There’s no doubt that when Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 launched in February, it was the forerunner for great things to come in 2025. This year has been an incredible year for gaming already, with massive surprise hits like Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 and Donkey Kong Bananza, as well as others, like Death Stranding 2: On the Beach, that were a little more expected. Despite these many other splash landings, though, Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 has done a great job of maintaining the reputation it gained from the start. And although some might not think it has any chance of winning Game of the Year against 2025’s other giants, I beg to differ.
As it turns out, even Warhorse Studios seems to think its chances of winning Game of the Year are slim, citing masterpieces like Clair Obscur as its main reason for that. However, after seeing the developer’s recent Twitch livestream doing a deep dive into Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2‘s Legacy of the Forge DLC, I’m personally starting to believe the medieval RPG might actually stand a chance. The expansion is not only a highly anticipated content addition to the game, but it is also one of the most substantial post-launch upgrades I’ve seen made to a game since Elden Ring‘s Shadow of the Erdtree DLC, and there’s even more where that came from.
Warhorse’s recent dev stream on Twitch for Legacy of the Forge was chock-full of juicy details about the DLC’s story, features, and gameplay, and I simply couldn’t get enough of it. About halfway through the stream, I found myself questioning whether I was looking at a DLC or an entirely new game that would potentially soak up a considerable portion of my gaming time after its launch. Warhorse comms director Tobias “Sir Tobi” Stolz-Zwilling even said during the stream, “It’s like Stardew Valley, but slower.” Stardew Valley in Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2? Sign me up.
However, Tobi also said something else that left me confounded, both by his humility and the utter and complete falsehood of his statement — strictly from my point of view. After mentioning several of 2025’s greatest games (like Clair Obscur), he unassumingly stated, “I don’t think GOTY is a thing for us.” Maybe it was at one time, Tobi, but now, DLCs like Legacy of the Forge might actually give Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 the bump it needs to at least have a bigger shot at winning the coveted award than it did before.
Having reviewed Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 for Game Rant myself and giving it a solid, non-negotiable 10/10, I’m obviously a fan of the game and I believe it’s a masterpiece that other RPGs should be learning from. At the same time, I also reviewed Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 and gave it the same score. To me, the two don’t compare with one another and are both worthy of those scores. However, after playing Clair Obscur, I started to believe there was no way Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 would be able to beat it in this year’s Game of the Year race. Now, I’m beginning to think that could change.
Legacy of the Forge is a massive expansion for Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2. Sure, it might only give players an additional 15–20 hours of content, but Warhorse has also stated that the time it takes players to complete the expansion ultimately depends on their playstyle and what they want out of the DLC. That aside, the most important thing about Legacy of the Forge is that it is ultimately an answer to countless requests from fans, with an abundance of new features and a patch being released alongside that will bring with it a host of quality-of-life improvements.
That’s not all either, as Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2‘s next DLC is supposed to be the biggest expansion in franchise history, as it will be introducing an entirely new region to the game. On top of that, it will be launching in Winter 2025, potentially right before the Game Awards take place, which could give it the spotlight it needs to prove that it not only has the potential to win Game of the Year but that it has also been hard at work dominating almost the entire year, from February to December, unlike many of this year’s other big successes. Tobi did say he thinks Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 has a chance of at least winning Best RPG, but Legacy of the Forge and the game’s final DLC feel like they’re dreaming a bit bigger than that.
10/10
February 4, 2025
Mature 17+ // Use of Alcohol, Blood and Gore, Sexual Content, Strong Language, Intense Violence, Partial Nudity
Warhorse Studios
CryEngine
