Kingdom Come: Deliverance II Review — Audentes Fortuna Iuvat

Kingdom Come: Deliverance II is an incredibly authentic open-world medieval RPG. Continuing where the first game left off, players will experience a brand new, even grander tale in the world of 15th-century Europe. Featuring incredible storytelling, authentic-feeling combat, and a striking attention to detail, Kingdom Come: Deliverance II is precisely the game fans of the original have been so excited for.

Henry of Skalitz once again serves as our protagonist in Kingdom Come: Deliverance II. Henry continues to be haunted by the events of Kingdom Come: Deliverance, particularly the death of his parents during the raid of his village by the armies of King Sigismund and the theft of his father’s final, hand-crafted sword by Istvan Toth. Seeking allies against King Sigismund, Henry accompanies his friend and nobleman Hans Capon to deliver a letter to Von Bergow of Trotsky. However, trouble on the road complicates this task, and what should have been a simple trip turns into a grand adventure as Henry vows to complete his mission and get his revenge on Toth.

Something you are going to immediately notice about Kingdom Come: Deliverance II is the level of passion that has gone into its development.

Every facet of the game feels carefully and cleverly designed to deliver an absolutely incredible finished product, from the sheer size of the open-world maps to the level of detail packed into them and the phenomenal writing throughout. Developer Warhorse Studios was not only focused on presenting an incredibly historically accurate medieval RPG but also one with an unforgettable story.

From the very beginning, the writing in Kingdom Come: Deliverance II had me hooked. Though occasionally packed with clever humor and heartwarming moments, Kingdom Come: Deliverance II is not at all afraid to show you the most heart-wrenchingly brutal realities of war and politics in the 15th century. The game contains some very dark scenes of violence and tragedy but never feels gratuitous or like the writers were simply trying to shock you. Everything is written smartly, delivering some unforgettable drama, characters, and phenomenal dialogue.

As a writer and a professional critic (ick, I know), it is becoming increasingly rare for me to find a game with writing that I thoroughly enjoy, with little to nothing to nitpick about. Kingdom Come: Deliverance II is one of these games, hooking me from the beginning with its incredible world-building and character moments that never feel out of place for the setting or the characters themselves.

The game is also insistent upon historical accuracy. While there was never a Henry of Skalitz, and I highly doubt this incredible story ever happened, you’d have trouble believing you weren’t living straight out of the pages of a history book thanks to the game’s attention to detail with its setting. The lives, cultures, and politics of life in 15th-century Bohemia are presented phenomenally in Kingdom Come: Deliverance II, both through the writing, set design, and mechanics. Little details, such as you having to equip a padded coif in order to wear your helmet, were thoughtfully designed with realism in mind.

This attention to historical detail and realism continues when you get to the game’s combat, which is a directional-based system of tight duels that reflects the reality of 15th-century warfare. Each battle feels like an exciting 1v1, with chained combo strikes, careful blocks, parries, and ripostes, and attention to your stamina being paramount for survival.

Being outnumbered is deadly, and fighting with or against enemies in full armor is more than your typical RPG combat, requiring you to tire your armored opponent out before going in for the kill. That is, should you choose to kill them; enemies will often surrender or run away when overwhelmed, giving you the honorable route of sparing your foe, assuming they don’t have anything you want to loot off of them.

Realism also plays an important part in the game’s open world, with characters and towns keeping track of your reputation as well as your crimes. The game world actually keeps track of your deeds, both in story missions where your decisions have lasting effects, or simply in open-world play when you steal a horse or fail to complete a task as promised. The game encourages you to take non-lethal approaches to solving your problems, with a range of different persuasion skills as well as little details such as if your clothing is obscured by armor or if said clothing/armor is covered in filth determining your interactions with the cast of living NPCs.

Kingdom Come: Deliverance II accomplishes what many RPGs fail to do, making your decisions and interactions with the world feel tangible and important. There are multiple ways forward in every quest and task, never limiting you to one play style. There is an incredible sense of accomplishment that comes from starting with nothing—literal rags—to suiting up in a full set of armor and brandishing the best weapons, knowing that the path that took you there was one of questing, bartering, maybe some thievery, and combat, rather than just waiting until you were a high enough level for the good gear to drop.

Try Hard Guides received a PC review code for this game. Find more detailed looks at popular and upcoming titles on our Game Reviews page! Kingdom Come: Deliverance II is available on Steam, Epic Games, Xbox, and PlayStation.