Ahead of tomorrow's launch, we spoke with Warhorse's global PR manager Tobias Stolz-Zwilling and senior game designer Ondřej Bittner about the series' focus on historical authenticity.
In the first game, which is largely set in rural Bohemia, this led to most of the stories being focused on white, Christian characters.
The only exception were the Cumans, Turkic mercenaries, who were largely presented as barbaric raiders. Coupled with game director Daniel Vávra's conservative views and support for Gamergate, this led to KCD being characterised as a champion for «anti-wokeness»—this was despite the protagonist, Henry, being a relatively progressive character, given the historical period.
But Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2's change in setting, where we get to explore a much more cosmopolitan city, Kuttenberg, allowed Warhorse to explore a more diverse set of characters, while also digging into the Cumen mercenaries, who are no longer simply villains.
Unfortunately, this has inspired right wing reactionaries to attack the game for becoming «woke». «Several years ago, we were branded differently,» says Stolz-Zwilling. «Now we are branded that way.