Warhorse Studios Weekly Torch

[DrFusselpulli]

Daniel “Hellboy” Vávra was born in the North of Czech Republic in a small town in the mountains close to Poland. He was the mastermind behind the story of Mafia, before he came up with the idea to open his own Studio: Warhorse Studios. Someone would call him an angry cave troll, we just call him @Hellboy. Meet the creative director and the brain behind Kingdom Come: Deliverance.
Do you have any additional questions to Daniel “Hellboy” Vávra? Just ask here.
You can find a Spanish translation of this interview here.

1) How did you get the idea of making Kingdom Come Deliverance?
I was always interested in history. When I was a little kid, I drew pictures of huuuuge medieval battles. My grandparents took me to all the castles and I wanted to make a medieval game even before we started working on Mafia. We even had a prototype of it in 1998. Hell, back in 1995 or so, we were working on something similar to Elder Scrolls Arena where you would be a scribe to a knight…

2) Describe your position. What is it about being a Creative Director?
I came up with the idea of the game, then started the company with Martin, wrote most of the design document with Victor, and then I prepared the outline of the story. I then lead the team and I’m basically that annoying guy who needs to have his fingers and last word in almost everything that gets into the game. I also wrote quite a few of the main quests, directed the actors, and hell, I even did some of the icons. Most of the directors do just the “management” and vision stuff, so I am doing it all wrong and everybody hates me for giving them advice on how to do stuff that they are better at then I am

3) The Region of Rataje and Sázava offers some very beautiful places with an interesting history. How did you find this piece of landscape?
When I chose the events that are in the background of the game, I was literally checking out the history of every castle, town, and village in the region (literally hundreds of places), in that particular year. Even if I couldn’t get some more info about what happened there (or interesting inspirations of some real-world events), I found Skalitz and Ratay, which played an important role in this little war, which is what the game is all about.

4) Which job would you not want to do? Why?
Programmer. I’m really bad at math.

5) Please describe Warhorse Studios:
Well, we have a very flat structure, so everybody can talk to anyone at any time. I guess that Americans especially would be a little shocked that it’s possible to just come to the CEO of the company and tell him that his idea (to do something) is really stupid and still have a job the next day, which is a daily routine over here at Warhorse Studios Currently, it’s also very busy and very tense right now. There’s a lot of very complex work with a very tight schedule and there’s lots of issues to solve. So, it’s definitely not just “shiny, happy people”.

6) Why is Kingdom Come Deliverance called Kingdom Come Deliverance?
People at the time really believed that the end of the world was coming, especially the Hussites (a few years after the events in our game). Deliverance is a story thing and it was also a very cool Amiga game and a very good Opeth album

7) Why did you choose the year 1403 and not the Hussite wars period?
I wanted to begin when it all started and eventually continue to the Hussite wars in the future. Furthermore, we are building the technology, the combat system and everything else, so we would not be able to create such epic events as those that happened during these wars. When we are ready, I want to make sure that everything is done properly.

8) You did a lot of research for Kingdom Come Deliverance, what turned out to be completely different from what you expected?
There were lots of myths about medieval times that turned out to be really stupid. Combat and sword fighting were totally different than in the movies. The times were not as dirty, brown, cruel and dangerous when there was no war. Actually, all was quite colorful: they had lower taxes then we have today and even the crime rate was quite lower than most big cities today What shocked me was, when I got into the intrigues of the nobility - it was much more complicated than the craziest plots of Game of Thrones. The ability of nobles to switch sides, ally with their worst enemies, and then switch again the next week is really unbelievable. I still don’t get how they could come along with each other.

9) Kingdom Come Deliverance is still a game and not a Simulation, can you give an example where game design is more important than realism, and why?
We let you do most of the stuff people could do in a real world, but we try to do it as simple and intuitive as possible. So, it may be complex, but you don’t have to learn everything and memorize some keyboard shortcuts. It’s a game, so even if it was a simulation, it would be much easier and much faster pacing than real life experiences. For example, many things in combat could not be made, even if we wanted to create a hardcore simulator. The way you control the game dramatically limits the complexity of the action on screen. Your body movement is not limited by two sticks and eight buttons.

10) How would you compare Mafia to Kingdom Come Deliverance?
Mafia gave you the experience of what it’s like to be a gangster. Kingdom Come gives you the experience of what it’s like to make you a knight. Both share a strong story, open world, and interesting characters. Kingdom Come has more freedom and non-linearity… and RPG stats.

11) Describe your usual day at the studio?
When I arrive in the morning, we usually have a scrum with the designers where we plan what each of us will do that day. Then I check emails and news, and then the “fun” begins. There are days where I am at meetings for the whole day, which is terrible. We have meetings about planning, features or management and those can be extremely long (like 5 hours in a row long) and painful. Then there are meetings where we solve development issues, features or quests. These are more interesting and most of the time much shorter. Lately, we’ve discussed what trailer we want, we’re designing covers for the game or we’re discussing how we will place all the items into the game and the database etc. During quieter days, I actually do some work! I write quests, review quests of others, play and test the game, or I even photoshop something for the GUI etc.

12) What are you currently working on?
Writing the script for a future trailer, working on the cover for the game with our lead artist, fixing bugs in the quests that I wrote, solving lots of small issues and features every day (for example today: objectives are sorting in a wrong way, fast travel is not intuitive…) and most importantly we are recording voiceovers so that during the days the actors are here. This leads me to being in the studio several days in a row.

13) What are some of your notable accomplishments?
Just recently, we completely scrapped our original idea for a trailer and I came up with a script that I really like - it has lots of cool ideas that define our game very well.

14) What do you like the most about Kingdom Come: Deliverance?
Well it’s supposed to be sort-of a time machine that will take you to medieval Europe and let you experience how it was back then. You could be a medieval knight in a world that is as accurate as possible. I am proud that while we are a rather small team with a very small budget compared to big AAA titles, we’ve achieved lots of things that teams with budgets 10 times bigger than ours didn’t even dare to try. We have a huge world with state-of-the-art graphics, a one-of-a-kind lighting system, hours of cinematics that so far, look very good, and our AI is incredibly complex. The nonlinear quests can get very complicated with very complex mechanics that try to count even with tiny details and options.

15) How, when and with what platform did you first get acquainted with videogames?
Our country was behind an iron curtain and the import of computers and consoles was almost non-existent. My first contact with computers was through German shopping mall catalogues like Quelle. I was fascinated with those small screens of computer games. We also had some form of arcades, with mostly old games. Golden Axe was one of my favorites. Later on, I bought a Czech clone of ZX Spectrum in the late 80s.

16) What was your best/saddest/happiest, most touching video game moment?
The ending of first fallout was great; I remember how I finished it late at night and I was blown away.

17) You lived under the communistic regime which was a huge obstacle when it comes to video games, how did you become a game designer?
I never ever even dreamt I would be making videogames, but I was “designing” them on paper. Back in the 1987 or so, I designed something that took place in a Nazi bunker and it was viewed from first person perspective. My friend told me that he could easily code it on his Atari 800XL

18) Which videogame character or figure is the best?
I think that most of the videogame characters are really cheesy. Commercial-calculated products are not actual characters. Even in games that I generally like, I don’t like the characters and I would have a problem wearing a T-Shirt with gaming themes, thanks to that. There are exceptions of course: The Witcher for example or Shenmue.

19) Are there any videogames you repeat playing over and over again?
Candy Crush Saga before I go to sleep. Somebody help me, I am addicted…

20) What would a perfect game according to your wishes look like?
It generally needs to be about the EXPERIENCE that puts me into the shoes of SOMEONE INTERESTING and I need to be able to experience his adventures in an interesting, functional world where I can meet cool characters (i.e. Fallout, Red Dead Redemption, Witcher.)

21) How do you relax after a hard day at work?
Reading the newspaper on a couch, listening to black metal and doing nothing, which is kinda hard with kids. I watch lots of movies. I am reading lots of stuff everyday - comics (Vinland Saga, JoJos Bizzare Adventure, Unwritten…) history, politics, but I should read more books. I also love to play paintball or train with real steel at the range with my friends.

22) So you like to go to the shooting range. What is your favorite firearm?
Most likely V-AR 15 which is Czech version of AR15 with piston. CZ 75 Shadow pistol and CZ Scorpion EVO.

23) Your favorite music band, album or song?
Bathory, Enslaved, Opeth, Masters Hammer…

24) Your favorite movie/book?
Sapkowski’s Hussite trilogy.

25) What species is your spirit animal?
Dog. White. Bullterrier.

26) What do you most like about living in the Czech Republic?
It’s a mixture of California, Texas and Germany. We are one of the most tolerant nations in the world, we work almost as hard as Germans, we are one of the safest countries, yet at the same time, we have the biggest beer consumption in the world. Everybody smokes weed and everybody has a gun, because we have one of the most liberal gun laws out there Plus, the country is beautiful with amazing history, nature and sights.

27) What is your weakest trait?
I am really lazy person. But when I start to do something…

28) You have to fight in medieval times… who are you?
I would be Skald as I am today

29) Knights or Samurai?
Knight!

30) What was your favorite subject and your most hated one at school?
I was generally a good student. I had problems in chemistry and mechanics because I have a shitty memory. I also hated sculpting lessons; I hate dry-sculpting clay

31) If you could say something to the fans of Kingdom Come: Deliverance, what would it be?
Marry Christmas and have a great year, keep your fingers crossed for us, we are working hard to finish the game and make it as good as possible.

Do you have any additional questions to Daniel “Hellboy” Vávra? Just ask here.

