Henry is back. And honestly? He’s a lot messier this time around. If you spent dozens of hours in the first game trying to learn how to read or failing miserably to swing a sword without falling over, you know the vibe. Kingdom Come: Deliverance II isn't just a sequel; it’s Warhorse Studios finally getting the budget to match their terrifyingly ambitious vision of 15th-century Bohemia.
The first game was a miracle. It was a buggy, janky, brilliant mess that sold millions of copies because it refused to hold your hand. You weren't a "Chosen One." You were a blacksmith’s son who couldn't even sharpen a blade properly. In Kingdom Come: Deliverance II, that grounded DNA remains, but the scale has shifted from "survive this village raid" to "decide the fate of kings." It’s bigger. It’s prettier. It’s much more violent.
The Kuttenberg Factor: Why Size Actually Matters Here
In the original game, Rattay was your hub. It felt huge at the time, right? Well, Kingdom Come: Deliverance II introduces Kuttenberg.
Kuttenberg was a silver-mining powerhouse, a city that rivaled Prague in the 1400s. Warhorse has rebuilt it with a level of historical obsession that feels almost pathological. Walking through the streets isn't like walking through a Skyrim city where there are six houses and a shop. This is a dense, filth-ridden, gold-leafed urban labyrinth. You’ll see the soot from the silver smelters. You’ll hear the cacophony of a dozen different trades.
The transition from the wild, lush forests of the Bohemian Paradise (the Český ráj) to the claustrophobic streets of Kuttenberg creates a pacing dynamic the first game lacked. You aren't just riding through fields anymore. You’re navigating urban politics. You're dealing with a city that reacts to your very presence. If you walk around Kuttenberg covered in blood and wearing tattered rags, people aren't just going to give you "generic NPC bark #4." They’re going to be horrified. Or they might think you’re a hardened mercenary worth hiring.
Henry’s Evolution: From Peasant to Protagonist
Henry of Skalitz is older now. He has a beard. He has seen things that would break a normal person. But the developers have been very clear: he’s still Henry. He’s still that slightly awkward, fiercely loyal guy.
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The story picks up right where we left off. Henry and Sir Hans Capon are on a mission to deliver a letter, and—unsurprisingly—things go sideways. What makes Kingdom Come: Deliverance II fascinating is how it handles Henry’s "stats." You aren't resetting to level one. That would be cheap. Instead, the game acknowledges Henry’s growth while introducing a much higher ceiling for mastery.
You’re now a soldier in a middle-European power struggle. King Sigismund "The Red Fox" of Hungary is the primary antagonist again, and he’s an actual historical figure who was, frankly, a bit of a nightmare. The stakes involve the Council of Constance and the brewing Hussite Wars. It’s heavy stuff. But the heart of the game is still the bromance between Henry and Hans. Their chemistry is the secret sauce. Without it, this would just be a dry history lesson.
Combat, Crossbows, and Early Gunpowder
Let's talk about the combat because that’s where most people bounced off the first game.
Warhorse hasn't "dumbed it down." Thank God. It’s still based on real 15th-century HEMA (Historical European Martial Arts). However, they’ve smoothed the edges. The animations are more fluid, and the feedback loop of hitting someone in heavy plate armor feels more... substantial.
And then there are the guns.
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- Early Firearms: We’re talking hand cannons. These are primitive, slow to load, and incredibly dangerous. They aren't snipers. They’re "I hope this explodes in your face and not mine" weapons.
- Crossbows: Finally. A middle ground between the difficult longbow and the chaotic hand cannon. Perfect for a stealthy approach or opening a fight from horseback.
- Polearms: They’ve been reworked to be more viable as primary weapons rather than just something you pick up and drop.
The "Star" combat UI is still there, but it feels less intrusive. The goal is intuition. You should feel the weight of the mace crushing a helmet. When you use a longsword, the "Master Strikes" aren't just "win buttons" anymore; they require actual timing and a reading of the opponent's stance. It’s a dance. A very bloody, muddy dance.
The Reputation System is Actually Scary Now
In most RPGs, "reputation" is just a bar that goes up or down. In Kingdom Come: Deliverance II, it’s a living system.
If you get caught stealing in a small village, word travels. But it’s not just "guards hate you." The shopkeepers might raise their prices specifically for you. The local drunk might try to blackmail you. Conversely, if you’re a hero, people will cheer when they see you. It sounds like standard marketing fluff, but Warhorse is using a complex AI backend to track "crimes" and "deeds" across different social strata.
You can be a hero to the poor and a villain to the nobility. This creates a branching narrative that isn't just about dialogue choices. It’s about how you behave in the world. If you’re a drunken brawler who spends every night in the tavern, the town’s priest isn't going to want much to do with you when you need a favor.
Authentic Alchemy and Survival
The alchemy bench is back. It’s still a first-person, manual process of boiling oils, grinding herbs, and timing the bellows. It’s tactile.
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But they’ve added more layers to the survival mechanics. Eating and sleeping still matter, but they’ve been tuned to be less of a chore and more of a "immersion anchor." You need to look after Henry's gear. Armor gets dented. Clothes get dirty. In a world where social standing is everything, showing up to a meeting with a Lord while smelling like a pigsty and wearing blood-stained gambeson has actual gameplay consequences.
Why This Game Matters in 2026
We live in an era of "map marker" gaming. Most open worlds are checklists. Kingdom Come: Deliverance II is the antithesis of that. It demands that you pay attention to the world. It asks you to look at the sun to find your way or to read a map based on landmarks rather than a glowing GPS line.
It’s also one of the few games that treats history with genuine respect rather than using it as a "cool skin." The team works with historians, re-enactors, and architects to ensure that everything—from the way a door hinge is forged to the liturgical chants in the cathedrals—is period-accurate.
How to Prepare for the Launch
If you're planning on diving into Henry’s next chapter, don't expect a typical action game. Expect a life simulator set in the Middle Ages.
- Finish the first game's DLC: Specifically A Woman's Lot. It provides a massive amount of context for the trauma Henry is carrying into the sequel.
- Brush up on the Hussite Wars: You don't need a PhD, but knowing why the Pope and the Holy Roman Empire were at each other's throats helps make sense of the political betrayals.
- Get a controller (maybe): While the first game was iconic on M&K, the new combat tweaks and horseback mechanics have been designed with analog precision in mind.
- Check your hardware: Kuttenberg is a beast. If you’re on PC, ensure your CPU is up to the task of simulating thousands of daily NPC schedules.
Kingdom Come: Deliverance II is a rare breed. It’s a sequel that knows exactly what its fans loved—the difficulty, the historical grit, the humor—and simply gives them more of it without trying to chase trends. It’s unapologetic. It’s Bohemian. And honestly, it’s probably going to be the most immersive thing you play this year.
The most important thing to remember is that you aren't a superhero. You’re just Henry. And in a world of dragons and space marines, being just Henry is exactly what makes this special. Keep your sword sharp and your horse fed. You're going to need both.