Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2is a dream for players looking for an immersive RPG that doubles as a medieval life simulator. WhileKingdom Come: Deliverance 2excels at telling a compelling narrative of political intrigue and rebellion, it also does a great job of allowing players to roleplay life in 15th-century Bohemia with its commitment to authenticity in tasks like blacksmithing, alchemy, and managing the various systems that other RPGs take for granted. For players looking to get a different type of experience in a similar setting, developer Obsidian Entertainment may have the ideal title to play afterKingdom Come: Deliverance 2.
While Obsidian’s most recent game,Avowed, has hit the market as a fantasy alternative toKingdom Come: Deliverance 2, the studio is no stranger to a more grounded medieval setting. Its 2022 title,Pentiment, offers players a complex murder-mystery storyin a less feature-dense package while still appealing to fans of the medieval European setting. As such, following aKingdom Come: Deliverance 2playthrough with one ofPentimentprovides players with an interesting narrative counterbalance worth experiencing in 2025.
2022’s Pentiment Makes the Perfect Companion Game to Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2
How Pentiment Compares to Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2
Despite both being set in medieval Europe,Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2andPentimentshare very different gameplay systems and narrative themes. For starters,Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2is set about 100 years beforePentiment, with the Warhorse Studios title taking place in 1403, whereasPentimentis set in 1518. However, both are set in very similar locations, withPentiment’s Bavarian town of Tassingsharing similar features with those of its neighboring region of Bohemia, whereKingdom Come: Deliverance 2takes place.
Gameplay-wise,Pentimentis a drastic departure fromKingdom Come: Deliverance 2as it trades the immersive sim and combat elements of the latter for almost visual novel-like gameplay with puzzles and exploration limited to the local environment. Players take on the role of Andreas Maler, a journeyman artist studying at the local abbey who is forced to unravel the mystery behind the murder of a nobleman. TheRPG and choice-based gameplay mechanics ofPentimentfeel similar to those featured inKingdom Come: Deliverance 2, with consequences that can alter the way the game’s narrative shakes out.
Pentiment Paints Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2’s Medieval Setting in a Different Light
What makesPentimentsuch a great game to follow upKingdom Come: Deliverance 2with is the way its style and narrative themes complement those ofKCD2. WhileKingdom Come: Deliverance 2hinges on the player traveling around theregions of Trosky and Kuttenberg, grappling with the greater politics of Bohemia,Pentimentnarrows the scope to a single village and its accompanying abbey, following the intersection of politics and religion at a time when the Protestant Reformation was kicking off and the power of the Catholic Church had begun to wane. WithPentimenttaking place 100 years afterKingdom Come: Deliverance 2, and both games grounded in fictionalized versions of real history, players can compare how the background themes ofKCD2’s setting evolve inPentiment.
Pentimentis available on Xbox Game Pass.
Pentimentalso offers a stylistic change afterKingdom Come: Deliverance 2, with its art style adopting that of medieval manuscripts, woodcuts, and early printing techniques. This art style offers a different kind ofmedieval immersion thanKingdom Come: Deliverance 2’s realistic approach, as it helps the player feel almost like they are playing a work of medieval art. Following the authenticity ofKingdom Come: Deliverance 2’s world and mechanics withPentiment’s unique art style and more focused narrative is a refreshing one-two punch of medieval gaming that is worth the time for fans ofKCD2.