[DrFusselpulli]

Here are the answers to your community questions by Daniel Vávra:

[quote=“Gulle, post:112, topic:29619”]
You mentioned that you were interested in the Hussite wars and perhaps continuing the Kingdom Come series with those as a theme. Do you think Kingdom Come will always be set in Bohemia in the 15th century, or will you perhaps branch out to other time periods and locations?[/quote]

I don’t know. Currently, we want to finish this one. If it’s successful, there is a lot of space to continue the story into many interesting events that happened here and they also caused some international events as well. But never say never. I like Vikings, Crusades and many other topics.

[quote=“Vojtroslav, post:113, topic:29619, full:true”]
Do you have some fans? If you have did someone give you some gift? Like groshen or a metal figure of a knight names(Oldřich) or some fan art???[/quote]

Yes I do

[quote=“kaiman, post:114, topic:29619”]
Can’t really think of any question right now, but I want to take the opportunity and offer Dan my heartfelt thanks for all the hard work he and his team is putting into KC:D. While I do have some gripes (like the as yet unknown fate of the Linux port), I must say that I am really impressed with the level of professionalism on display and all the innovative and ingenious ideas, not the least of which is the focus on realism and historical accuracy.

Which maybe actually begs a question, or two: since it only seems a small step from existing open world cRPGs to one grounded in reality, why has nobody done it before? I mean there have always been more and more accurate computer simulations of planes and cars and whatnot, and even fantasy RPGs have their roots in realistic wargames. Are developers too cautious because of the risk involved with trying something new, or is the prospect of letting ones imagination run wild in a fantasy environment just too tempting?

How do you deal with the restrictions imposed by that choice? What was the feature most dear to you that had to be sacrificed on the altar of realism?[/quote]

The reason why no one did it before is simple: there is no comparison, so they can’t be sure it will sell and hence it’s quite bit a risk for them. The moment somebody tries it and it works, everybody will want to try it.

The second reason, is that it’s surely more complicated than creating an artificial, simplified, abstract world. When you go with realism, you have to do It all. If you drop one “detail” the whole “simulation” stops working. It’s like car simulators - you can either make fake arcade physics and it will work, or you can go with real physics. But if you try to drop some physical laws from the simulation, the simulation will not work.

[quote=“Grubocap, post:115, topic:29619”]
Is that true, that pierce/thrust skrikes was allowed in the arena?
Today I showed the game to my friend. He was a crossbowman in the Kulikovo field. He said that pierce strikes is forbidden now and it has been forbidden in the medieval arenas as well. [/quote]

I think he is right. Surely you cannot stab people in modern HMB like Battle of the Nations. Arenas in our game are not meant to be a perfect recreation of medieval contests, but rather a training ground for combat.

[quote=“snejdarek, post:117, topic:29619”]
What are your favorite shooting ranges?
Why do you prefer V-AR over PAR MK3?
Do you concealed carry?[/quote]

The ones that allow free movement on the field. So not many,
I just like the feel of it.
No.

[quote=“miketearon, post:118, topic:29619”]
is it hard to create and manage your own studio?[/quote]

Few years of stress. No money in the bank. Gray hair. Everybody hates you for being a megalomaniac. Piece of cake.

[quote=“Cherepanov, post:119, topic:29619”]
From the point of view of the video game developer do you think will in the future elderly people to play games? if Yes then for what reasons? or with age, the interest in the game in any way will reduce?
I would say… Are there any prospects that games would be very popular with the older audience?[/quote]

I don’t see a reason why people who play games now will stop doing it when they get older. But I do think, that we can’t count on the fact that the world will be the same as it is now in the near future. In a couple years, we will either see a terrible decline of civilization and no one will play games, or the world will change so much, that the games will be 100% neural virtual reality and people will be genetically enhanced immortals, so the age will be irrelevant. And I don’t mean 50 years from now, but rather 15-20 years. Scientific progress is faster and faster.

[quote=“Dbeat60, post:120, topic:29619”]
As you mentioned before Daniel, Kingdome Come is a more open, free roaming game than Mafia. In this manner, do you consider that linearity must be essential in every game that is narratively heavy oriented? Does Kingdom Come really entirely on the dynamics?[/quote]

It’s hard to make a nonlinear open world game. You want to have a story, and even if you have a story that branches, there must be some boundaries. On the other hand, you have a 100% open world game, where you can do interesting stuff that doesn’t have to be generic, but the narrative will be less interesting and very loose.

[quote=“Paul, post:123, topic:29619”]
Questions for Dan - don’t you think it might be a bit hurtful to the game’s reception to show extremely work in progress versions of the game full of placeholders? First impressions are important and some more… “casual” gamers might dismiss the game due to seeing some video from alpha with no facial animations and clunky combat, stuff like that.
Yeah it could and I was and still am a little bit worried about this. Its very hard to decide what to show.
And second question, is there any possibility of releasing the original publisher pitch prototype that was shown during kickstarter, to backers ? Would be cool to see how the game evolved from back then.[/quote]

I would say that what we said on Kickstarter was very much the same thing we showed to the publishers, even the same prototype. Of course, some things were said differently to different audiences, but the overall pitch was the same.

[quote=“Paul, post:123, topic:29619”]
And last one - is there any chance you would start doing regular written blog posts about development again? I enjoyed the shit out of those. Cartography in potato land is legendary. Thanks and can’t wait for the game.[/quote]

I was thinking about this, but generally the video seems to have a better reach and it takes me personally the same amount of time as a written article would. For once, I would like to write something and compare the views of our videos to a blog post.

[quote=“Freix, post:124, topic:29619”]
Will it be a live-action game trailer as you were considering in the past or standard one made in the game engine (I suppose CGI is not an option due to the price…)?[/quote]

There will be more than one trailer. Some will definitely be taken just from ingame stuff. I generally don’t like CGI trailers, so the live action seems like a cool option for our game. We will see.

[quote=“Freix, post:124, topic:29619”]
Do I understand it right that you are also directing the voiceacting? If so, how is it going? I would expect it to be really hard for non-native speaker to supervise english voiceovers because non-native speaker will imo lack the proper feeling for the language. Are you confident that the voiceacting will be good?[/quote]

Yes, parts of it. It would take one person around half a year to record everything, so I directed most of the cutscenes and some parts of the voiceovers and the rest is done by our writers. We finished the main phase of VO just yesterday. Now we have around 90% of everything recorded and we will do the rest just before the game is finished, so we can implement some last minute changes with the dialogues.

[quote=“tommyangelo, post:125, topic:29619”]
Hey Dan - what’s next after KCD? Can we expect a mobster game from you in the future (hopefully)?[/quote]

Never say never, but I don’t think so

[quote=“bones, post:126, topic:29619”]
You never mention axes in your videos. You seem to always say “Swords, maces, bows, and polearms…” Whats the deal? Do you not like axes?
On a side note: You mention that you shoot at the range with your friends. Do you practice long range or marksmanship much? I live in the USA so I do quite often. I love guns.[/quote]

There is quite a few axes in the game
I do train some basic drills with assault rifles and pistols, movement and such stuff. Mostly up to 50m so no marksmanship yet. I just want to be able to handle real steel reasonably well in case zombie apocalypse starts

[quote=“Blacksmith, post:127, topic:29619”]
After KCD; will WH work „only“ on KC2 or have you plans for another game? Maybe work on at the same time?[/quote]

We will see. Its too soon to announce anything when you don’t know the results of your current plans.

[quote=“Blacksmith, post:127, topic:29619”]
For finishing KCD you planned 22 months (after Kickstarter), but now you will need more than 44.
How long will it take for part 2?(plans at Kickstarter 9 months → are 18 months more realistic?)
What are your plans for WH in general? Should WH stay at this size, or do you want become a „big player“?[/quote]

Its very hard to plan a game as ambitious as what we are doing, too many unknowns. Nobody here is happy that it is taking us longer than we thought, but its simply not easy and we want to make a good game. Trust me.
But for a sequel it should be VERY different. When we started KCD, we dint have anything. We had to create tons of mechanics, systems and engine tweaks. We will have those ready for next game. We would be even able to use lot of current assets (foliage, generic buildings, clothes, items), maybe even some voiceovers (barks of NPCs). So I dare to say, that good 50% of stuff we had to do now, we will already have for anither game, and for the rest, we will already know how to approach it, what worked and what didn’t. So it should be much faster and easier.

[quote=“Blacksmith, post:127, topic:29619”]
The setting of KCD is fresh at the moment, but you don´t want to work the next 10 years always on the same(KC2, DLCs, prequel of KCD ect.). What are your personal goals? Work the next 30 years on videogames? Start with something different/new?
You worked the last 7 years on this project. Is it correct to say, this was the center of your life? Was there a weak moment (after kickstarter), where you said the project is shit/waste of (life)time?
How do you motivate yourself and your employee after this long time?[/quote]

There are many things I would like to do. But as for the game, I do think, that creating sequel would not be the same stuff again. There are lot of things that we haven’t done yet and I really like the setting. But with the tools we have now, we can create almost any genre and setting. The game is so complex that we can use our engine and systems even for science fiction game with very little effort.

[quote=“Pandemic, post:128, topic:29619”]
Will there be more animations for doing things like picking up stuff, maybe dropping from inventory items.
Also will there be anything to do in forest besides visual entertaining ?[/quote]

We are still tweaking animations, but no major changes.
In forest you can pick herbs, mushrooms and hunt animals (boars, rabbits, deers and bandits)… So its not just an empty prop.

[quote=“cr4zydave, post:129, topic:29619”]
Are you planning to include proper scabbards into the game? Was there discussion about it in the development already?[/quote]

Yes there was a discussion and as far as I know there is still a plan for it.

