So, I’ll probably need to buy a new PC after all thanks to Polish developer Warhorse Studios and their incredible-looking (and still in development) game, Kingdom Come: Deliverance. That trailer below says and shows it all and the “Dungeons… and No Dragons” tagline made me laugh out loud because I thought of it as I was watching the footage and picking my jaw up off the floor. Crytek’s versatile CryEngine 3 is really getting a workout here and that realistic medieval setting is even more intriguing. The game was a successful Kickstarter project that got a great deal of attention and over $1.7 million in pledges. The game is still being funded by new backers on the official site and to date, almost $2.2 million has been raised, meaning people REALLY want to see this game come to a PC or next-gen console near them next year…

Welcome to Bohemia – the heart of Medieval Europe in a time of great upheaval and strife. It’s 1403 Anno Domini and the land is torn apart by war, corruption and discord. In the midst of these dangerous times a humble, young blacksmith loses everything to war. He has to face the ugly truth of civil war to fulfill the dying wish of his father. But fate drags him into the thick of a conspiracy to save a kidnapped king and stop the bloody conflict.

This medieval open world first-person RPG is also a story and choice driven game set in what’s looking like a very impressive game world, all of which is open to the player. As fantasy tropes are being tossed aside for as much realism as possible, expectations are extremely high from many about how well the game portrays its characters and events. Now, I do love my fantasy RPG experiences, but I also appreciate a great story in any setting. Kingdom Come: Deliverance has my interest piqued because I want to see how well-researched the game world, characters and content will be when all is said and done. Some have complained (rather unfairly, mind you) that the game should be more diverse in allowing users to play as any race or at least have the ability to customize the lead character so he looks like whomever is playing the game. I say let Warhorse tell the story they want to tell and enjoy it based on its merits. This kind of ego-driven gamer whining in a game trying to be as accurate as possible isn’t necessary and in no way is Warhorse trying to light any fires of controversy.

If anything, the game succeeding at what it does should spur other developers to create works that accurately portray whatever periods they want to and feature characters from those eras presented correctly. Warhorse is made up of folks who’ve worked on previous successful games on multiple platforms (Mafia, Mafia 2, ArmA, Operation Flashpoint, Crysis 3, Forza Horizon and others), so they’re far from new players on the development front. That they’re self-publishing the game is the big surprise, especially given the tendency for some major publishers to want to hop in to “help” out with their imprint and PR firms pushing away at getting the game more press. Then again, it also seems that having a “name” publisher behind a game can also backfire if for whatever reason the final product isn’t up to what’s expected of it by jaded gamers who blame every flaw on whatever got the game shipped out with them aboard for the ride.

Anyway, while the game won’t be ready for its big roll out until next year, early access is going to Kickstarter backers and probably to some who contribute to the cause on the game website. I’ll let you poke around Warhorse’s game site and judge for yourselves if you want to add your own royal coin to the running tally. I need to save my own coin so I can buy something to play this on, but I’ll certainly not mind paying full price for this one if the game can do everything it’s intending and then some.