The original Kingdom Come: Deliverance ranks among the best cRPGs ever, yet I would never praise it for its performance. Despite many updates, the game still has various issues today. There’s not much to say – Warhorse Studios, although talented, bit off more than they could chew by creating such a big game. It excelled in many areas (engaging plot, sword fighting mechanics, etc.), but technically… there were issues like overlapping textures, physics glitches, non-functional scripts, and stones falling out of nowhere in Talmberg.
Kingdom Come: Deliverance II shows significant improvements and a much greater focus on technological and optimization issues. The title running on CryENGINE presents a high level of audiovisual quality, offering by far the most spectacular Middle Ages in the history of digital games. The number of details and prepared settings amaze with their complexity, just like the choice of color palette. The story is serious, but bright colors dominate, which fits perfectly into the overall aesthetics of the game.
Sending the game to reviewers almost a month before the release was an extremely bold decision. Was it right, though? After spending many hours with it, I must admit, absolutely yes! As is usually the case with open-world titles, it was not possible to avoid bugs, but I never encountered a situation where the game stopped working properly. I could play Henry’s adventures without any major problems and it is one of the best optimized and technically supervised games of recent months.
- game without DLSS is stable and maintains 60 fps;
- stability even in densely populated areas;
- possibility of changing settings at any time during the game;
- design of forests and rural areas.
CONS:
- NPCs sometimes lose the script and stand still frozen;
- occasional non-working hitboxes;
- jumping shadows on objects.
THIS IS NOT A GAME REVIEW
Kingdom Come: Deliverance is a game I’ve spent many hours on, and I’d be thrilled to discuss the “sequel” in a standard review. In this case, however, I have to hold my horses and focus solely on the technological aspect, and you can find a full review on Gamepressure.com. The game was tested on an Acer Helios 16 laptop (Intel Core i9 14900HX, 32 GB RAM, and GeForce RTX 4080) at a resolution of 2560 x 1600.
System requirements
Kingdom Come: Deliverance II is designed contrary to “current optimization trends” and optimized for performance on a broad spectrum of system configurations. Devs have also prepared a dedicated configuration for the Steam Deck, and according to our experience, it performs really… good.
|
Configuration
|
Minimum
|
Recommended
|
|
Processor
|
Intel Core i5-8400, AMD Ryzen 5 2600
|
Intel Core i7-13700K, AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
|
|
RAM
|
16 GB RAM
|
32 GB RAM
|
|
GPU
|
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 (6GB), AMD Radeon RX 580
|
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070, AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT
|
|
Storage
|
100 GB of available space
|
100 GB of available space
|
Optimization, Ladies and Gentlemen… is noble
What surprised me the most in a positive way was the DLSS issue. It turned out that for most of the game I had it turned off. But that’s actually good! Without DLSS, the game on very high settings maintains 60 fps most of the time on my laptop with RTX 4080, occasionally dropping by – 3-4 fps.
When I finally turned on DLSS, the numbers jumped from 67 to even 90 fps, which I definitely note as an advantage. Kuttenberg, the series’ largest city, was surprisingly well-optimized. That’s a big difference because, in the first installment, Rataje could effectively lower the frame rate, making the game in the city area highly unstable.
Kuttenberg, as the largest city in the game, doesn’t negatively affect the fluidity of gameplay.Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, Warhorse Studios, 2025
At the lowest settings, it was even better. The average number of FPS without DLSS was about 120 fps, and after switching to balanced mode, you could expect over 150 fps. The biggest graphical changes are noticeable mainly in the details of smaller objects, the drawing range, and the shading of structures visible to the player.
Overall, the jump isn’t as drastic as we might anticipate, but the performance boost from lowering settings is visible. This is good news for people who will be playing Henry’s adventures on older rigs.
Low graphics settings – most changes are seen in shading and the range of visible objects.Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, Warhorse Studios, 2025
Very high graphics settings – vegetation detail and drawing range.Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, Warhorse Studios, 2025
Graphic options with the enigmatic name “experimental” have also been added. They increase the drawing range and add more light to a large area around the player. Even with DLSS, I couldn’t achieve stability, and the frame rate fluctuated between 40-49 fps. To make matters worse, the changes were barely noticeable. These are options for players planning to play Kingdom Come: Deliverance II on top-tier devices, on 4K screens.
