Warhorse Studios is addressing the backlash surrounding Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 (KCD2). Dive deeper into the developers' perspective on the controversy and its impact on the game.
Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2's Diversity is a Result of Being "As Accurate As Possible"
Warhorse Studios’ Developers Just Want To Make A Cool Video Game
The developers at Warhorse Studios are expressing frustration over the recent online backlash against Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 (KCD2), emphasizing their desire to focus on creating an engaging video game. In a recent interview with PC Gamer on February 3, 2025, KCD2’s PR Manager Tobias Stolz-Zwilling shared his thoughts on the criticism the game has faced for its increased diversity.
Stolz-Zwilling stated, "Several years ago, we were branded differently. Now we are branded that way. It seems like someone is always trying to brand us somehow, and we are just trying to make a cool videogame." This sentiment comes in response to feedback from fans and critics regarding the inclusion of LGBTQ+ content and other elements perceived as "woke."
Senior Game Designer Ondřej Bittner echoed these feelings, pointing out that the team isn't the issue. "We think the extreme voices are just never happy," he remarked.
Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2’s Diversity
Set in Kuttenberg, KCD2 explores a more diverse setting than its predecessor. Bittner explained, "There's more ethnicities in Kuttenberg because Kuttenberg is the royal mint." As the second most important city in Bohemia and the financial hub, Kuttenberg attracts a variety of people from different regions, resulting in a richer, more diverse environment than previously seen in the series.
Bittner highlighted the inclusion of various cultures and ethnicities in the game, such as Italians, Germans speaking their native language, and a Jewish quarter. He stressed the importance of not only including these groups but also reflecting their unique worldviews, which he feels are often missing in media claiming to be diverse.
Stolz-Zwilling clarified that the inclusion of diverse elements was driven by community feedback rather than mandates from their publisher Plaion or Embracer. "Everything makes sense. Everything we put there was double and triple checked," he affirmed.
Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 Pre-Orders Unaffected By Recent Backlash
Warhorse Studios has responded to rumors about players seeking refunds for pre-orders of KCD2 amidst the backlash. KCD2 Writer Daniel Vávra took to Twitter (X) to dispel these rumors, stating that the game's sales-return ratio remains unchanged despite the controversy. He noted that KCD2's position on Steam charts had been affected not by the backlash but by the release of nine other popular games on discount, which also impacted pre-order sales of Monster Hunter: Wilds.
In January 2025, Vávra faced criticism due to KCD2's inclusion of queer representation, leading to online rumors about the game being banned in Saudi Arabia over unskippable LGBT+ scenes. Vávra refuted these rumors, emphasizing that "It is a ROLE PLAYING GAME, so it is purely up to the player what decisions they make and for all the decisions they make, they are responsible for the consequences that correspond to the morals and social norms of the time."
Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 is now available on Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5, and PC. For more details about the game, visit our Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 page.