[quote=“Kakyou”]
Will there be a full fledged SDK for modding purposes, so that we can alter more than visual/sound aspects?
Will the DLC include also new SMALL expansions to the previous gameplay, new small animations etc. besides the stuff which had to be cut out due to time purpses
For how long do you intend to support the game afterwards?
What is the plan for console mods. Bethsada has a nice concept with Skyrim, will you do the same?[/quote]

Generally we do plan to support modding, Cryengine is good for that, but its not going to be supported by us from day one. Lots of other work. We have plans for DLCs, I already said, that some sfuff that didn’t made it into the game will hopefully reappear in DLCs, but I cant provide details now.

[quote=“sdshannouns:”]
Dan, would you ever consider placing a sequel in the 9th century focused on playing a viking during their time of expansion?[/quote]

Not a sequel. But different game? Definitely yes. I travelled all around the Scandinavia to see all important Viking places and I do really like them.

[DrFusselpulli]

Vojtech “Vojta” Nedved was born in was born in Kladno (the same town where Jaromír Jágr was born) a town not very far from Prague in the Czech Republic. Vojta is a very passionate Sound Designer, always on the hunt for the most authentic sounds with the love of detail.
Do you have any additional questions to Vojtech “Vojta” Nedved? Just ask here.
You can find a Spanish translation of this interview here.

1) How did you hear about Warhorse?
I was playing live some chiptunes at a Czech gaming prize giving event. At one point, Dan Vavra barrel-rolled to the stage for no reason; it was pretty impressive. KC:D also looked good
I joined Warhorse midway through 2015.

2) Describe your position. What is it about being a Sound Designer?
Being an Sound Designer means responsibility for the creation of quality audio assets and putting them to audio middleware (we use FMOD Studio but we don’t use stock soundbanks). I want to have every single piece of audio created in-house, so I can often be often seen in the forests, recording atmospheres, or in the studio wielding swords. I have to make sure that the CryEngine communicates with FMOD the way we want to (with Adam Sporka we created FMOD wrapper for CryEngine). The important part is setting the sounds to react to the game events so that the audio fits every game situation. I’m doing audio dramaturgy for cutscenes and adding sounds to them. I’m also responsible for game dubbing (we have people who help us with it).

3) Have you ever worked on Videogames before?
I worked on some Amiga and PC games. I also did additional music for Jets ‘n’ Guns Gold. Then I worked on some mobile games but nothing big as KC:D. In the past, I worked as a sound recordist, sound mixer, boom operator (microphonist), audio post-production and I even worked as a data analyst.

4) Please describe one of your colleagues or your department:
Our department consists of academics and crazy people only. I’m a half-insane chiptune freak who gathers 8bit machines, owns a large variety of microphones, and listens to horrorcore. I only fall asleep with a yellow bucket on my head. Adam is a brony, has a brony music band. and visits My Little Pony fests around Europe. Our composer Jan can compete against decadent poets and likes to show his nipples to random people when he’s drunk.

5) What are you currently working on?
At the moment, I’m working on English dubbing. Of all the stuff that we receive from the recording studio, we must pick the right takes, normalize loudness and process them (remove plosives, crackles, clicks, use deesser and sometimes EQ or harmonic exciter). With Adam Sporka we are also working on a more automated solution that would help us deliver thousands of lines per week.

6) What do you like the most about Kingdom Come: Deliverance?
The atmosphere - I feel like I was there. The game has a somewhat slower pace, which is actually a good thing. When I played Ishar 2 there were cool forest pictures in the intro and I told to myself back then, ‘Perhaps one time there will be games which will look like this but in-game,’ and now I’m working on one of them. Wow…

7) How, when and with what platform or game did you first get acquainted with videogames?
It was a long time ago. A local friend (an interesting person who years later ended up getting busted for stealing stuff at an airport) let me borrow Commodore 64 when I was 6 or 7. The datasette (tape data storage) was half broken and I had to load the game 5-10 times. I went through it anyway and I began to get seriously addicted. The very first game I can remember was Agent USA where you had to destroy Fuzzbomb, which infected poor people by the fuzz. The game required knowledge of American geography but I decided to play it anyway.

8) What was your most touching video game moment?
For me, the most touching moment was the ending of Another World. The music, the emotions… I think it was the first time I cried while playing a computer game. Other than crying in a hysteric rage (Prince of Persia? Come on!? Who could finish that game without cheats?)

9) Which videogame character are you?
Probably Q*bert. I also make funny sounds.

10) Are there any videogames you repeat playing over and over again?
Occasionally, I get back to playing old games. I dig Archon, Rescue on Fractalus (I’ve never been more scared in my life), the Ishar series, Waxworks (those death pics!), Another World, Neo Turf Masters (only a few can beat me), Bad Mojo, Vietcong, Rocket League…

11) Your favorite movie?
My favorite movies are Marketa Lazarova, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Come and See (Idi I Smotri), Starship Troopers, Braindead, No Country For Old Men, The Hunt (Jagten) and many others.

12) Sport is…
I watch ice hockey and play floorball. I used to play a floorball at a competitive level for like 10 years.

13) What’s your guilty pleasure?
I watch bad movies, especially 80’s horror movies. For some strange reason, I like awkward situations. I often tell people my own bad jokes and enjoy it when they don’t laugh.

14) Is it possible to buy you with candy?
If Candy has nice tits then why not?

15) What is your kryptonite?
Olives, olive oil. I just love Mediterranean cuisine.

16) Imagine you are a cake, what kind of cake are you and why?
I’m a cheesecake because almost all of my answers are cheesy.

17) Knights or Samurai?
Shadow Warrior is cool but Moonstone is BETTER!

18) If you could say something to the fans of Kingdom Come: Deliverance, what would it be?
Stay cool! We try our very best not to disappoint you and bring you the game you want to play.

Do you have any additional questions to Vojtech “Vojta” Nedved? Just ask here.

[DrFusselpulli]

And here are Vojtas answers to your community questions:

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Hey Vojta I hope you like this. It’s very good music from one of similar games. Please listen to it, i think people really like this one.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i1E82MYxAKQ

Hello Pandemic. Beautiful music indeed. It’s somewhat different style when I compare it to KC:D but it sounds fantastic.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Hi Vojta,
There are hundreds of sounds in a forest for example. Some are very often to hear and some are very rare. How many samples did you record only for the woods. Can we expect some of those rare samples too? Like a “singing/yelling” tree in the wind.
I think it’s not that economic to put those samples in the game which comes only two or three times a day…how do you think about building a perfect digital (forest)sound environment for the game. What are the biggest compromises?
you told us about “audio dramaturgy for cutscenes”. Can you give us an example? I don’t think you mean the music…
Did you and your Colleagues at WH designed and build the best forest in a computer game??

Hi Urquhart. I recorded many hours of different forest atmospheres and sounds. I came through it and cut out nice oneshots that play in our forests from time after time. Some are rare if once in 3 minutes is rare enough for you ;] But memory wise we can’t afford to play large variety of sounds so we have neutral forest beds with some random bird/wind/whatever oneshots playing. There aren’t certain trees that are yelling but around ponds there are some willows that sing. In theory I have a perfect forest in my mid. I’d record many 4channel beds which would blend and cover the forest plus large variety of random and scripted sounds around listener. Now we have 2channel beds which cover large portions of a forest with small variety of random sounds.
“Audio dramaturgy of cutscenes”. Yeah, it’s not self-explanatory and my English is rather bad ;] It means where to put which sounds, where to put dramatic silence, how to adjust levels of music to coexist with sounds. Audio direction would be probably better term. It’s not rocket science but it needs to be done right.
About the last answer… I honestly don’t know. I play mainly old games but I can at least say I haven’t seen better looking forest in a game so far.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

For now the terrible sound of drawing swords isnt there will you intend to use realistic drawing sounds e.g. when drawing and putting back to a scabbard or the overused tsching sound

Will there be ambient sounds depending on sources (e.g. animals, physical wind interaction with flora) or just general ambient sounds?
Will there be sounds of footsteps depending on wet soil?
Do you plan to include 3D sound?
The period in-game music will it be still there?

Hi. Kakyou. In our beta version there are already draw/holster sword sounds. I recorded them with real sword and kept them the way they were. If I was working on different game perhaps I’d put there that boring “tsching” sound as well Someone already asked me why he doesn’t hear that sound he’s used to. But some other people liked this approach. We try to stay as realistic as possible as long as the gameplay’s not affected.
Yes, there will be animation triggered sounds from animals and people doing their stuff. There are visible gusts of winds in the game and they can be also audible. But because of engine limitations these two aspects can’t be connected together (visible and audible gusts at the same time). I wasn’t happy about it, believe me but it’s how it is. We try to make sounds as interactive as possible but sometimes you have to help it with some atmospheres.
Yes, there will be dynamic footsteps on wet/dry soil, I have it implemented already.
Not for now. If we find especially good use, we may include HRTF support for some sounds.
Yes. It’s composed and we have to record it and mix it. Adam and me will take care about it. Period music probably will be the last music to be made for act I.

Thanks guys for your questions, it was my pleasure to answer them.

[DrFusselpulli]

Michal “Mikee” Hapala has a crazy haircut, but he is a talented programmer, who joined Warhorse very early in February 2012 long before the Kickstarter campaign. He was raised in Prague but born in Bratislava which is nowadays in Slovakia, formerly Czechoslovakia, but that is a history on its own…
Do you have any additional questions to Michal “Mikee” Hapala? Just ask here.
You can find a Spanish translation of this interview here.

