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Warhorse Studios first video game, Kingdom Come Deliverance, is a reminder that within the parameters of a preexisting, bloated genre, originality is not only welcomed but thirsted for. With their first outing, the Czech studio revelled in what they knew, and more often than not, when we’re intimately connected to what we attempt to create, the resulting work fosters believability and a conviction in its own existence.
Time travel is one of those ubiquitous fantasies even the grumpiest of grandparents surely must ponder from time to time. It’s interesting to think about what life was like for our parents before we were born; what about their parents, and the parents of their parents, until we reach a time that is inconceivable to us. Video games can bring history to our screens and though most of the time it’s exaggerated for entertainment when simulation is the goal the experience is adjusted.
Who Am I?
Role-playing games as we know them originate from the tradition of oral storytelling. Participants used their imagination to reimagine a life more colourful than their own. Unfortunately, Kingdom Come Deliverance’s classless system deprives us of an essential component role-playing games rely on to immerse us in a new world.
When we create a character, we’re often moulding an image of who we want to be. When we’re born, we’re arbitrarily given a name and then raised according to our parent's ways. It’s only when we get older and become aware of ourselves as an individual in society that we begin to consider the various ways in which we can alter who we are.
Character creation gives us the power of an omniscient observer and simultaneously grants us the ability to metamorphose into our creation. This, however, doesn’t necessarily mean we get to tell our own stories, rather, we partake in the story being told. Character creation shines in a world where we can affect everything, where in spite of a narrative thread, we can choose to avoid arbitrary paths. In Kingdom Come Deliverance we’re given the character of Henry without any say. We are forced to get to know Henry, who he is and what his life’s like in Skalitz. With that in mind, maybe the lack of freedom in character choice is not as detrimental as we think, especially when the story has already been conceived.
Video games have refined their narratives over time. They are becoming more and more cinematic in how they present and unravel their stories. If we look at narrative development from Morrowind to Skyrim, it’s clear that developers want us to know where we’re going without getting lost along the way, which prevents us from truly being the character we created anyway; although Skyrim allows us to create a character, aren’t we all Dovahkiin, The Last Dragonborn?
Living in a New World
At the beginning of the game, I struggled to care for Henry and his motivations. He’s presented as a naive townie, whose life is as unsettlingly simplistic as our own. In a series of quests designed to summarise his little life, I started to wonder about the people I was being introduced to. Henry really has a life in Skalitz and it reminded me of growing up, of becoming whoever it is I’ve become today.
If you’re forced to be someone you can’t relate to, then it’s difficult to invest time following their story. However, I believe Henry is meant to be disliked in the early game. He’s a young man whose worldview is clearly limited to the small town he lives in. The narrative forces us along at a pace. We learn a lot about Henry in a short amount of time. We’re made to feel, to have an opinion on who he is. In a violent shift, everything we thought we knew is taken away from us and that is the point from which we decide what Henry we want to be.
The main quest is supplemented by a branching narrative and reputation system that gives us some freedom to role-play, though this will ultimately lead to the same ending. It can be frustrating to know that our choices have no real bearing on the narrative. That said, if I walked to the shops today and sneakily stole a chocolate bar without being caught, would this completely change the entire course of my existence, or would it merely alter my day? After all, I’d still come home and finish this piece of writing.
In one side quest, a young woman named Johanka said she was receiving messages in her dreams from the Virgin Mary. I didn’t believe her but I wanted to help. To learn that I hadn’t helped Johanka, when all along I thought I was helping her, genuinely surprised me. The outcome of the quest wasn’t what I expected, nor was it what I wanted. This feeling occurred all too often. It gave me a sense of agency I hadn’t had in a game for a long time. Despite the overarching story, it couldn’t be denied that my decisions elsewhere had had an impact.
Warhorse Studios clearly didn’t want to insult the player with the half-hearted quests we’ve grown accustomed to. Admittedly, they’re not all sublime, nor should they be; but they at least try to tell believable tales of the goings-on in this unfamiliar environment, where ultimately, it’s the humanity of people that wins out and aids the world in reinforcing its reality on the player.
