Developer Warhorse Studios returns imminently with Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, the next chapter in its historical RPG built on CryEngine technology. This time around, we’re looking at a purely current-gen release on Xbox Series X, Series S, PlayStation 5, and of course PS5 Pro. In putting the last-gen PS4 and Xbox One systems aside, the team is able to focus its efforts on optimising for a beautiful recreation of an early 15th century Czech Republic on these four platforms and PC, of course. First impressions from the area of the game set aside for the preview period certainly impress – and it was a genuine surprise to see a 60fps performance mode added to the mix, bearing in mind how CPU-intensive the first game was.
The ambition of KCD2 is unlike most games and it’s certainly unusual in the portfolio of CryEngine titles. Following directly on from the original, it once again puts us in the shoes of Henry, a former blacksmith apprentice who navigates the political turmoil across the Kingdom of Bohemia. Kicking off with an ill-fated mission to deliver a peace letter, you’re faced with branching dialogue trees, during which the success of each interaction is dictated by your stats. Stealth, combat, or the full charm offensive are all viable ways to push the story forward here. Also, en route you are encouraged to play out the realities of 15th century living, including transporting sacks of food for coin, blacksmithing, and even brewing your own potions. The first person duelling system returns, but it’s not a high-octane, action thrill-ride, nor is it meant to be. There’s a slower, more considered pace to KCD2 that pushes it more-so into immersive sim territory than most RPGs going today. Fatigue, hunger, your wounds are all simulated as you travel the map, and added to that, your attire, plus your stats dictate the outcome of a discussion.
On a tech level, the highlights of the first Kingdom Come: Deliverance are only amplified in scale this time around. Above all else, the rendering of huge, dense woodland areas is the standout point; from PS5 Pro to Xbox Series S, every console is able to realise these broad, sweeping landscapes – backed by dynamic weather and time of day systems. It truly grounds it in its historical premise, and also the often methodical, sim-based nature of its gameplay. Grass and tree pop-in are in view, sadly, but what Warhorse Studio achieves on CryEngine takes on a suitably photo-realistic look otherwise – largely thanks to the use of physically based materials. Everything from the metals on armour to the cloth on horse saddles reacts convincingly to the overcast midday lighting outdoors. And meanwhile, the use of the CryEngine’s sparse voxel octree global illumination (SVOGI) allows for convincing indirect light bounce, notably around interiors lit by torches.
The standard PS5 and Xbox Series X offer two modes: a 30 frames per second fidelity mode that renders at 1440p, and also a 60fps performance mode that renders at 1080p. Each uses AMD’s FSR 2.1.2 technology (with FSR 3.1 on PC) to scale to a higher 4K image. Meanwhile, Xbox Series S runs at 1080p and 30fps out of the box, with no alternative 60fps option available. And finally, PS5 Pro also removes the mode toggle in the menus, instead opting to offer a single way to play at 60fps – rendering internally at 1296p with a PSSR upscale to 4K.