In the case of a desktop configuration equipped with an i5-13600K, RTX 4080 Super, and 32 GB RAM, at a resolution of 3440 x 1440, the average frame rate in experimental mode was 140 fps. In the market in Kuttenberg, the value dropped to around 90 (with slight deviations), and in the most intense moments of the game, where many characters appeared on the screen, it was 78 fps. In this case, DLSS was enabled in balanced mode.
Gameplay on other platforms and Steam Deck
I also asked my editorial colleagues who had the opportunity to play Warhorse Studios’ game, how the game worked on their hardware. For a desktop computer with an Intel i7-9700KF processor, Nvidia RTX 2060 Super graphics card, 32 GB RAM, and a 1080p monitor, the performance was also pleasantly surprising. However, to achieve the smoothest gameplay, it was necessary to combine medium and high graphic settings. Setting DLSS to quality allowed to maintain a stable 60 fps, although there were occasional drops, especially during one larger battle, where something was clearly crunching.
On a laptop with an i7-13700HX, RTX 4070, and 16 GB DDR5 RAM, a similar combination of medium and high settings performed well at a resolution of 1920×1080. The frame rate easily exceeded 60, but for greater stability, it was locked at 60. When setting DLSS to quality, everything worked smoothly and without major problems.
Adam Celarek
The performance of KCD 2 on Steam Deck turned out to be surprising. On low graphic settings, FSR set to performance, and the native resolution of the Steam Deck (1280×800), the game consistently achieved a satisfactory frame rate of about 60 fps. The title maintained its unique graphic style, and the shortcomings of the lowest graphic preset didn’t bother on the small console screen. Boosting the settings to medium caused the frames to oscillate between 40 and 50 fps. Nonetheless, I think this could be a valuable choice for players who prioritize image quality over fluidity.
The main issue I faced when playing on the Steam Deck was the bad scaling of certain interface elements, such as small icons. Some edges in the equipment also seemed heavily frayed, which was especially visible in the animations of switching between tabs. However, it’s worth remembering that we conducted the tests on the pre-release version of the game. There is a high chance that the issues mentioned here will be addressed in future updates after the launch.
Smoother animations and beautiful forests
The first installment already offered amazing virtual forests. Sound, textures, amount of light and shading – everything there worked as it should. The sequel improves on that and shows the forest with even more detail. First of all, there is a much greater emphasis on shading and the play of light.
Animal behavior has been enhanced as well – now deer and rabbits don’t rush under Henry’s feet, and you need to chase them a bit to hunt them. The sight of mammals scurrying in the forest nooks and crannies further builds the atmosphere, especially since you can also encounter wolves. Walking around these areas is one of the most pleasant visual experiences I’ve recently had in games.
The forests are still the strongest point of the visuals. They look a lot better than they did in the first installment.Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, Warhorse Studios, 2025
All the villages or towns we encounter on our way also look great. They are full of details, various elements, and are prepared with great meticulousness. The game also gives us many opportunities to admire vast views. And what views they are! There’s truly something captivating here – the drawing range and texture detail (at very high settings) are remarkable, and they don’t excessively burden the components.
Distant views on very high graphics settings.Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, Warhorse Studios, 2025
Distant views on low graphics settings.Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, Warhorse Studios, 2025
From a technical aspect, I also have to praise the improvement of all animations. They have become much smoother, just like the movement of the protagonist. The annoying vibrations from the first installment are gone, and actions like opening doors are much better. Warhorse Studios significantly polished the animations and it can be felt at every step. The same is true for combat—it has been slightly simplified, but it now has much more fluidity. Less repetitive fencing techniques and various types of grips used during clinch were added.
City centre.Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, Warhorse Studios, 2025
The opponents themselves also react better and are “smarter.” The shooter under attack will grab the weapon much sooner, rather than waiting for Henry to close the gap. Groups of opponents no longer line up to fight but instead try to surround the main character, forcing us to keep moving. They sometimes “lose track” of us and only react to Henry’s presence after a moment, but it’s still better than it was. They are more effective at countering our attacks, causing the fight to often revolve around trading blows and waiting for the opportune moment to attack.
The sound design was also expanded – many details were added, such as the creaking of armor or the sounds of hitting metal.
Unfortunately, like every open-world game, Kingdom Come: Deliverance II isn’t free from bugs. Fortunately, they are not as serious as in the original. Bugs usually… bring a smile.
Storms so powerful that you can see them even in caves!
The most amusing graphic error was definitely the storm. The lightning was so intense that it didn’t matter if Henry was deep in the caves beneath one of the castles, in the dungeons, or in a windowless room – the storm was visible everywhere. However, this only happened once or twice.
