Kingdom Come: Deliverance II Tobias Stolz-Zwilling Interview and Hand’s On Gameplay
The highly anticipated sequel to Kingdom Come: Deliverance II is slated for Feb-5-2024, a thrilling action RPG set during the chaos of a civil war in 15th century Bohemia – 1403 A.D. Central Europe to be exact. It continues the narrative of protagonist Henry of Skalitz, a young man who is not only learning where he fits in this medieval world but what it means to become and “be” a warrior.
Kingdom Come: Deliverance II… The Preview
As of today, Kingdom Come: Deliverance has sold an astonishing 8 million copies worldwide and its sequel has been in development since 2019. To celebrate its launch, Plaion invited a handful of journalists and content creators to their Sydney office to not only experience the game hands-on but also discuss the game (Kingdom Come: Deliverance II) with the charismatic Tobias Stolz-Zwilling, the PR Manager from Warhorse Studios who not only sported a Viking inspired beard but proudly held a medieval pike during the media presentation.
At its core, Kingdom Come: Delivered II (KCD2) is an action RPG that is set in the real world which means no magic or mythical creatures or as Tobias explains “a huge open-world RPG with knights, castles and swords… There are dungeons but no dragons. We are trying to show the middle ages as it could have been – with real sword fighting and real historical events”.
Tobias describes the protagonist Henry as “vanilla” as it is up to the player to build who he will become and that the choices in your dialogue will dictate the narratives, including the outcome of quests. He adds, “There are moral choices that can change who survives or who dies. Sometimes (for the player), it’s a classical dilemma where all the decisions are shit and you have to find out which of those is the least shit”.
According to Tobias and given the scope of KCD2, the base game will take seasoned gamers between 80 to 100 hours to complete … and for us, that’s just scratching the surface. He also states that new players don’t need any knowledge of the original game, however veterans will feel right at home, particularly with the “inside jokes”.
Humour has been ramped up in the game with Tobias likening the Czech humour to the English that will strike a chord with most players. The game is also considerably bigger than the original game with the environment split into two different maps with Kuttenberg (or Kutná Hora in Czech) and the Bohemian Paradise.
Kingdom Come: Deliverance II Tobias Stolz-Zwilling Interview
After my short hand’s on with Kingdom Come: Deliverance II, I caught up with the larger than life Tobias Stolz-Zwilling (PR Manager, Iron Horse Studios – any maybe Viking) whose passion for this game was highly infectious.
What were some of the biggest challenges in building the sequel?
It was finishing the game – the last 5% is the most challenging because it’s adding the final touches and piecing it all together. However, if I could choose one or two elements, it would be the city of Kutná Hora (*). This map has hundreds of buildings and thousands of NPCs all running around and doing their own daily cycles. Balancing performance vs AI is challenging as you don’t want performance drops.
* Kuttenberg
Unlike a fantasy city, every single building was researched and double checked in order to replicate its real-world counterpart. It was a gigantic task to get the city up and running and the team also visited the actual (medieval) sites. We also used photogrammetry to make these areas as realistic as possible.
(Another area), the two towers of Trosky Castle are still standing today but they’re only half as high, so we had to rebuild it for the game and I’m super nerding here – the castle was finished in 1395 and the game takes place in 1403 and you can see it in its full glory in KCD2. There was also a medieval smelter and silver mine in this area as well.
You mentioned to the media that combat in KCD2 has changed, can you tell us a little more?
Combat was one of the main elements that we upgraded the most. It was a huge evolution (compared to KCD) that is heavily polished in the sequel. If you played the original, we’ve taken the best elements and improved upon this, including the different weapons.
It is still based on historical martial arts and delivers all the tricks and combos that a real sword fighter could have done in the middle ages. We’ve also improved the (melee) fighting mechanics that makes it flow better because in the original, you had to memorise quite a lot of moves and combos. It’s definitely not a button masher because of the strategy, although you can play it like that.
And the parry or blocking system?
Blocking is just as important – when you are being attacked, you are informed by a visual indicator so you can respond. You can either step back, left or right – for close combat, you can block, then try and counterattack to your advantage. You also need to be aware of how they hold their weapon which is either their left or right that also gives you an advantage. So the game does reward you when you analyze your battles.
