Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 – Brushes With Death Review

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Although you might be excited for Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, I find it challenging to wholeheartedly suggest diving back into Brushes With Death as a standalone adventure. While the writing and voice acting remain commendable, and there are some thoughtful and impactful plot points amidst the primarily straightforward fetch quests, the overall experience feels somewhat thin compared to the main game. I believe that if I had waited until Henry’s larger journey wasn’t so fresh in my memory, or if it were integrated into a new save file, it would have felt more engaging and less like a follow-up to what had preceded it. My advice is to approach this DLC and the two additional story expansions announced for this epic RPG with this perspective, or perhaps wait until there’s more content available to provide a more varied gaming experience.

Despite having spent over 100 hours exploring the picturesque Bohemian landscape in Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 back in February, I was thrilled when given a chance to revisit it with the first story DLC, Brushes With Death. As expected, the game delivered more of its sharp dialogue and open-ended exploration. However, while it managed to maintain my interest, it didn’t leave me particularly impressed or amazed. The tale, though low-stakes, was engaging enough, but it lacks the impact when played outside the broader context of the main campaign.

In simpler terms, you can kick off the DLC quest at the end of Act 1, when Henry’s destiny gets linked with the peculiar and mysterious artist Voyta. However, I opted to start from a save game at the end, immediately following the climactic finale of King’s Creed 2. While this might not be the optimal way to immerse oneself in Brushes With Death, it’s probably how many eager medieval Czech adventure enthusiasts will initially approach it, as nobody wants to dig through old saves searching for the perfect starting point.

One point to consider is that, if you’ve already wrapped up the main story’s central conflict, this particular side quest may not seem as significant. The most engaging side quests in the base game, including those I believe could work independently, thrived on being part of the larger narrative flow of these grand, historical, and life-altering events unfolding simultaneously around them.

Voyta’s storyline doesn’t seem as compelling or rewarding as expected, instead feeling like an interlude after a significant event such as battling an army and experiencing an intense emotional resolution with my character Henry. Additionally, the post-main quest environment doesn’t always appear to have adequately responded to the events that transpired, which leaves me with a sense of inconsistency in some areas. Certain new quest locations seem out of place given the plot developments I’d prefer not to disclose.

It took around 12 hours, and you could probably knock it out a good deal quicker.

The tempo of the gameplay seems slightly off-balance when playing it straight through without diversions such as exploring new areas or discovering additional settlements. It took me about 12 hours to complete and you might finish it faster if, unlike me, you don’t consider fast travel a transgression in open-world RPGs. The gameplay can feel somewhat tedious at times, and there are too many quest stages that merely involve riding to a location, picking up an item, or talking to someone. This might not have been as problematic if I hadn’t already completed everything else, which would normally provide opportunities for unexpected, immersive adventures. These spontaneous moments were one of the main appeals of Kingdom Come.

Let’s imagine that wasn’t a problem we had to consider. If I were rating this story against the top side quests from the main game, it would be close to the top for scale, and likely above average for writing. The actor who voices Voyta really brings life and energy to the tale. However, in terms of creativity in the quest design and the range of activities Henry gets to participate in, it’s only average. And when you approach it with a fully-equipped character from the endgame, most of the fights, except for the final one, feel quite insignificant. Even the tough boss didn’t seem to have an appropriate buildup or grand setting that matched his status. It’s just another battle in some random part of the forest.

In simpler terms, the current content doesn’t seem as captivating or ingenious as the Mouth of Hell and Fifth Commandment storylines from the original King’s Crown 2. There aren’t any intense action or dramatic scenes that rival those in the main quest. However, it does offer Henry some complex choices that can significantly alter the outcome, and a hidden achievement I unlocked for getting Voyta to reveal more than he initially intended hints at potential differences in our interaction if things had been handled differently. This was satisfying because it felt like I was rewarded for persuading him to lower his guard. Yet, the relationship that formed between Henry and Voyta felt hurried and unjustified when played consecutively without a chance to contemplate their character growth.

An intriguing aspect of this DLC expansion, aside from the fresh narrative, is the feature that lets Voyta adorn your shields with artwork. This customization option offers a touch of medieval charm and helps me feel like I’m forging a unique legacy for Henry, rather than just executing orders from highborn lords. The designs and color schemes inspired by the period are appealing to me, and it’s gratifying that you can unlock additional designs by accomplishing specific tasks in certain quests.

Reflecting on Brushes With Death, if it had been introduced earlier in a fresh playthrough rather than revisited months later, I believe my reaction would’ve been more positive. The relationships could have developed over time, allowing me to delve deeper into its mysteries while exploring the forest or getting sidetracked by other quests. Consequently, the conclusion might have felt more rewarding without being overshadowed by the climax of the main story’s final hours. Instead, it was like adding too much pepper at once after finishing a meal, when ideally, it would have complemented each course beautifully.

As a gamer, let me share my experience with this latest patch. For me, there’s a new graphical glitch that’s been quite persistent and hard to ignore, especially in and around castles and towns. Buildings and rock formations seem to vanish intermittently as high-resolution versions load in. I’m running the same hardware (RTX 4070 Super, Ryzen 7 3700X, 32 GB of RAM, SATA SSD) as I did for the base game, with the latest Nvidia drivers. This issue didn’t appear until I started playing Brushes With Death, and despite my best efforts to adjust graphics settings, it remains unresolved. Here’s hoping it gets fixed soon. All I can do is share my personal experience, and unfortunately, these novel tech issues have impacted my gameplay significantly.

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2025-05-15 18:59