1) Where can we usually find you lurking in the holy halls of Warhorse?
At my keyboard, with in-ears blocking outside clatter. As we’ve entered the optimizing and fixing phase, I also frequently roam the halls in a lookout for heretics claiming there are bugs in my code. Nobody expects the Spanish inquisition!

2) How did you hear about Warhorse?
In 2008 I worked with Viktor Bocan, our lead systems designer, on a Nintendo DS game (that never got released) at a company called Cinemax. Later that year I also became involved in teaching a computer games development class at my alma mater. I invited Viktor to have a lecture there and evaluate the student projects too. Some years passed and at one of the evaluation meetings he mentioned that the new game studio he works for (with a yet unannounced project) will soon be looking for experienced programmers. At that point, I was in the third year of an EECS doctoral study and I was looking for ways to get out of it at least for a while, so I told him I’ll be interested and to keep me posted. And he did . I joined Warhorse in February 2012.

3) Describe your position. What is it about being a programmer?
I’ve always believed that being a programmer is a diagnosis. My job is a manifestation of my character, not vice-versa. Was that too deep for your taste?

4) Have you ever worked on Videogames before?
When I started attending university my goal was to get a job in the gaming industry, so after I felt a little confident I applied and started working externally for Centauri Production (much later they were incorporated into Bohemia Interactive) and then for Cinemax working on a Nintendo DS engine with a few of released DSWare titles. Before and after I did other programming jobs too: mainly web and database programming and also some computer graphics research.

5) What is your favorite team activity?
The occasional football or floorball game with colleagues. We even played cricket once!

6) What are you currently working on?
There’s honestly not that much to talk about right now since it’s bug fixing and optimizations. Here and there though there are some new (forgotten) features or tweaking of some old ones, but we try to keep that to a minimum.

7) What are some of your notable accomplishments?
Since I’ve worked on this project almost from the start, my code changes are all over but mostly in the animations and (oh my god) the physics systems. I am pretty satisfied with the new leg IK solver we created with our lead animator Petr Samek. His idea, my implementation, to be absolutely fair. For those who have no idea what that thing means: it dynamically fits the legs and feet to the shape the character is standing on.

8) What do you like the most about Kingdom Come: Deliverance?
I am a history buff, so the story and the setting are my thing.

9) How, when and with what platform or game did you first get acquainted with videogames?
Oh boy, I don’t remember the glory of the good old 8-bit days, but the first computer my parents owned was an IBM XT with a black-yellow monitor and on this beast of a machine I played my first videogames. I systematically went through the “games” directory and for example, it took me a few months to figure out how to take off in Microsoft Simulator 1.0. I was about seven and I knew only a few English words, but I did it!

10) What was your most touching video game moment?
Through the audio logs and e-mails, I became pretty attached to the character of Marie Delacroix in System Shock 2. To this day I remember how sad I was to find her dead nearing the end of the game.

11) Which videogame character or figure is the best?
Drizzt Do’Urden. Drow ranger wielding two scimitars with a magical panther. Are you still asking why?

12) Which class, gender, or type do you usually pick?
Elven mages are my RPG favorites. I usually want to control the character that has the most gameplay options.

13) Are there any videogames you repeat playing over-and-over-again?
I used to play (and finish) the original Diablo from time-to-time. Last time it took me four hours (with the sorcerer, of course). Now that I think about it, I might play it again!

14) How do you relax after a hard day at work?
Married with a kid. What’s that “relax” thing you are talking about? Seriously though, of course I play videogames (MGS V: Phantom Pain is my current favorite) and I try to find time to get through at least one book a month. When completely exhausted, I pick a movie I’ve already seen a couple of times.

15) Your favorite music playlist
“Floating through space” on Google Music. I am a trip-hop fan, so anything that includes Portishead, Lamb, Massive Attack and such.

16) Your favorite movie or book?
Too many to list, but if I have to mention one author I do love Richard P. Feynman’s books. Also, I’ve recently seen Blade Runner with Ridley Scott’s commentary. That. Is. A. Treat.

17) Your travel tip?
Israel. Cheap flight tickets, cheap car rentals, and a small country with history on every corner make perfect traveling.

18) What is your weakest trait?
Concentration deficit mixed with a mild OCD…. or is that my strongest?

19) What was your favorite subject and your most hated one at school? What were your grades in history?
It depended more on the teacher than on the subject, although in general, you can say that I liked information, I hated classes. Grades in history? I honestly don’t remember.

20) If you could say something to the fans of Kingdom Come: Deliverance, what would it be?
Thanks for staying with us for so long. The less you ride the hype-train the more you’ll be satisfied!

Do you have any additional questions to Michal “Mikee” Hapala? Just ask here.

[DrFusselpulli]

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Is this YOUR bug or is Henry a duck???

This bug usually happens when there’s only one update of the ground alignment system instead of continuous updates and the body of Henry is thus not moved upwards (the anti-duck algorithm). And yes, I will be the one to fix it, once I delve through our buglist deep enough to reach its priority

[quote=“Kakyou, post:148, topic:29619”]
In which cases do you rely solely on the CryEngines pyhsical system and in which cases do you use self-desgined physical systems (if any)?[/quote]
Except some special cases in combat we use it everywhere.

[quote=“Kakyou, post:148, topic:29619”]
Have you modified the CryEngine Core? If yes, then in what extent?[/quote]
Yes, in some parts we modified it pretty heavily e.g. to paralellize some core features like animation update. There are also a lot of surgical changes that amassed over the years. It’s not a completely different engine though, major parts of the code are untouched. There’s no backward compatibility with original CryEngine levels and data however, that would be almost impossible to maintain.

[quote=“Kakyou, post:148, topic:29619”]
What were the biggest problems you have encountered so far?[/quote]
I think what technically slowed us down the most was the move to CryEngine 3.5 a couple of years ago, mainly the changes to the animation system since we had to recreate and rethink most of the data.

[quote=“Kakyou, post:148, topic:29619”]
What tools did you create and for what puroses?[/quote]
The AI system and its toolset is completely in-house. There are many smaller tools out there too, but that is the major one.

[quote=“Kakyou, post:148, topic:29619”]
Some architectural/technical questions

What are the langues your game is written upon. The Cry-Engine is the core (C++), you have built your system above it with plugins (I presume also C++), then you have your AI/Behavior/Game System Scripts, what languages are you using, I presume LUA but I also saw Python in the install directory.[/quote]
Engine code and game code is in C++, scripting is done in Lua and in our custom AI behavioural trees as you mentioned. Python is not used for anything that is in-game.

[quote=“Kakyou, post:148, topic:29619”]
For what do you use Python?[/quote]
Our automatic profiling system is written in Python.

[quote=“Kakyou, post:148, topic:29619”]
What programm did you used to make your animations (Maya? 3DsMax)[/quote]
Maya is the favorite here, although at first we used 3dsMax and there still might be some people using it.

[quote=“Kakyou, post:148, topic:29619”]
What is the format of your animations?[/quote]
CryEngine has a custom animation format to which you can export from Maya.

[quote=“Kakyou, post:148, topic:29619”]
What are the mesh types your characters are composed of (The standarad, skeleton and static) or with more[/quote]
Characters have a skeleton (tree) structure built out of single bones (or joints, depends on the view). The visual is then made either out of meshes animated with multiple weighted bones (i.e. skinned meshes like heads or limbs with clothing) or meshes attached to one bone (like weapons). There are some tricks done in the clothing system so you can layer clothes on top of each other.

[quote=“Kakyou, post:148, topic:29619”]
Do you work with destructible meshes?[/quote]
No

[quote=“Kakyou, post:148, topic:29619”]
What IDE are you using, in your videos I saw IntelliJ[/quote]
I am not aware of anyone using IntelliJ, we use primarily Visual Studio. Some people have external editors (like Sublime) and only use it for compiling though.

[quote=“Kakyou, post:148, topic:29619”]
Optimization

What is your approach for the optimization of the NPC-Behavioural optimization?[/quote]
I am not sure I understand what you are asking, but anyway Tomas Plch was the guy to answer this. I guess you will have to wait for another AI programmer to fire himself up with the Weekly Torch and maybe rephrase it for him

[quote=“Kakyou, post:148, topic:29619”]
What will be optimized graphically?[/quote]
That’s a very general question but basically our game eats through memory pretty fast so a lot of the game assets are getting optimized for size when for example we find out that the resolution is unnecessarily high (as was the case for some textures) and ideally you should not tell the difference.

[quote=“Kakyou, post:148, topic:29619”]
How many LODs will you include?[/quote]
Depends on the type of the asset, this can’t be said in general. Animation skeletons have three LODs right now, while some static objects are using merging to create one object in place of many when you are far away.

[quote=“Kakyou, post:148, topic:29619”]
How is your approach for the LOD change?[/quote]
We use CryEngine’s dissolving LODs.

[quote=“Kakyou, post:148, topic:29619”]
In which cases are scripts more performant than using only the CryEninge itself? (If there are some cases)[/quote]
I am not aware of such a case in our project.

[quote=“Kakyou, post:148, topic:29619”]
Will you use multithreading for AI-Calculations or do you already use it to some degree? If you will use multithreading will you implement it scalabe or will you assume a certain amount of cores/threads and set it as a maximum?[/quote]
We already have AI on its own thread in parallel to rendering and we’re still working on this one to make it faster. As far as assuming a certain amount of cores, the job system usually tries to fill as many cores as possible, but that depends on the type of the jobs.

[DrFusselpulli]

Joukejan “Jouke” Timmermans is one of the Environment Artists here at Warhorse Studios, doing an amazing job in creating the beautiful landscape of Kingdom Come Deliverance. Jouke was born in Ljouwert, Fryslân in the Netherlands and moved to Prague to work for Warhorse Studios.
Do you have any additional questions to Joukejan “Jouke” Timmermans? Just ask here.
You can find a Spanish translation of this interview here.

