When reviews began trickling in for Warhorse Studios’ sequel to their 2018 cult classic RPG, Kingdom Come: Deliverance, I was taken aback by how much praise the game was receiving. Not for any other reason than for the fact that I had never heard of this series up until that point. Nevertheless, I have a simple rule: whenever a new game, triple-A or indie, and irrespective of genre, releases to universal acclaim, I need to get my hands on it. And so, I squinted at the after-tax cost of a full-priced triple-A game on Steam, which stood at a soul-wrenching 90 Canadian loonies, and dove into the Kingdom of Bohemia.

My first couple of hours in the boots of Henry, serving lord Sir Hans Capon, were great. I was instantly immersed in this world and enamoured by the game’s strive for grounded realism. I was intrigued by the story that was unfolding and found the characterization and relationship between Hans and Henry endearing. Now, all that said, not all were roses and rainbows. I found the movement to be a bit stiff, and my first couple of bouts of combat to be incredibly clunky. I also felt a tad overwhelmed by the menus and UI navigation. But I figured that, with time, all of those elements would become second nature once I’d gotten my bearings. Boy, was I wrong.

Being a Peasant Sucks, Especially on a Controller

Right when you think that you and your entourage are going to be off on an adventure, delivering an important message to Lord Otto Von Bergow, things fall into chaos as your group gets attacked by bandits. It’s not long before, after a series of unfortunate events, that you find yourself with no money and no armour, stranded in Trosky with just the peasant clothes on your back. This is a solid narrative beat that also dovetails into gameplay quite well; making a player have to start from scratch is nothing new, after all—we’ve seen it time and time again with games like Metroid, for instance. 

However, every part of this early game in KCD2 feels almost unnecessarily punishing. Everything, much like in life, requires money—from bathhouse services to buying one strip of bacon. There aren’t any immediate quests to help you get some money, either, unless you get a horse and ride off to a couple of the smaller villages around Trosky, which, of course, also requires some nice Groschen. You could steal a horse, but doing so is very tough without getting spotted and having a soldier (or seven) come after you. “Maybe you could fight off the soldiers,” you might be thinking. Nope, because at this stage, Henry has the fighting abilities of a toddler who hasn’t had naptime. You have no idea how many times I’d gotten into it with someone and inevitably got myself back into a pillory, having to start my journey out of peasanthood all over again. 

But, you know what? Fine. I can deal with the game pushing players to exist in this harsh environment, forcing us to live like actual peasants. And the developers have done a great job of making this experience as grounded and authentic as possible, making for an incredibly immersive experience. The problem is that the gameplay surrounding these early parts is a chore to play. Everything, from Henry’s movement to the combat to the lockpicking mini-game to the menu navigation, felt frustrating, clunky, and unintuitive. On more than one occasion, I would have a two-to-three-hour play session, at the end of which I’d realize that I hadn’t made a bit of progress. I wasn’t having fun. And it was around the ten-hour mark when I was about to call it quits. But before I did so, I did the thing that all gamers, at one point or another, have done: go on Reddit to validate my feelings.

On Reddit, I came across many other players who’d made posts venting their similar frustrations. Qualms with the combat, the slow progression, and the needless punishment when trying to accomplish the smallest of tasks. It felt good to read these posts. I didn’t feel like I was crazy for not resonating with this game that had been getting praised by seemingly everyone in the games industry. I felt like I could quit without the guilt. I’d tried it for ten hours, it didn’t click, and that’s okay. But then, I read one comment by a user replying to one of these posts. The user shared their sympathy, saying that they, too, were not vibing with the game. That is, until they started playing with a mouse and keyboard. They were adamant that Kingdom Come: Deliverance II was not intended to be played with a controller; that this game was built to be played on a mouse and keyboard. 

Now, as a gamer who’s been a console-pony for his entire life, who has only just stepped his big toe into PC gaming, I didn’t give this comment that much attention. You see, although I’d bought this game on Steam, I’d been playing it on my MSI Claw 8 AI+, a handheld gaming PC that has buttons and joysticks to caress my noobish console player fingers. The more I thought about it, however, the more I couldn’t get it out of my head. So, I went online and started looking up mice and keyboards—which, let me tell you, is a whole black hole of information that I was not prepared for (seriously, does anyone know what a mouse’s polling rate actually does?). 

Eventually, after way too much research that I wasn’t prepared for, I settled on the Razer DeathAdder V3 wired and a budget gaming keyboard from TMKB. I took those two peripherals, jammed them atop my Claw 8 and created the above Frankenstein abomination (if I’m honest, I actually kinda dig it. And I’ve actually used this setup to do some proper work, which, if you’re interested in learning more about that experience, comment below). 

Stuart Little Saves The Day

The moment I started up the game and moved the camera with my new mouse, I knew this was going to be a very different experience. All of a sudden, the game seemed to “click” into place (pun intended). That overwhelming and seemingly complicated menu all of a sudden now felt seamless and intuitive to navigate. Henry no longer felt like he was wearing Christian Bale’s Batman suit every time I moved the camera. And the lockpicking? Good lord, the lockpicking finally, finally felt like an actually doable mini-game and not this insurmountable task that had me feeling like I was defusing a damn bomb each time. 

With all of that said, however, things weren’t all rainbows and chocolates (I don’t think that’s the proper saying, but we’ll roll with it because I’m too lazy to look it up). A mouse and keyboard, for as much as it was a genuine game-changer, still couldn’t fix the combat system. It felt better, sure, but it was still a clunky mess. From hits not seeming to register to an unpredictable parry timer and a frustrating stamina gauge, combat in KCD2 is a big, hot, slow and unintuitive mess that, though at times can be satisfying, overall feels very undercooked…and no peripheral is going to solve that. 

Things Got Better…But For How Long?

Nevertheless, my newfound excitement and ability to actually enjoy the game with a keyboard and mouse led me to continue playing for a few more hours, which led to progress, which then led to some very interesting plot developments that got me sucked into the story and characters anew. Twenty hours later, and I’m happy to say that I have gotten Henry out of peasanthood (at least for now) and am genuinely enjoying my time with Kingdom Come: Deliverance II. However, some of its frustrations, particularly with the combat, are still here. And so many of the game’s plot twists seem to end up continually leaving Henry with nothing, making you have to retread needing to find gear and make your way up in the world—God, this really is a life simulator. 

As such, I question how much patience I’ll have in trudging through these elements of the game. A mouse and keyboard may have bought me some time, but I’m not sure just how much. But, for now, I’m just glad I was able to get out of that miserable opening and actually start enjoying the game. So, thank you, random person on Reddit, for commenting about the need for a mouse and keyboard. I still don’t know if I necessarily agree with all of the glowing reviews from critics, but I do appreciate how different an approach Warhorse Studios has taken when cultivating this immersive experience. Now, let’s just hope I don’t get too frustrated with the combat or at ya’ll’s continued insistence on thrusting me into peasanthood before seeing this game’s end credits.