Daniel Vávra, co-founder of Warhorse Studios, has denied a current rumor that Saudi Arabia had banned Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 over an unskippable homosexual cutscene.
2018’s Kingdom Come Deliverance is a story-driven motion role-playing sport set within the medieval Kingdom of Bohemia. It pitches itself as an traditionally correct illustration of the setting, however its lack of individuals of shade grew to become a speaking level within the months following launch.
Kingdom Come Deliverance 2, due out February 4, 2025, as soon as once more leans on historic accuracy for its return to medieval Bohemia, however gamers can count on a barely completely different expertise. Warhorse has stated that, as a result of protagonist Henry is embarking on a journey from the countryside to a comparatively cosmopolitan metropolis that’s besieged and occupied by an invading king, he’ll encounter a variety of ethnicities and characters this time round.
The declare that Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 was banned in Saudi Arabia reportedly emerged from a tweet by a Saudi Arabian information outlet, and was picked up by western media and unfold throughout social media and boards.
Now, Vávra has taken to social media to disclaim the declare and supply clarification on how Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 works. Vávra tweeted to say it doesn’t have unskippable cutscenes and was not and isn’t banned in any nation, “not less than not that we all know of.”
Vávra then pointed to the truth that the primary Kingdom Come Deliverance had homosexual characters, and stated gamers are chargeable for their in-game selections. “If you would like Henry to attempt a same-sex journey, be happy,” Vávra insisted. “Should you don’t need to, you don’t must. All affairs are (and have been in KCD1) purely non-obligatory. The characters are completely conscious that it was a forbidden sin.”
Following the Saudi Arabia ban rumor, Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 grew to become the most recent online game to be singled out for being “woke” or together with “compelled range” — a rising on-line development that some builders and publishers have felt the necessity to counter in current months.
In September 2024, Ubisoft boss Yves Guillemot responded to a backlash towards Murderer’s Creed Shadows’ Black samurai protagonist to deal with “an essential drawback of notion that has been affecting the corporate’s efficiency.”
“I need to reaffirm that we’re an entertainment-first firm, creating video games for the broadest doable viewers, and our objective is to not push any particular agenda,” Guillemot continued. “We stay dedicated to creating video games for followers and gamers that everybody can take pleasure in.”
As a part of his response to the web backlash towards Kingdom Come Deliverance 2, Vávra made it clear that he doesn’t like “compelled range,” insisting “no person was forcing us to do something, and we aren’t forcing anybody to do sure issues.” He then reiterated feedback Warhorse had already made about why the sequel is extra numerous than its predecessor.
“The sport takes place in one of many richest cities in Europe which was besieged by an enormous overseas military,” he stated. “That´s the rationale why the life in such a metropolis is extra numerous than the life in villages which have been featured within the first sport.
“Musa got here to Bohemia with an invading military as a member of the royal courtroom of King Sigismund, whom he met due to his engagement on the courtroom of Sultan Bayezid. He is an informed noble and renaissance man from the Kingdom of Mali.
“On the similar time, Musa is a really uncommon determine for the native Bohemian people, and most of the conditions round him within the sport stem from this. So his presence is smart and creates plenty of fascinating conditions within the sport. The best way he talks and behaves has a motive.
“Every little thing displayed corresponds to the morals and social norms of 1403 Bohemia and is just there to make an fascinating story, and in no way to attraction to a ‘trendy viewers.’”
“Fashionable viewers” is a now frequent phrase used on-line to deride video games which might be perceived to be interesting to a various viewers. Within the ongoing tradition battle, “trendy viewers” has develop into a meme, and is referenced within the downfall of all the things from Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League to Harmony.
Vávra concluded his response by hitting again on the anti-woke brigade whose fears he had labored to assuage. “A few of them sadly become precisely the identical narrative they faux to be combating towards,” he stated. “The quantity of hateful habits is actually unhappy and it’ll injury any trigger related to it.”
When contacted by IGN, Warhorse and writer Plaion pointed to Vávra X/Twitter thread.
Wesley is the UK Information Editor for IGN. Discover him on Twitter at @wyp100. You’ll be able to attain Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.