1) Where can we usually find you lurking in the holy halls of Warhorse?
You will find me in a dark room with all the other environment and concept artists. It’s the room where you can melt from the heat that is being produced by the people working hard on making the world look great. Seriously, it’s a sauna here!

2) Describe your position. What is it about being an environment artist?
I am working as a 3d environment artist for Kingdom Come: Deliverance. This means I am responsible for making awesome looking places and objects for the player to walk through and to enjoy. This job is not only about making the most beautiful piece of art you can make, but it’s also about making the artwork together with all the other aspects of developing the final game. For example, if I were to make the interior of a house interesting by filling it with objects and the testers find problems with the NPCs, then I would have to go back and fix it. That’s exactly what we are doing at this moment: optimizing the art to eventually make the game work and look awesome at the same time.

3) How did you hear about Warhorse?
I heard about Warhorse Studios when I saw the first Kickstarter video with Dan “the Viking,” as my father keeps calling him. In January 2014, I first applied for a job as a 3d junior artist at Warhorse and I was fortunate enough to do the art tests that every applicant had to do. So I got through both the art test and the level test (that came after the art test) and I was very thrilled. Unfortunately, at that time they needed to drop the open position to hire someone for the animation department. I was still out of work and I knew I had to pick up the pace and not fall behind on the newest technology. I took a job as a newspaper delivery boy, which meant getting up at 5 and bring the newspapers around different neighborhoods. At 7 I would be home and then I would start working on my portfolio during the day. On and off it took me 11 months to finish some decent portfolio pieces with which I could do another solicitation round. Of course, I contacted Warhorse Studios first and I immediately was asked to do a skype meeting. What follows, like they say, is history. On March 6th, 2015 I became a Warhorsian.

4) What are you currently working on?
Currently, I am busy with fixing bugs regarding mainly Sazava and Rataje City. Bugs vary from bad terrain alignment to characters grinding a fence when jumping over it. You come across some very interesting and funny bugs. Another thing that keeps me busy is making LODs for the models that are in the game. This means making ‘cheaper’ versions that will be displayed as the distance between the player and the object getting bigger.

5) Why do you think it’s the most important part or thing in the game?
There really is not one thing that is most important in my opinion. I believe that what each department is making is a piece of art in and of itself. Combining these pieces of art into one game is what is most important and I think we are succeeding greatly in this effort. From immersive and epic music to tense combat situations. When these aspects of the game come together and they are, that to me is what is most important.

6) What do you like the most about Kingdom Come: Deliverance?
What I really like about Kingdom Come: Deliverance is that I have no clue what the quests will be like. I will jump into this game knowing most of the layout of the world but with zero knowledge of the story and missions. I purposely tried to not get a lot of information regarding the story because I want to be surprised when the game comes out. Secondly, I love the attention to the detail that is going into the world that we created. It really is amazing.

7) How, when and with what game did you first get acquainted with videogames?
I think it was Super Mario Bros on the Super Nintendo.

8) Are there any videogames you repeat playing over and over again?
No question about it: Medal of Honor Allied Assault. Another really good one that I enjoy playing over and over is Hidden and Dangerous 2. The core mechanics of Hidden and Dangerous 2 strike me as one of the best to this day. I think I could play this game even 20 years from now, though I am hoping by then I will be playing Hidden and Dangerous 3

9) What would a perfect game according to your wishes look like?
I would like to see an Assassins Creed game in a World War 2 coat. I can already see the opportunities with such a concept.

10) Your favorite music playlist?
Electric Light Orchestra, Bee Gees, Interpol are the bands I am listening to at the moment. Besides that, I love to listen to the soundtrack of the TV series, “Band of Brothers”.

11) Your favorite movie/book?
There is one movie which I really love and which I can watch over and over again. It’s called “Where Eagles There” starring Richard Burton and Clint Eastwood. This 1968 movie has everything I want a movie to have, amazing music, drama, action and pretty good special effects for that time.

12) What species is your spirit animal?
Flying Spaghetti monster and don’t tell me he is not real!

13) Your travel tip?
That’s easy: Nepal. If you want to have an active and cultural vacation/trip, go to this country. Do a group vacation and you will go to amazing places, see crocodiles 2 meters from you in the water, hike the base of Mount Everest and go paragliding.

14) You are from the Netherlands, what are the main differences between the Czech Republic and the Netherlands?
The most noticeable difference I would say is that beers in the Czech Republic are served in .5l glasses. In the Netherlands, you get .33l and you have to ask if you want a bigger one. If you’re lucky, they’ll find some big old dusty .5l glass somewhere in the cellar.
Another big difference is the price of the beer. In Prague you can get drunk for less than 8 euros, so maybe it says something about me, but I don’t think so

15) How do you like living in the Czech Republic?
I really enjoy the Czech Republic, it is so rich in forests and there are many medieval sights to explore. The weather is amazing too. I am used to rain and wind, a lot of it. Over here I never had any real issues with wind or rain; it all seems quite moderate. On the other hand, there is plenty of snow around here. Last winter season was awesome but this winter season already makes last year look like a tropical season. I don’t enjoy it alone, I have a girlfriend with whom I am traveling a lot around the country and we try to explore as much as possible.

16) Which is your favorite historic event?
World War 2 for sure. This to me is so epic in scope and destruction that sometimes it is so difficult to imagine that it happened only around 76 years ago.

17) If you could say something to the fans of Kingdom Come: Deliverance, what would it be?
Thank you very much for your support in making this game happen. I am looking forward to hearing your experiences with Kingdom Come: Deliverance when it releases.

Do you have any additional questions to Joukejan “Jouke” Timmermans? Just ask here.

[WH_JiriRydl]

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[DrFusselpulli]

This topic is now a banner. It will appear at the top of every page until it is dismissed by the user.

[DrFusselpulli]

Here are Joukes answers to your community questions:

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Haha, I would like to see Jouke´s face if there is such winter like it used to be 10-15 years ago ever again…

A very good winter, meaning very cold and a lot of snow, is pretty rare for me. From time to time I can ice-skate on canals and rivers in Leeuwarden and the most snow I remember was 60 cm for only a day or so. So the winter you are subscribing would be like the apocalypse to me

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Do you like Jan Žižka? Or what historic person is you think is best?

I only know the statue of him in Zizkov where I used to live. I don’t have enough info on him to judge if I like him. A recent historic figure that I really enjoy listening to is Christopher Hitchens. The elegance and grace he uses in his debates and speeches are beyond comprehension sometimes.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Since you are making LoDs now, I was wondering what is your opinion about pop-in in games and LoDs in general. Is this something that could be eliminated in the future ?

My opinion is that they can be annoying but knowing the reason why the lod technique exist makes it all worth the while to implement it. I do not see this technique go away anytime soon actually not at all.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Is the foliage and grass pop-in going to be well handled in final version of KCD, to have it non-distracting?

We have been and are doing a good job on the lods, we are doing the best we can

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Of all assets you created or you know that are created and were usable in the real world, how many are usable in the game?

Well quite a lot. Of course the weapons, food and other pickable items. You will find out the whole invertory once you’re playing the game

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Are there any swords stands, where character can put their swords with scabbards into

I created a swords rack for the weapon shops. We have a “shop system” that places the swords there.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Please name the conflicts you had with your historian (if there were some) Because as an artist, somehow artistic tendency tends to overrule the reality in the arts

I actually didn’t have any issues with that. We are aiming for a historically accurate game so if the historian says it is not historically correct then I’ll change it

[DrFusselpulli]

Jaroslav “Jantoš” Antoš is the big brother of Martin “Athert” Antoš and one of our testers here at Warhorse Studios. He was born in Ústí nad Labem, in northern Bohemia. He joined Warhorse around half a year after his brother in the end of 2014 to become a tester.
Do you have any questions to Jaroslav “Jantoš” Antoš? Just ask here.
You can find a Spanish translation of this interview here.

1) How did you hear about Warhorse?
I first heard about Warhorse in 2014 from my brother Martin, during the Kickstarter campaign. He decided that he wanted to work for the company at any price. I told him that I have also tried to become a Warhorsian. After a few emails and a job interview, I got the job.

2) You are the brother of Martin Antoš, how is it to work with your brother at the same company?
As I answered above, my brother got into the company around half a year earlier than me.
I´m in the position of a tester while he is a scripter. So if he implements something into the game, I am allowed to check and criticize his work, knowing that I have nothing to fear because he acts professionally and he appreciates criticism. After all, we all want the game to be as perfect as possible so that players will like it in the end.
Even though we are quite different in behavior, our years of cohabitation have taught us to communicate with each other so that there are no major conflicts. However, that does not mean that there can´t be smaller disputes about minor topics (nothing serious though).
It is great to have him here nevertheless.

3) Describe your position. What is it about being a Quality Assurance?
I didn´t know exactly what a tester had to do until I had the job interview. I would like to thank Martin Klíma, our big mentor, for preparing me mentally for this position as a tester. I didn´t think it would be a cakewalk for sure, but in the end it was very different than what I expected.
I knew very little about Kingdom Come in the beginning. Most of the time I had the debugging tool open in one monitor while the game was running with some debug listings (in the editor) on the other monitor. In the first year, there was only one village with almost no content!
What really surprised me was that the position of a tester is mainly about communication and figuring out how the stuff works, especially how it should function (in theory).
Game development is not like opening a cooking book and follow the recipe, it is more like you have an idea and then you have to find out how to get to this goal and figure out how it really works. And if it doesn´t work as it should or if you don´t like it, you have to remake it again. Making changes to one little spot can change the entire game on another spot, along with all the other systems. It is not easy to maintain an overview.
What works on one day can be totally different on another day. Then you have to stand up and talk to the developer who changed something and ask him if this behavior is expected or not. At this time, you can express your own opinion about it.
This is particularly important in quests, because you (as a tester) are the only person who plays the game thoroughly. If there is something wrong or if something is not explained well enough or if it doesn’t make sense, it is very important to forward this information to try and get the problem solved.
This is actually the nicest part of the work as a tester, as you have the opportunity to influence a lot of the resulting quality and entertaining part of the game.

