Summary

• In Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, handgonnes are designed to be purposefully ineffective.
• These firearms mimic the slow reload and poor accuracy of 15th-century technology.
• The game has enjoyed positive reception, with many calling it a potential Game of the Year for 2025.

Warhorse Studios, the team behind the new medieval RPG, disclosed that the handgonne ranged weapons are crafted with flaws. The aim was to maintain authenticity over player convenience, resulting in an experience where using these firearms aligns more closely with historical accuracy than efficiency in battles. Players observe that while these handgonnes are historically relevant, their in-game performance may make them feel nearly useless in confrontations.

“We knew it would be a meme weapon, but we were cool with it,” said Tobias Stolz-Zwilling, the PR Manager at Warhorse Studios, shedding light on their design philosophy, which values realism in gameplay.
Translation: “We were aware that it would become a meme weapon, but we were okay with that.”

The focus has always been to allure players into a historically immersive environment, which aligns with the general ethos of the Kingdom Come series. Players will need to adapt to the quirks of these weapons, perhaps by utilizing perks that can dampen enemy morale even if the handgonnes themselves are subpar in actual combat effectiveness.