Kingdom Come: Deliverance II

If you're a fan of the original Kingdom Come: Deliverance, then you've likely closely followed Warhorse Studios and the imminent release of the title's sequel. Despite their greatest efforts, Kingdom Come: Deliverance II was something that pretty much everyone has been expecting for some time now, and it's not even a bad thing — many are excited to take control of Henry of Skalitz and take the war to King Sigismund.

If you want to know everything that you can about the experience, then we've got you covered! Here's everything we know about the game and what you can expect to explore when the game comes out!

It's a Much Bigger Experience Overall

Kingdom Come: Deliverance came out in 2018, and it was a monumental affair. With graphics that included a section saying, "This is for experimental technology" and the capability to explore a real-life mediaeval experience, it appealed to a large group of gamers at the time when open-world titles were getting more traction and popularity. Back then, Warhorse Studios consisted of 11 people working on the entire project, and since then, the group has grown — by 2,173%, to be exact.

Kingdom Come: Deliverance II is releasing later this year (six years after the original) after being in development pretty much this whole time and seeing a workforce increase from 11 members to 250. This means that, as a byproduct of that, it's going to be a much more extensive adventure and more well-polished than the original, with more cutscenes, more gameplay, and even more research! By the words of Warhorse Studios themselves, it has five hours of cutscenes (from the three hours of the previous) and double the map size, which is easy to assume, then, that it'll have double the gameplay overall. 

One thing you can rest assured of is that the composer for the first title, Jan Valta, has returned. One of the scores was shown off in the announcement trailer, and it was awe-inducing. It seems like the music will be taking a massive leap forward as well, meaning the score overall should impress fans who are looking forward to having more mediaeval themes to fit into their lives.

What's the Story?

You'll take control of Henry of Skalitz once again, though this time, he's a more skilled soldier who will partake in the war against Sigismund the Red Fox and all of his allies. While the original seemed smaller in terms of it's narrative scope, you'll be pretty much trying to accomplish the same goal, just that cranked up to 11 — avenging the death of your parents in Skalitz when Sigismund raided and destroyed everything.

From a humble blacksmith's son to a member of the court of kings, you'll partake in large-scale warfare as an ordinary man trying to perform extraordinary feats. Though it's always been a serious experience, Kingdom Come: Deliverance II brings with it the original charm of the first, with several comedic moments between Henry and Sir Hans already being displayed front and centre in the game's announcement trailer. 

You Can Affect Henry (Somewhat)

One of the core points of Kingdom Come: Deliverance is that you have control over who Henry is as a character. Sure, it may not be a deep create-your-character sort of situation, but it's instead more in the vein of The Witcher 3, where you take control of a character with their own ideals, and you can shape them ever so slightly.

We don't know how much of an impact you'll be able to have in the narrative overall, as talks about this have been pretty hush-hush for the time being. A line from the trailer indicates that you'll have more control over the narrative, where the Design and Combat Director, Viktor Bocan, mentions that you'll get to be "who you want to be".

"You can save the world, or you can help punish it for its sins."

• Viktor Bocan

Advanced — Yet Realistic — Combat

Kingdom Come: Deliverance II follows the original's footsteps on realism in its combat. You'll still use one-on-one battles, where you'll be threatened by many foes on the battlefield and won't be a one-man army, but it has been advanced by including new types of weapons. Already announced are the crossbow and early adaptations of firearms, but you'll still be able to jump into battle wielding sword in hand (or mace against heavily armoured foes) and unite with your army to bring glory to Bohemia.

A Reactionary World

Much like in the first experience, you'll be living in a world with NPCs that react to everything you do, and you'll have various ways to do things. You can be well-versed in the art of combat or a charismatic Henry. You'll be able to follow the laws and be a knight of Bohemia or become a scoundrel by sneaking and stealing. Everything you do will affect how everyone behaves around you.

This is all very reminiscent of the first title, but according to the team, it's bigger in the ways you can react to the NPCs. It all eventually culminates into a world that responds better to what you do, and in turn, you can react to them and make an impact on the world and how it shapes around you.

It's More Kingdom Come: Deliverance

And if this all sounds familiar, it’s because it should — it's just more Kingdom Come: Deliverance, as it's nearly indistinguishable from the first game, and that's a good thing. Warhorse Studios doesn't seem to be trying to fix what isn't broken, as instead, Kingdom Come: Deliverance II seems to be a faithful sequel to the original. It expands upon the first without forgetting its roots, carrying the same charm, art direction, and purpose: living life as a mediaeval boy trying to endure. It has shenanigans, funny moments, and stressful situations, with a narrative spanning five hours of cutscenes and who knows how many hours of dialogue we'll be able to explore.

Overall, it's the thing to take away from this the most: it seems like we're going to just get a true-to-Kingdom-Come:-Deliverance experience, being able to relive the first game's charm with enhanced visuals, more stories, and perhaps even an end to Sigismund the Red Fox's saga as a whole.

When Is It Coming Out?

The most important question of all is the release date for Kingdom Come: Deliverance II, and though it seems to be coming out of nowhere, its release date feels even more abrupt: we can expect to jump back into Bohemia sometime before this year — 2024 — ends. So, no waiting around until 2025 or later, as it seems we'll be able to embark on the journey relatively soon, and we couldn't be more excited!