What is your favourite weapon?
I have a Viking beard, so I like the short axe quite a lot! <Laugh>
However the really cool new addition are gunpowder weapons. When people think of the middle ages, they don’t generally associate the era with shooting weapons but they were around in the time of 1403. They also started to become relatively common in medieval warfare and battlefields but it was still very new to people of this time and it is a very intriguing weapon.
So now you have lots of different weapons from sharp, blunt to gunpowder weapons. This is where Henry’s belt comes into play as he can hang different weapons to it in order to swap between crossbows, swords or guns.
If you could pick one favourite element from Kingdom Come: Deliverance II, what would it be?
Wow, that’s tricky!
I really like how it is very story driven and very cinematic. When we presented the game at Gamescom, there was a great quote from a journalist who likened it to a playable Netflix series. I love this quote and feel that it encompasses what we were trying to achieve. Also, the characters have more depth and the dialogue is very engaging.
Lastly what are you most excited to see when it is finally released?
I know every nook and cranny in Kingdom Come: Deliverance II but there are multiple paths to completing this game and I absolutely adore watching someone play the game as they choose their own solutions and paths. That’s the greatest gift for any creator because it’s about choices.
Kingdom Come: Deliverance II gameplay hand’s on
The media were treated to one of the side-quests of KCD2 and although this code was not the final retail version, it is shaping up to be something “big” in 2025. Unlike the pristine designed cities of titles such as Dragon Age: The Veilguard, the city I explored felt considerably more grounded and this is how I imagined what a real medieval city would look like. My mission as Henry was to “steal” a sword from the local sword masters guild as requested by a hired German sword master who was visiting on the bequest of the King.
Needless to say, the locals were not impressed that an outsider was town teaching his craft. Like real life, you need to observe what is happening around you and more importantly listen to the advice. This meant stealing the sword at night but also ensuring that I did not get in trouble from the town’s guard by not carrying a torch at night. As a result, lock picking was a challenge as I needed to be fast and not get caught by the guards or the people who called this guild home. Foolish me learned to put out my torch before picking the lock to the sword masters guild.
With the PC version available to the media, we had the choice of either a controller (preferred) or mouse / keyboard combo, including plenty of behind the scenes customisation options. As I was thrown into the deep end, my first duel was with this out of towner who showed some of the basics of combat in KCD2. You really do need to read your opponent because parrying, blocking and side stepping is a must to your survival. As my quest progressed, I was also forced to fight guards and you really notice the realism of the combat in KCD2, unlike those fantasy medieval titles. It’s learning those subtle cues from your enemies, analyzing them and coming up with a strategy that when you’re fighting on your feet, can be a challenge.
With that said, controls were well mapped on the controller for the PC with several levels mapped onto it. Apart from fighting and navigating the streets of Kuttenberg and as Henry, I also tried my hand at lockpicking which is quite clever. Unlike other games that offer virtual lockpicking, the goal is to keep the yellow dot as large as possible as you rotate the lock. The lock picking was a lot more enjoyable and made more sense than Star Wars Outlaws which is an awesome game. Further the RPG component is quite complex and provides an insane amount of customisation options, including plenty of inventory slots.
Graphically, KCD2 (and this is not the final code) looks amazing and the city of Kuttenberg is extremely detailed and looks and feels like a living breathing city. Apart from the realistic buildings and “medieval” atmosphere portrayed in the game, the character models are also well-detailed and look like real people. Face detail is great, however the eyes are a little soulless. Additionally the voice acting is on par and cannot be faulted. So yes, the final game, whether on PC or next-gen will look fantastic!
Initial Thoughts?
Kingdom Come: Deliverance II is shaping up to be a very realistic medieval RPG and compared to the original 2018 game, the upgrades are quite noticeable, including the more fluid gameplay.
2025 is shaping up to be a big year for games and with Kingdom Come: Deliverance II on the cards, fans of RPG’s should be excited.
Kingdom Come: Deliverance II will be released on PC, PS5 and XSX on Feb-5-2024
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