4) Did you ever worked on Videogames before?
Yes! And because of that experience, I knew that I wanted to work in the gaming industry.
By the end of 2012, my friends and I decided that we would like to develop a game for mobile phones. At the time there was a big boom of games and many small projects were able to succeed, so we tried it with three friends and we wanted to make the graphics later on. But as it is so often, the ambitions were immense and we were just amateurs.
We worked intensely on the game for a year-and-a-half and in the end, we managed to get it on Google Play. It was called OVOpet Village Life. It is a basically a reproduction of Tamagotchi with more options. You have to take care of your creatures and visit different locations where you have a garden, tasks, and minigames.
Unfortunately, this game was really too big for us and we did not had sufficient gaming quality. On top of that, we made it too complicated, so we didn´t have any success.
It was a great experience nevertheless and I would evaluate it as a positive in the end.

5) Please describe Warhorse Studios:
I would like to sum up the studio with one word: Incredible! You meet people every day who’ve influenced your gaming childhood.
Whether it´s Draci Doupe (The Czech version of Dungeons & Dragons, done by Martin Klíma) or Mafia - The City of Lost Heaven by Daniel Vávra, we have really great people on our team. Not only because they are often the leader in their fields, but also because they are all very friendly. We often meet after work as well.
For example, every week we go to play football, or we go to play Laser tag, or we play games and of course, we also like to meet in pubs.
And then there is this annual weekend were we meet each other in a castle near the river Sázava, close to the area where Kingdom Come: Deliverance takes place.

6) Describe your usual day at the studio?
Normally, my working day starts with me coming into the office and pissing off colleagues by turning on the lights; they are like nocturnal animals. I start with the download of the latest data and then I jump into the kitchen to eat some breakfast. It´s difficult to be popular in other departments when you’re a tester, especially when you are sending them information about what they are doing wrong. And because I turn on the lights, I am not even poplular in my own department.
Then the daily routine begins. I check what has been corrected from the previous day and I test it out to see if it’s been resloved. Then I check into the quests that I have just assigned. If the features works as they should, eventually someone comes to me and says that they have a new feature that needs to be tested.
If any bug accurs, we try to reproduce it and at best create a small level at which the error is isolated so that people from other departments will have it more easy to evoke and repair it. Reproducing a bug is a beautiful thing, especially when the the game bahaves very strangely for hours. Once we reproduce it, we can call the right person who will say very quickly, „Oh I just forgot about this crazy stuff,“ and five minutes later, it 's fixed.

7) What are you currently working on?
Currently, I am mostly concerned about quests because they are a top priority; they must be playable and fun. While they are tested, we also test the game mechanics because the quests contains nearly everything about the game.
Daily cycles for NPC, RPG system, crime system, combat, GUI, animations, graphics… everything.
However, sometimes you need to take one feature of the game and test it more by itself.
We will pay more attention to it and we will try to break it in every way, like the crime system, which is very complex and there are still improvements to be made.
But I like all the possibilities, of course, more as player and less as a tester.
Many states influence how an NPC sees you or not. You can dress as a Cuman or an NPC soldier and you can stay undetected, or you could try to use shadows to stay hidden. You can rob people by pickpocketing them or you can beat them up and steal their things.
It just depends if there was an NPC which saw and reported you after the crime, or they will come for you. You are able to steal from a NPC’s house. The more value it has, the higher the chance that the NPC will notice it (something more important than an apple, for example). There are also several crime levels and the NPCs react to them differently.
All these things have to work together and if that is the case, then the player can come up with his own solutions to solve quests.

8) The quests in Kingdom Come Deliverance are very complex, testing them is not an easy task. What is the biggest challenge about it?
Testing open world quests is one of the worst things to do! Not only can the players come-and-go on most quests, they can also do it in any way they’d like. This means that it is difficult to predict what the player will do to perform tasks and also how the NPCs will react to him with different clothes, equipment, and more. You will need to know these things and try them all out, depending on the complexity of the quest. It´s nice when you have a task in the game that can solve be solved in several ways. Somewhere you can persuade or help someone and he will help you in return too. Sometimes, you can even help someone to die.
There are really a lot of possibilities and now imagine that you are testing a quest in which there is a problem and you have to fix it.
The problem influences five different solutions where each dialog option leads you to another outcome. So then you have to play the quest and choose a dialogue, and then you come back and try another option. Your decisions will open up other possibilities when other quests present itself.
With each new option, you must try all the previous ones because you never know which way the player will choose and therefore, we need to be prepared for every outcome because every outcome needs to work. Unfortunately, with the way the game is constantly in development and everything changes quite often, all these options must pass through at regular intervals. It’s like hell!

9) What do you like the most about Kingdom Come: Deliverance?
It´s a cliché, but I prefer games games with our mother nature. Once I started working here, I remember that I had a half working day where I traversed the woods and meadows in Kingdom Come Deliverance. I was very impressed at how realistic the nature in the game was. And you can compare it, because the river Sazava was a place I traveled to when I was a child. It was beautiful to be able to return to this moment.

10) How, when and with what games did you first get acquainted with videogames?
It was the old i386, which we had at our summer cottage. I spent my childhood playing with it. I’d spend the long rainy days by playing classics like prehistoric, the cycles, wacky wheels, prince of persia and my favourite Dyna blaster.

11) What was your most touching video game moment?
I got very emotional over Mafia. We played on our grand dad’s computer, as we did not have a powerful machine at home. We had some up and down emotions with Mafia.
I would like to highlight these two moments:
1) The Happiest – after many hours of battling (without cheating) that famous race, I was able to finish it after so many tries when I crashed on the last banked turn.
2) The Saddest – “Mr. Salieri sends his regards”

12) Which class, gender, or type do you usually pick?
I don’t like magic - its conjuring, it costs mana, and I don’t like thinking of what type of spell is good against what type of enemy. I just like walking around and solving problems by brute force. So… Dungeons and no dragons AND no mana!!! Weeeeey!

13) Are there any videogames you repeat playing over and over again?
Definitely Mafia. I also like the Gothic series and the first game I played several times again and again is the Polish adventure, Agent Mlíčnak (Teenagent). I loved that game, but after all, it’s just an adventure and it doesn’t have much replay value. Although, I was quite young at that time and I really enjoyed it.
And so I’m thinking, ‘It’s’ been few year since I played it last… maybe it’s time to revisit this gem?’

14) What would a perfect game according to your wishes look like?
Frankly? It would be the same game we were just working on!

15) How do you relax after a hard day at work?
I like almost any sport. After work I like to play football (soccer). During the summer, I like to play Frisbee at a park. I like golf and I play amateur league in floorball. Often after work I play online games like Dota 2, CS:GO and even Rocket League, which we play with a colleague and we exchange many curses and laughs over Skype. Or, I go grab a bite at some Asian restaurant with a glass of wine.

16) Your favorite music playlist?
Chinaski! I love pop music like U2 and R.E.M. and I am also crazy for piano music. I’ll have to learn how to play it sometime.

17) Your favorite movie or book?
My most favorite book is The Martian from Andy Weir. Currently, I am finishing Silo from Hugh Howey (Wool), which I really like. The Martian was already made into a movie and it was not so bad, but the book was much better. Silo is being filmed right now.
From movies I like classics: Forest Gump and The Shawshank Redemption

18) Your travel tip?
If you like nature and cheap beer, definitely go down the river Sazava! It’s beautiful but sometimes there is not enough water in there… but there is always enough beer.

19) What was your greatest mistake?
For this I would turn to my brother. He spent an awful lot of time sitting in front of the computer and did nothing else than “script” his own servers for GTA and World of Warcraft. And I always chided him for not doing something else. I told him that doing this won’t be good for anything. But that was where I was wrong, because that is the reason he got a job at Warhorse as a scripter, where he is (by his own word) happy.
And even though he is my younger brother I feel he overgrown me in many ways and for that I am really proud of him!

20) Do you have a Bucket List?
I have. I need to travel so that I can check off going to Alaska. I can check that I have my own vacuum cleaner.

21) Is it possible to buy you with candy?
I suppose that I could define myself as a bitch for sweets. In my last job where I had a position as IT support, whenever my female colleagues wanted something they “paid” me with a cake or with a candy, which they had a full drawer of. Our boss at Warhorse is constantly motivating us to work overtime by bringing us some sweet or salty delicacies.
It’s really a nice gesture but I also gained some weight over the last half of this year.

22) How do you like living in the Czech Republic?
I wouldn’t change where I live! For example, I help my friend with a web page for his project to help the slow lorises in Indonesia (www.kukang.org). Whenever he comes here and we have pint of beer, he talks about what it’s like to live there. Thanks to that, I know that we are living more than well in Czech. Moreover, the nature here is beautiful and so are the girls, so why should I go somewhere else?

23) Imagine you are a cake, what kind of cake are you?
I would be a jelly cake with fruits!

24) You have to fight in medieval times… who are you, which weapon do you choose and why?
I am Henry and I will kill you with my bare hands! Why? Because hand-to-hand combat deals more damage than a sword. (Oh yes, one of the many bugs I have witnessed)

25) Knights or Samurai?
Knights!

