Kingdom Come: Deliverance
Preview
Deliver us
by Preston Dozsa
previewed on PC
Delivering Accuracy
At first glance, Warhorse Studio’s Kingdom Come: Deliverance looks like a historically accurate RPG set in medieval Bohemia in 1403. After seeing Kingdom Come at E3, I’d take it further and say that it is likely one of the most historically accurate games I have ever seen, with realism permeating every aspect of the game. For those expecting magic and dragons, you’d best look elsewhere.
In Kingdom Come you play as Henry, a young man who is seeking vengeance on those who murdered his family and destroyed his hometown. The presentation at E3 focused on the search for a bandit named Reeky, who had fled to a monastery in order to hide and protect himself. Though there were a number of different methods to gain access to the monastery Henry received an invitation to become a monk from a local villager, with him masquerading as the villager to gain entrance.
Upon entering, it became readily apparent how detailed the monastery was. The developers showcased several side-by-side comparisons to show how an in-game monastery compared to a monastery as it currently stands. Warhorse consulted with historians and universities in order to make sure that the world of Kingdom Come was as accurate to the real world as possible. Based on the snippet I saw, I can’t recall a game that was this historically accurate in terms of its setting. The fact that it looks absolutely gorgeous despite still being in development certainly helps matters as well.
That realism extends to the combat. Much of Warhorse’s E3 presentation was focused on the game’s armor system, which allows players to layer different types of armor in order to suit the situation at hand. Cloth must be layered underneath leather, which can in turn be layered under a suit of metal or chainmail. Leather armor allows you to engage in stealth easily, but it won’t protect from a bandit with a sword, whereas plate armor will protect you from blades yet will crumble under the weight of a mace or similar blunt weapon. The multitude of different types of armor allow for a great deal of player freedom, and I was intrigued by how the armor interacts with different gameplay systems.
Armor makes the man
Those gameplay systems also include how NPC’s will react to you depending on the armor you wear. Wearing the armor of one faction angers another and vice-versa, though it also extends to condition that your armor is in. Armor can be covered in blood and gore, and not many people in Bohemia will appreciate you if you just waltz into the middle of town coated in the entrails of a bandit from the day before. Equipment repair is a necessity as a result, with weapon repair conducted via a whetstone sharpening minigame, though I am not sure how armor repair will be done.
I have seen Kingdom Come: Deliverance at numerous expos and trade shows over the past year or so and the game looks more exiting every time. I’m looking forward to seeing what more Warhorse has in store for the game in the months to come. While there is no firm release date yet, Warhorse plans to release Kingdom Come in 2017.
