Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 couldn't compete with Assassin's Creed or Dragon Age: The Veilguard's budgets, so Warhorse had to "change the rules of the game"

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Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 couldn't compete with Assassin's Creed or Dragon Age: The Veilguard's budgets, so Warhorse had to "change the rules of the game" News By Jordan Gerblick published 22 January 2026

"These games have much, much bigger budgets than we do"

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Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 is an absolutely huge game by pretty much every metric, but it was made on a much tighter budget than comparable RPGs like Ubisoft's Assassin's Creed Shadows and EA's Dragon Age: The Veilguard. However, instead of trying to directly compete with those giga budget projects, Warhorse decided to forge its own distinct path forward.

Talking to Edge Magazine for issue #420, Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 lead designer Prokop Jirsa explained the game's brilliant balancing of hardcore RPG and survival elements with approachable systems that, in my experience, always feel just on the edge of being too demanding, resulting in an incredibly rewarding feeling when mastered.

"We basically made a bet that there's a sizeable [number] of players that want to feel like they are playing something that doesn't play itself," Jirsa said. "On the other hand, I think we played it very smart in a way, because the game feels more hardcore than it actually is. For example, we have most of the mechanics that you're used to from real hardcore survival games, but there are way fewer mundane tasks that you have to do."

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This illusion of insurmountable difficulty, which when peeled back reveals a challenging but extraordinarily rewarding RPG, is what sets Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 apart from games like Assassin's Creed Shadows and Dragon Age: The Veilguard, enjoyable games in their own rights but much safer bets on paper.

"If you think about it from a risk-analysis perspective," executive producer Martin Klíma said, "we are talking about games like Assassin's Creed or Dragon Age: The Veilguard. These games have much, much bigger budgets than we do, so you really can't compete with these games on their own terms. It would be suicide to try to do so. We really have to change the rules of the game."

Now feels like the right time to point you toward our list of Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 tips in case you're having a hard time.

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Contact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsorsBy submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. CATEGORIES PC Gaming PS5 Xbox Series X Platforms PlayStation Xbox Jordan GerblickSocial Links Navigation

After earning an English degree from ASU, I worked as a corporate copy editor while freelancing for places like SFX Magazine, Screen Rant, Game Revolution, and MMORPG on the side. I got my big break here in 2019 with a freelance news gig, and I was hired on as GamesRadar's west coast Staff Writer in 2021. That means I'm responsible for managing the site's western regional executive branch, AKA my home office, and writing about whatever horror game I'm too afraid to finish.

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Logout Read more Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 producer wanted a return to Morrowind-style RPGs where devs could take "creative risks"    Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 devs know you don't need "tens of millions of players" - only "a bunch of really engaged people"    Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 developers made my favorite RPG of 2025 by trusting their original vision: "We had the strength to say, 'Yes, that's what we want'"    Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 devs wanted negative feedback after deciding players should initially "feel extremely weak"    Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 devs want to "establish ourselves as the new kings of RPG," and the studio's future "will definitely be immersive RPGs"    Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 drove me to madness until I started to embrace its world, not fight it - learn from my mistakes    Latest in Action RPGs Pokemon dev Game Freak sets summer 2026 release window for its new "one-person, one-dog action RPG"    How to reroll in Arknights Endfield    Anthem fan gets BioWare's looter shooter running again without EA's dead servers only days after shutdown    The Pokemon developer's new action RPG pits one woman and her dog against a "harsh and unforgiving" world: "To convey the severity of their journey, a stylized or cartoonish world felt inappropriate"    "It took Anthem a very long time to admit to itself that it was a looter shooter," BioWare veteran says    Beast of Reincarnation: Everything we know about the Pokemon developer's flashy new action RPG    Latest in News Forza Horizon 6 is going full anime with Initial D-inspired Touge Battle mode and a full-sized Gundam    Minecraft creative lead plays Hytale and decides "I'd rather just play Minecraft," Hytale dev says he's "probably right"    Forza Horizon 6 adds Assassin's Creed Shadows-style base where you can build anything, if you fund it with tofu delivery    Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 dev had to "change the rules of the game" because it couldn't compete with giga budget RPGs    Fable head says "we can't try to make a Lionhead game" and that the RPG reboot isn't fantasy – it's fairytale    Forza Horizon 6 Premium Edition is $120, even more expensive than the previous game, and it doesn't include all DLC    GAME REVIEWSMOVIE REVIEWSTV REVIEWS

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