26) If you could say something to the fans of Kingdom Come: Deliverance, what would it be?
Look forward to our game, it´s going to be a hit! And cross your fingers for us before the release, so we will catch all the bugs in there. They really are some sneaky bastards!

Do you have any questions to Jaroslav “Jantoš” Antoš? Just ask here.

[DrFusselpulli]

Now you can read Jaroslavs answers to your community questions:

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

I’m very interested to know what hardware configuration you use to test the game?

My computer specifications are as follows: Intel i7-2600 3.4GHz processor, 32GB RAM, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960 graphics card, I believe this is a pretty good combination for any gaming computer.
Unfortunately, at the same time as running the game, we are simultaneously running analysis and debugging tools which are very demanding on computer memory. However the latest improvements in optimisation software are really helping us to run the game more smoothly.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Please describe the bad side of the job

The most irritating problem in the job of every tester is when you come across a bug that is not easily reproduced again. When this happens you have no choice but to play the same segment of the game over and again until you are eventually able to locate the bug . This is no fun at all and eats heavily into the time of every tester.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Who decides in the end,… this is a balance problem, this is a feature, this is a bug or we can´t fix this problem?

We record each and every bug into our tracking system, with a detailed description. The eventual decision is left up to management based on our feedback in collaboration with leaders of the relevant departments.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Is it possible to make an open world game without bugs?

YES! At least we in Q.A. believe in that…
However, being honest it´s too complicated to try to recreate every possible option that could occur in the game. Playing the game every day means you become oblivious to things you should notice immediately. We are trying to prevent these situations by allocating the same work task to a variety of testers.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

After release will you play the game? Do you enjoy watching people play the game?

I love watching people playing our game. To see how they approach quests or test the game mechanics from a different angle, is very helpful for me in writing reports and providing feedback.
Very often I watch someone else playing the game and I make a note of his/her way of solving a task. I realise just how important it is to see the game from a different point of view, in order to notice bugs I would not otherwise have found playing it by myself. Mainly you discover how some players are clever and resourceful, for example how they were able to cross the Beta barrier.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Will you make a video channel, with tips and tricks for playing KCD?

I’m not thinking about that really. I’m more than happy to share my knowledge through the forum or via chat, so best I leave this to more skilled players or YouTubers.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Do you provoke ununsual situations just to see if realistic or if not then at least believeable behavior of NPCs is seen on screen? For example standing a whole at a spot just to see whether torches or fires are being lit/extinguished by NPCs?

Prompting unusual situations is our daily bread. The majority of the time our game is well configured for normal situations and normal interaction with a player. And yes, a part of our job in Q.A. is also observing the game environment while it’s free from a player´s interference. Today for example I´m testing the animation and alignment of the daily home routine of an NPC.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

How do you react when you see clipping errors?

Well, I really don´t like them. Most of the time it’s just about moving an object or another minor interaction. I tend to focus on crucial tasks, but those minor issues shouldn’t be overlooked and still need to be reported.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

In percentage, how many bugs do you have discovered and how many of your discoveries have been fixed?

Good question! Recently I made a small recheck of my work and found that 99% of all reported bugs has already been fixed or is currently in the process of being fixed.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Are the reportings from the Beta still valid or are the reported bugs not in the dev version anymore?

It´s amazing that players are still reporting bugs in Beta to us. But we check reports on daily basis to see if any new bugs have shown up. For some time now we have been getting duplicate feedback on already fixed bugs – nevertheless we want people to go for it, just in case we find that one bug that everyone had missed.

[DrFusselpulli]

Joanna “Asia” Nowak does have a very unique and very special job here at Warhorse Studios, as she is our Historical Consultant. She was born in Bydgoszcz, in Poland and joined Warhorse shortly after our Kickstarter campaign in the beginning of 2014.
Do you have any questions to Joanna “Asia” Nowak? Just ask here.
You can find a Spanish translation of this interview here.

1) Where can we usually find you lurking in the holy halls of Warhorse?
Most of the time I am in our Dark Cave, full of artists, but I often fly to other departments to check out some information and spy on some news.

2) How did you hear about Warhorse?
Kuba Holik had already presented you my story here in the Weekly Torch, so I can only add a few details.
Before I started working at Warhorse, I had a good, well-paid job at a big international company, but I needed something different. I was looking for something more aligned with my education and my personal interests, giving me more satisfaction and visible influence on the “final” product. Suddenly, Kuba and I were talking about where I could try to use my knowledge and skills and he said that Warhorse actually wants to extend their team; to get new concept artists and a researcher/historical consultant who would be able to advise, explain, and prepare a database of references for creating a realistic game. I was skeptical about the whole thing because I was afraid they would misjudge me due to my relationship with Kuba and I thought that they would not find me Czech-enough to do the job.
Luckily, until my interview day, Kuba did not tell anyone that we were actually acquainted.
Dan and Štepán Janik (former Concept Art Lead) greeted me with many interesting questions and I talked about my strengths - language skills, experience and knowledge in the field of history, art, conservatory works, and software, which is essential for game development.
I had an interview in August 2013 and started working officially (helped a little in between) in March next year (2014). They must have appreciated my patience, because I risked everything and I quit the job before the kickstarter, so when the first backers showed their support I was totally drunk from happiness and excitement. It was at this moment that I knew I was ready to do something great.

3) Describe your position. What is it about being a Historical Consultant?
I am a universal soldier but mostly I’m responsible for historical consultations, gathering text, and visual information that can (BUT DOES NOT HAVE TO) be an inspiration for our game. I work every day with many people from other departments like environment, script, characters, language, music, art, etc.
Moreover, I manage localization for some languages and I give technical and content-related support. In the past, I was also regularly destroying the old diet habits of my workmates by bringing them cakes and cookies… vegan cakes and cookies. They have never complained…

4) Have you ever work on Videogames before?
This is my first job in the videogame world. Previously, I worked in field of preservation and conservation of the heritage (mainly architecture), software management, organization of events, and in some jobs I was mainly using my language and software skills.

5) What is your favorite team activity?
My favorite team activity is hanging out with Warhorsians in the summer for a beer. In the winter we are stuck in pubs and they are not big enough for us, especially after midnight. Some of us also like to take a leap in the river during our meetings and it’s pretty hard to do that in the tavern. I also dislike the smell of food in Czech’s restaurants and I don’t like coming back home when it is below 0°C. So winter drinking is not my thing.

6) What is your favourite historical piece of clothing in Kingdom Come Deliverance?
Oh, this is so obvious. There are few brigandines that look so dramatic that I cannot help myself from giving them a big like. I bet all of you love it.

7) Who would be your favourite King: Wenceslaus IV. or Sigismund and why?
Interesting question. Thank you that I do not have to choose between the poor horse or the ducks. Regarding the crazy brothers, it is pointless to make a choice. Dr. Vlček did a pretty detailed analysis of the bones of the Luxembourg family some decades ago and it still scares me how similar the truly were. They were both addicted to wine and they both had bad teeth, ulcers, bones problems and more. Moreover, according to the chronicles they both spent too much money and they both had a bad temper. Not really attractive to me….
Considering their date of birth (Wenceslaus IV - 26.02, Sigismund - 14/15.02) they both had low self-esteem, manic depression, felt unloved and were lonely, all while having their dark days. On the other hand, they both did know how to enjoy down-to-earth privileges like good food, night parties, baths and they had tons of lovers. Wenceslas had good taste in fashion and he admired artwork. Sigismund was fond of music, dramas, and long discussions.
Although some claim that Wenseclas was a passive ruler and a weak leader, I am pretty sure he clearly was not interested with his responsibilites. He proved that when he truly wanted something, he got it, just like his stubborn brother - Sigismund. This is why it is difficult for me to choose either one.

8) What is the most difficult part of your position?
The most difficult part is to sense when my colleagues (designers, artists, scripters) really want my advice or not. Sometimes they dig into details and wish to have things very historically accurate (which of course is still a statement that no researcher or academic worker would take for granted) or they just wish I could confirm (or Dan’s fav method – NOT deny) something they have made (or made up). I am lucky to have an artistic and humanistic educational background so I can convince myself to create some ideas and visual concepts, even if the rational me disagrees with it.
So please, get rid of this image of a historical consultant who just puts it all on a plate while the rest of the team listens to him and then copies the designs from some books. It does not work this way. Each on of us interprets. Even I, when I write or paint or sing, it is MY interpretation of something. This is the main difference between us and early medieval artists - there is never one truth, one reality.
We had an ambition to investigate every detail and to be stricter about that, but we are limited by time, money, and the amount of people engaged in the project. Imagine how many archaeologists and specialists in a particular field (ceramic, medieval paintings, iconology, heating systems) anthropologists, geologists, sociologists etc. would have to work for Warhorse. I know personally how strenuous and time consuming it is to do proper research, analysis, and provide it to others, not-to-metion all the questions and doubts that it causes instead of giving just the answers.

9) How does the community influence your work?
Community makes me jump from happiness and feeds my ulcers to grow in my stomach. It inspires and motivates me to extend my knowledge.

