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Kingdom Come: Deliverance is by far my favorite game that i have ever played. Even so, I will agree that it is not the best game ever made for the average consumer. This game is a strict RPG that has an emphasis on the story. This game is probably too hard for the comfort of most casual players, but mastery of every difficult mechanic is so much sweeter when overcoming the various trials the game throws at you. After all, you are a sorry bastard, and by that I mean you are a humble blacksmith's son.
Story and Environment: 9/10
This game has a very beautiful and deep story and environment. The main storyline is very intriguing and will keep you on your toes through the first playthrough. KCD is also replete with side quests that add to the replay ability of the game. There are so many side quests and many that are not intuitive to find that each time you enter a city you have the opportunity to find a new quest to embark on. Being a hyper-realistic game, KCD is unforgiving on some speech choices, and those choices will lock you out of opportunities or rarely enter you into combat. The environment is also very immersive. The depths of the bandit-filled forests to the eagerness of young guards to bust you for the most innocuous of crimes reminds you that you are in ancient Bohemia. If being a blacksmith's son newly recruited into a war in 15th century Bohemia sounds like a RPG background you'd enjoy, this game is 100% for you.
Gameplay: 8/10
Warhorse Studios, the developers of KCD, do not relent when it comes to the realism of the combat. The largest complaint of this game I have seen is the clumsiness and the difficulty of the combat. The best advise is given by the game right after the prologue in the quest name "Train Hard, Fight Easy". Remember that you are a blacksmith's son with zero knowledge of combat, so intense training is necessary in order to become proficient in combat. Once Henry is skilled in combat it is still not trivial to take down multiple enemies at once on foot. This fact is very frustrating to most players, and it is exasperated by the clunky swapping to other enemies. It is designed to be this way because combat was previously less clunky, but the developers patches an exploit in combat that made even the hardest combatants trivial. In doing so they decided that swapping enemies in combat shouldn't be too easy. Remember that this is a realistic RPG, and it would not be realistic that an untrained peasant could easily take on multiple skilled combatants wearing the best armor of the time. Keeping this in mind, sometimes it is better to to nix some realism for the sake of fun in a game, and many would argue that Warhorse Studios should have done so. Overall, I love the fact that combat can be challenging even into the late game, but I understand that many have problems with the difficulty and the grinding necessary to compete in combat.
Creativity: 10/10
This game is the somehow the most creative game RPG I have played just by emulating real life. They picked a certain time frame in history and created the rules of the game to fit what would be realistic. This makes it the most unique game i have ever played. This game is unapologetically accurate to the time, and that's what makes it so special. Every other game changes the rules of reality and alters time frames to make the game easier to produce and make the game more "creative", but every game does that so its hardly creative at all. Warhorse Studios stuck their necks way out when creating this ambitiously realistic game, and i think they hit the nail on the head in terms of a unique game.
Difficulty: 7/10
Do not let my rating of difficulty confuse you. This game is an oxymoron in terms of difficulty. In terms of mouse and keyboard mechanics, it is maybe a 3/10 in difficulty at most, BUT where this game adds its difficulty is in patience. The game requires that you grind all of your skills up on easy targets before they are even remotely usable on the average opponent. If you don't know the easy ways to grind XP (if there is any for that skill), this game becomes difficult in terms of patience, and you will be your biggest enemy. Tired of practicing swordplay? How about getting soft locked in combat with a boss that is near impossible to beat in combat because your abysmal combat stats, or restarting from the last time you saved? That is the most extreme example, but it is perfect for illustrating the frustration that this game can cause. You will kick yourself multiple times for not preparing enough for the next challenge ahead, and that is exactly where the difficulty of this game lies. In terms of punishing lack of diligence and forethinking, this game is a 9/10, so plan accordingly.
Overall in my biased opinion I rate this game 9.5/10, only because I have hopes that KCD2 will surpass this game in excellence. But in all seriousness I would definitely recommend this game to anyone who has the patience to learn a new brand of RPG. If that is not you, then this may not be the game for you, but I would still recommend trying the game out because of how thoroughly i enjoyed this game.
Tips for struggling players:
A good warhorse can save your life, and personally that is the first big investment I buy. Combat is much easier on a horse, and a good horse almost never throws you. MY favorite thing to do is to get revenge on ambushing bandits by using my warhorse to show them what a knight looks like.
Use potions. potions are always weird in games, because you want to save them for later, but in this game if you think the potion will help use it.
Try not to fight multiple enemies at once on foot. Bernard give good advice when he say to shoot one bandit with your bow then take on the other with your sword. I would add to that and take all bandits out except one or two then fight those with your sword.
TAKE IT SLOW. This game will severely punish you for rushing past what Henry is capable of. Even if it didn't, this game is meant to be enjoyed slowly.
Go to sleep. Sleeping in a bed you own will save the game, so you should sleep before you venture out to save on Savior Schnapps.