On the other hand, water has the laws of physics in a horse’s rump. Warhorse Studios tried to create a natural effect of rain running down objects like wooden tables, but the result was average. Water on such surfaces appears to be constantly flowing in one specific direction.
Occasional bugs, in this case levitating bags!Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, Warhorse Studios, 2025
Sometimes, certain objects would vanish and Henryk would get stuck – one grave nearly became my own, as I found myself unable to escape it. The shadows also put on a good show – mainly appearing and disappearing whenever they wanted. It was usually related to buildings and their roofs. Shading errors happen quite often, yet they remain more of a cosmetic issue rather than one that truly impacts gameplay.
This grave could have become my grave…. Henry was stuck.Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, Warhorse Studios, 2025
A few times I also clipped through textures, but luckily I wasn’t launched into the air. There was a time when a mistake like that actually helped me descend a steep slope – I sank into the stone’s structure, and Henry landed smoothly on its lower surface. Then I simply “came out” of the stone. That’s what I like!
Light and fire effects can play tricks. Here, a strange trail of smoke can be seen coming the torch.Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, Warhorse Studios, 2025
I also noticed that sometimes the characters’ faces are very still or take on strange, absent looks. Although it’s not visible in the cutscenes, it becomes quite noticeable during the game’s regular dialogues. The expression of the character is straight from the first installment, and most of the emotions are conveyed through the tone of voice and gestures. I also noticed bugs in the case of rats, which can be found in dungeons or pantries. They move as if on a string, and sometimes they get blocked or just disappear. From a distance, they look okayish, but upon “closer inspection,” their charm fades away, revealing the artificiality in their movements.
Scripts don’t go crazy, but hitboxes do
In Kingdom Come: Deliverance, scripts were a major problem. Even after many patches, there were situations in which they didn’t work as they should. In the best-case scenario, we had to restart the game or go back to a previous save, and in the worst case – it blocked further progress in the storyline. KCD2 doesn’t have similar problems. I didn’t experience any crashes to the desktop or errors that prevented quest completion.
The cutscenes are polished.Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, Warhorse Studios, 2025
In bigger locations and towns, it occurs that after a cutscene, NPCs suddenly “recall” what they should do. It looks funny when several characters try to enter one building or room at the same time. Other times they just stand in one place and ponder about their life. Only after a moment does the right algorithm begin, and then they go back to their chores. Fortunately, these are rare, occurring mainly during cutscenes. Using fast travel, we won’t really experience them – then the game immediately loads the NPC scripts, so when we land on the spot, the blacksmith is hammering on the anvil, and the innkeeper is serving beer.
Unfortunately, hitboxes are still a problem. Many times, I’ve experienced the sword passing right through the opponent without causing any harm. The blows theoretically hit, but didn’t cause damage. It can be frustrating, particularly in bigger battles, where many enemies are present and time is not on our side. There were times when the opponent “teleported” to me and struck a blow I couldn’t counter, leading to my death.
Henry is that you? To dark to see…Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, Warhorse Studios, 2025
The mechanics of shooting can surprise – and not in a positive way. Arrows and bolts sometimes fly in a strange parabola. I sometimes rubbed my eyes in disbelief when an opponent just 2-3 meters away wasn’t hit because the projectile flew at a ridiculous angle. While at the beginning this can be explained by Henry’s low skills in handling ranged weapons, even in the later stages of the game I had a problem with accuracy. It was the same with firearms – although here at least it can be justified by historical realism. At first, it made more noise than actual damage.
Warhorse Studios learned from its mistakes
Kingdom Come: Deliverance II, a month before its release, was not only enjoyable to play but also much more technically polished than the original, which continues to face various issues even now. Recent years have shown that most open-world games launch in a highly unfinished state, and it takes developers months to bring them up to the appropriate level. Henry’s adventures didn’t quite reach the ideal, but there’s significant progress compared to the first installment. Warhorse Studios delivered a title that doesn’t disappoint in terms of technology and is fully playable right from the start.
During testing, the game was still “shackled” with the Denuvo anti-piracy protection, which according to announcements is supposed to disappear on day one. This will certainly have a positive impact on performance. Taking into account the current state of the game, I can confidently state that Kingdom Come: Deliverance II is among the most well-polished games in recent months, offering high-quality graphics while minimizing bugs. I hope this is the new standard for 2025!
