I know this probably sounds weird, but I really can't wait for players to say that the upcoming open world Warhorse lord of the rings RPG is too hard. It's not because I want the game to be crappy or feel unfair to anyone who doesn't spend 40 hours learning how to properly swing a sword, but because this complaint would probably mean that Warhorse, despite being a licensed game, remained Warhorse through it all. This is the studio in the back Kingdom Come: Deliverance and Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2after all, and if his journey to Middle Earth ends up being too smooth, too easy, or too eager to please everyone, then I think something's gone wrong.
The whole reason Warhorse is exciting lord of the rings it's that her games understand the value of ordinariness in a world that doesn't care how powerful players want to feel. Kingdom Come he was never special because he made players great right away. It was strange because it made them claim such greatness, and that's exactly the kind of philosophy that Middle-earth thrives on, and it's a philosophy that's within lord of the rings play area. This is not a universe full of superheroes, but a world where little people do impossible things because they keep going, suffer well, and learn how to survive long enough for their courage to really pay off. This is what I mean when I say I can't wait for Warhorse's lord of the rings call the game “too hard”.
Kingdom Come Studio Warhorse could take Bethesda's crown with its Lord of the Rings game
Warhorse's Lord of the Rings could turn its Kingdom Come formula into Bethesda's most serious open-world RPG competition yet.
Warhorse Can't Lose What Made Kingdom Come Special
Honestly, I love hearing and reading how people say it Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 it's too hard because it doesn't allow players to feel powerful without a lot of effort. I'll admit that I somewhat understand the frustration. A lot of people play modern RPGs because they want a playable power fantasy where they end up being the person everyone else fears or respects. However, Kingdom Come: Deliverance makes this journey longer and rougher than most games, and it's all the better for it.
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When I did the interview Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 design director Viktor Bocan talked a while back about players complaining that the combat is too hard, only to be told by someone else that they need to train in the game. Then these players react by saying that they are already training in real life and don't want to train in the game. Bocan's response to these complaints was refreshingly straightforward, perhaps Kingdom Come it's just not a game for them.
Honestly, I love hearing and reading how people say it Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 it's too hard because it doesn't allow players to feel powerful without a lot of effort.
And I honestly love this answer because it's not trying to please everyone, but it's not rude either – it's just honest. Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 it knows what it is, and it knows that some of its audience will be put off by the fact that becoming good at something actually takes more effort than most RPGs.
Bocan put it even better later in the same interview when he said, “We've created a game where you can be whoever you want to be, but you have to give something to get something.” That line acts as a whole Kingdom Come philosophy in one sentence. Freedom is here, but it's not free. The progress is there, but the players have to work for it. Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 lets ordinary Henry become something greater, but only after you make sure players understand what it's like for him to be weak. Well, Warhorse is coming lord of the rings RPGs need to stick to it.
The danger with a licensed game, especially a game set in Middle-earth, is that the license can start to drag the game into safer territory. Bigger audience, bigger expectations, bigger pressure to make it all instantly accessible. It would be easy to imagine an open-world version of this RPG where Warhorse softens its edges because lord of the rings fans don't necessarily come as Kingdom Come fans, but I sincerely hope it doesn't happen.
Middle Earth is perfect for Warhorse Signature difficulty
The funny thing is, Middle-earth might be one of the best possible fantasy worlds for Warhorse's signature grounded approach. lord of the rings it was never really about superheroes, even with all its legendary warriors, ancient beings, and magical artifacts. The emotional core of Middle-earth has always been about ordinary people doing extraordinary things because they keep going when everything in the world stands in their way.
The danger with a licensed game, especially a game set in Middle-earth, is that the license can start to drag the game into safer territory.
So if Warhorse does a lord of the rings An RPG where travel is difficult, combat is dangerous, preparation matters, and getting somewhere meaningful requires real effort, that would fit perfectly. Middle-earth shouldn't be played like an amusement park where the player can sprint from one heroic moment to the next without friction. The journey should matter, the dangers should matter, and the small victories should matter because they were not given cheaply.
That's why I don't want Warhorse to pander to the crowd that thought that Kingdom Come and Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 they were too heavy. Those players are of course allowed to feel that way, but their frustration shouldn't become the goal of the design. Warhorse has already established an identity by creating RPGs that ask something of the player lord of the rings a game from that studio shouldn't apologize for doing the same.
If anything, this is where Warhorse's identity could set the game apart from almost every other fantasy RPG out there. We already have plenty of games where players become unstoppable far too quickly. We have plenty of games where difficulty is treated more like something to be managed than something woven into the world itself. Warhorse's Mediterranean RPG should be different because Warhorse is different.
If Warhorse does a lord of the rings An RPG where travel is difficult, combat is dangerous, preparation matters, and getting somewhere meaningful requires real effort, that would fit perfectly.
As weird as it sounds, I want to feel small right from the start. I want to think twice before fighting an orc. I want to prepare myself before going to a dangerous place and I want any unpreparedness to punish me. I want to feel like every bit of progress has been earned through patience, failure, and maybe just a little stubbornness. More than anything, I want the game to understand that greatness in Middle-earth should never feel like skill points, stats, or some ancient prophecy that armor grants me.
For me, it was what it was created to be Kingdom Come so rewarding. The reward mattered because the fight mattered in the first place. A war horse lord of the rings An RPG could bring that same feeling to Middle-earth, and honestly, that's the main reason I'm so excited about this project. More than anyone else, Warhorse has the chance to create a grounded Middle Earth RPG where being ordinary is actually the point.
So yeah, I can't wait for players to say that Warhorse's Lord of the Rings RPG is too hard. I can't wait to complain about having to train, prepare, travel carefully, and work to make any meaningful progress. If these complaints happen for the same reasons they happened Kingdom Comeso good It means that Warhorse has remembered what makes its games special.
