Kingdom Come: Deliverance didn’t just create some realistic physics or accurate weapons. And I’m glad I did because it freed me to explore the world Warhorse Studios created for a blacksmith’s son without my own hero fantasies coloring it. That was an expectation I had to examine and, ultimately, abandon. At first, abandoning the “yes, and …” empowerment you usually get from video games felt off-putting. It doesn’t compromise on the original promise of realism. And in that intersection of tempered expectations and realism, I learned to love the game.
I found it impossibly frustrating at first, but as I became more accepting of Henry’s humanity, it became easy to understand both what the game expected of me and how to get there. Running away from fights, watching what you eat and showing up to work on time are all things a video game hero wouldn’t normally do, but they are all things Henry would (and has to) do. And you have to remember that Henry is human. It’s that you as the player don’t get to play as a big hero either - you get to play as Henry. It’s not just that Henry’s not some big hero. Thrilling waitstaff action! Warhorse Studios
That transition from thinking about the game as an escapist, wish-fulfillment, hack-n-slash action movie into a reality-based peasant simulator was profound.
That’s where Kingdom Come: Deliverance became infinitely more enjoyable: when I stopped forcing my expectations of playing a larger-than-life hero and started roleplaying a very human peasant. Out of desperation and frustration, I ran away - and I didn’t stop running until I was behind some thick walls being protected by trained soldiers. Save world.” I was certain I was right and that the game was wrong, so I kept trying, again and again, to figure out how to be the hero. It took me so long because I know how to play games - “Find sword. Over and over again for, if I’m being honest, hours. I squared up against the bad guys and swung the sword that fate handed me.
Despite everything I already knew about Henry, three decades of gaming experience convinced me that I knew exactly what to do. I struggled with this concept for an embarrassingly long time.
But when it comes to Henry - who rolled out of bed at the crack of noon just a couple hours ago to do his chores - there’s a very real chance that playing the hero will get him killed (spoiler: it will definitely get him killed). When it comes to big damn heroes - your Links, your Samuses (Samusi?), your Masters Chief - there’s no question what they’d do. When destiny comes calling, Henry can either stand and fight or run away as fast as he can. Even the rooster looks concerned about Henry’s life choices. From minute one of this game, it’s clear he’s not a hero of legend. But in Kingdom Come: Deliverance, you play as Henry, son of a Bohemian blacksmith in 1403. Sure, there are fun twists from time to time, but games usually boil down to being the hero. Video games tend to have a simple premise: Find sword.
Many hours in, I’ve learned to love this strange and confusing game, a process that started with examining my expectations. It’s much harder to understand a video game that takes that premise of unrelenting realism so seriously. It’s easy to understand what a game so focused on realism and accuracy means - you can’t fly and there are no laser rifles in 15th century Bohemia. With the game’s release last week, we finally got to play in their (as promised) realistic version of 15th century Bohemia. From period-accurate food and weapon damage to characters drawn from history, Warhorse Studios did its homework. From its inception, Kingdom Come: Deliverance was billed as a game steeped in realism.