Video Game as History Teacher
Inspired by the locale where they developed their game, they were, I must assume, unwitting of the success their Bohemia could bring them. In a world where swathes of histories go unnoticed, it’s timely that a team of creators decided on a setting they were passionate about. Instead of one that would guarantee appeal. Bohemia is part of a larger tapestry of medieval history. Their idea could quite easily have been diluted to become something more recognisable and in doing so, something not quite them.
Adrzej Sapkowski, the writer of the Witcher stories, incorporates Slavic mythology in his work and medieval warfare in his Hussite Trilogy. This rich panoply of inspiration was the foundation for the Witcher games and is the reason they are so enthralling. This is a fresh history and an alternative to what we presumed to know about the middle ages. And it’s a history of a people that we can explore through a medium that virtually brings it to life.
The landscape of medieval Bohemia provided a ready-made world for Kingdom Come Deliverance. It’s a world that reinforces the authenticity of the people we meet along the way. Very real emotions are forged here. I often had the feeling of being a small cog in a larger mechanism, much like our own existence. The historical accuracy of Kingdom Come Deliverance raises the standards of realism in gaming. It will surely be a reference point for future developers who choose to pursue historical realism in their work.
The Realities of Combat
In a historical setting it’s paramount to make sure there’s no dissonance between the fixed aspects of the world, such as the buildings and the landscapes we traverse, and the weapons we use, the items we gather and the clothes we dress in.
The period-accurate weapons and clothing felt underwhelming to me at first as there are no outlandish aesthetics involved. Weapons and armour will degrade over time and become dirty. This is visible to NPCs, whose reactions will vary based on the current state of Henry. The game doesn’t force you to clean up or repair your gear. It won’t necessarily make the game more difficult if you decide not to. These seemingly insignificant details reemphasise the reality we’re involved in.
Too many games have a pick-up and play quality that purposely shies away from patience. Understandably so, most game developers want their players to catch the bug for combat with the least amount of effort. Kingdom Come Deliverance requires practice to become even an amateur swordsman. During the early stages of the game, the combat can range from uncomfortable to downright complicated.
Medieval warfare is incomprehensible to us today. Though we have historical evidence and our imaginations to understand not only how people fought, but also how it may have felt to be in battle. With our visor down and mace at the ready, we use directions to indicate how we want to strike the enemy. Multiple choices as opposed to a couple of buttons that distinguish between a light or heavy attack. Initially, it feels strange and the natural instinct is to button mash. After being comprehensively defeated on multiple occasions, the practice eventually triumphs.
The combat system is methodical and requires attention as engagements can last a long time. The weight of the weapons and their concussive power can be felt through the controller. Their sound effects add to this brutal medieval environment.
This is not to say that realism in video games corresponds to enjoyment. Developers will take liberties in how they decide to implement in-game interaction. In a game set in the third person, is seeing the character put their hands up against a wall to stop themselves more immersive than one that runs into the wall and continues running? I’d argue yes, but is it more enjoyable? We can forgive these tricks of the trade if it gets us back into the action quicker. Whereas, the more realistic approach can become repetitive and annoying. There’s always a balance to be had.
Final Thoughts
The reputation of Kingdom Come Deliverance, unfortunately, rests on the criticism it received upon release. Famous for its poor optimisation and game-breaking bugs. Naturally, many issues were caught in the net of a day one patch. Warhorse Studios continued to make amends for the sloppy release. On the new consoles, the loading times are quicker, making some of the more tedious aspects of the game less bothersome.
Regardless of its flaws, Warhorse Studios have succeeded in reimagining what an RPG can be. I was thoroughly absorbed by the addictive game mechanics and surprised by the freshness of its design. Escapism is a phenomenon that occurs at the boundary of worlds. Whether those be real or fictitious, described in books or shown in films. We are capable of forgetting where we are when we are elsewhere, even if that elsewhere is unreal.
Kingdom Come Deliverance left marks that were so indelible, I still occasionally think about my time there. Though I’m quite confident in the concreteness of our own reality, is Bohemia any less real than each of our pasts? We will never ‘see’ our past again, we barely even remember what happened then, and much of that is embellished. Kingdom Come Deliverance may surprise you if you’re willing to give yourself up to the realities of another time.