10) Describe your usual day at the studio?
Usually after 4 hours of sleep, good training, travel with metro, and more than 100 steps up to the 5th floor of Forum Karlín, (where Warhorse is located), I enter the office around 7am. As a nocturnal animal, I avoid turning on any lights and I vanish into the darkness of the Art department. Paja is usually already there (our graphic artist), Marty and Matěj and Petr and Radek also arrive early (AI guys and programmers). While I switch on my computer, comb my hair, and get all my stuff from my backpack, I check our current level of happiness, discuss the sorrows (and more) with the early birds. Afterwards, we all go for the first morning coffee/tea/water tank or we get a bowl of cereal or apples.
There are some Warhorsians that are already in the kitchen munching on breakfast, prepared by wonder woman - Mrs Hanka or Lucka, wife of Václav, our video editor.
Then I dive into answering the questions from different departments, translations and I check or read the changes in script, give consultations, while randomly stuffing guys (and buying them) with the cakes I bring. Here and there I fight with my eyelids terribly, wanting to cover my eyes, but thanks to my jolly colleagues jumping, whistling, shouting, sending some messages on skype, asking strange questions, singing and ringing our doorbell, I continue to work until the sun goes down until I feel I can no longer see anything clear or I start speaking Polish.

11) What are you currently working on?
I am currently working on translating a variety of languages, proofreading the scripts, and polishing codex.

12) What are some of your notable accomplishments?
Not killing myself and not killing Dan… or a few others… Colleagues…
Becoming resistible to jokes about vegans, women, Poles.
Having a coat hanger in our artistic cave…
A few other things… like the reconstruction of an architecture in our medieval world, especially the Sazava monastery, the preparation of huge pictures and the text database, making graphics to remove some crazy things. I am also very happy each time some of the concept artists (Simon, Tom, Miki, Milan, Arash and Pavel) use one of my suggestions and then we work on the suggestion together. They are super talented and creative, but also stubborn, so this is an accomplishment!

13) What do you like the most about Kingdom Come: Deliverance?
Being Dr Frankenstein and bringing back something to life… and fireflies!

14) How do you relax after a hard day at work?
I keep myself in motion – I run, I dance, I do HIIT trainings, I walk, I do something out of something old and useless, I play with my cats, sing, paint, read and learn new languages. Occasionally, I bake.

15) Your favourite music playlist?
I have synesthesia, which means when I see a word or hear it I combine it with certain colors, tastes, or sounds. The world around me is very intense. Like, you say “Tuesday” and I hear deep, lower sounds of a bass key and a violet color of letters. Therefore, I like many kinds of tunes just as much as color nuances, from classical music to stoner rock or progressive metal…

16) Your favorite book?
Patrick Süskind “Das Perfume”, Little Nicholas (Le petit Nicolas) series by René Goscinny and all books by Andrzej Sapkowski, Kurt Vonnegut or Filip Springer.

17) What species is your spirit animal?
Fire Tiger and Capricorn. And Panda.

18) How do you like living in the Czech Republic?
The more I travel, the more I appreciate Czech Republic.

19) Knights or Samurai?
Afro Samurai and Panda Samurai for sure.

20) If time-travel would be possible, to which era would you go?
To Ancient Greece - full of sun, art, music, God’s powers, and breakthrough discoveries.

21) What was your favourite subject and your most hated one at school?
I loved everything except for philosophy and have always aimed to be the best at everything. Maths, languages, art, chemistry, geography, music, sports, biology, literature and history, you name it. All top grades. I took part in many competitions, did some projects and just enjoyed learning new stuff. I still do. That is why I am so happy to do what I do.

22) If you could say something to the fans of Kingdom Come: Deliverance, what would it be?
As some of my colleagues already have said, a very big thanks to all of you. Backers, fans, co-workers, advisers… I am glad that not only will you judge the final result, but you will also judge our steps and efforts that we put into this project.

Do you have any questions to Joanna “Asia” Nowak? Just ask here.

[DrFusselpulli]

You had a lot of very interesting questions for our Historical Consultant Joanna “Asia” Nowak and she took her time to answer them all, take a look:

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

What way does Catholic Poland view Czech Reformation in general and Hussite wars in particular?

Hi Snejdarek, I wish I could answer your question, but I fear not many Poles are interested in this matter. So I cannot provide you a general view. But, of course academics are comparing some theories and discoveries between Poland and the Czech lands, especially during middle ages. So far, thanks to Andrzej Sapkowski and his Hussite’s trilogy there is paid more attention to this topic. I doubt however, that there is some deeper understanding in these events, just some curiosity.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

What kind of understanding regarding today’s 90% atheism rate in the Czech Republic is there in Poland?

Czech Republic consisting of 90% (really? Percentage based on…?) atheists does not have an influence on everlasting love Poles declare towards Czechs.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Why didnt you like philosophy?

HI Sigmund, Because I had it as an obligatory, extra classes in my high school years and while having ca.40h a week of all, it was hard to make debate at 3 pm., after 7 hours of lessons… I have started learning this at wrong time

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

How much time do you spend in archives?

Thanks to wonderful digitalization of many medieval source materials, I can read many of them, while staying in the office. Usually, the information, required from other departments, has to be delivered immediately, so I cannot do a typical, individual research with visit in some archives.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

How hard was it for you to find documents and facts about everyday life in medieval Bohemia?

It is very easy. In Prague there are wonderful libraries, institutes and researchers willing to share these materials with me. Also, as I have mentioned above, many documents are already digitalized and access is for free.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Whats your favourite romanesque/gothical cathedral?

I like the cathedral in Aachen (Germany) and Archcathedral Basilica of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary and St. Andrew in Frombork (Poland).

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Sorry if it sounds agressive, did you study history or history of art? Since you worked in some cool jobs like conservation ?

No problem, I even clearly want to underline it that I am not a historian. I studied preservation of old architecture, which included gaining knowledge in architecture, building engineering, historical studies, art history studies, technical and computer graphic, philosophy, elements of museology and many, many more. Additionally, I have mgr (M.A.) in Art History.
Of course studying history (esp. European) profoundly, is unavoidable for good understanding of art, especially the matters of preservation and conservation of architecture.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Who would be your favourite King: Wenceslaus IV. or Sigismund and why?
Do you have a advice for books or exhibitions about this two guys and why they where liked or disliked by some folks at their time, why these brothers acted as they did.

Hi Waldkauz, for me personally, neither Wenceslaus nor Sigismund is a favourite one.
Sigismund is claimed to be known as more successful one. In the matter of political achievements etc.
Last year, there were wonderful exhibitions and events connected with celebration of anniversary of Charles’s IV birthday and coronation. It happened to be an ignition for presenting some historical aspects of life at that time and Luxembourg family. I definitely recommend studying the catalogues and publications, which were published in relation to these projects. Anyway, many publications have appeared in recent years, but of course most of them are in Czech.
If you wish to have some tips, please send us an email and I will provide you some titles.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

I’m also curious about the intro discussion about the political situation in KCD at the tavern. Will it explaine why Wenceslaus was expected to go on to be crowned as emperor?And why his unwillingness to become emperor created anger?

Regarding introduction of the political matters in KCD…heh… It will be Dan Vavra’s point of view, based on historical facts, but with his own interpretations.
If some things stay unexplained, we will try to extend that in our Codex.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

So I know that the events, the location, the props, weapons and clothing have all been modelled close to the historical reality, likely thanks to your counsel. Now I am wondering, how much did you have your hands in creation of the NPCs?

Hi, I laughed a bit, when I read your questions, because, even if I wished it hard, allllllll NPC and main characters are designed by Designers, especially by Dan. I have tried to provide some details regarding historical figures, but I am not sure, if they have influenced Dan’s image, already painted in his head
However, I admit, that often we have discussed the script, the way somebody acts, how he looks. Just not always the historical accuracy was interesting and easy enough to be used in Kingdom Come Deliverance.
So, like with everything in our game, we made some compromises. Sometimes my advices were taken, sometimes not, other time they were modified… I think, in some cases it is great, that designers made things all up. I can even bet, that you will not be able to find out all their manipulations – they are so fancy.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

What are your main sources of information on historical material, architecture, clothing, agriculture, weapons, armor, etc for the game?

Hi Scott2978, I usually start with checking our database, where we have millions of GB of books, researches, articles and visual materials. The latest ones do have a higher value, but I do not underestimate some remarks from older materials. I build an opinion and also go through online archives, libraries and portals like jstore or academia.edu, papers from Czech Universities or information from people I know, from years of experience, they are specialists in some fields of expertise. If I still have a doubt, I write directly to someone, compare, compare and compare. Then I have to make a decision.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Do you often search for answers from multiple sources to compare the opinions? What source is your favorite and why?

I love old German encylopedias and literature from the 19th century, especially regarding studying the medieval remains (not yet changed into neogothic legends etc.). They also include information, which might have been lost later during the first and and second worldwar. This is very helpful in finding some more details regarding some architecture, political relations and customs. And language!
I never believe one source, so there have to be at least few regarding one topic, even if some are taken from e.g. priest or some medievist-amateur.
Still I do not believe anyone, because as I have already written in my Weekly Torch interview – all is someone’s interpretation

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

During your work, did you have to browse into any historical fechtbuch? Books like Cod.HS.3227a (Hanko Dobringer) or Oettingen-Wallerstein Cod. I.6.4o.2 (so called Codex Wallerstein)? Will be possible to see one of these or similar books in game? We know there are books, we know that letters are most likely shuffled, because we must learn how to read first. But we don’t know what we can find (on the second thought, maybe i dont want to know, so I can be surprised )

Hi RailBalco, yes I had to browse a lot of medieval books, letters and documents. What exactly we will have in KCD to read – let it be a surprise for you!

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

How about Codex Gigas? How about to make it kinda easter egg, hidden in Sázava monastery?

We are working on it

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Have you read “Husitská epopej” by Vlastimil Vondruška? If yes, what do you think about it? Very first chapters are taking place in very same era as KCD, maybe we will be able to see in Kingdom Come very same historical events from books, but described by someone else, from different angle?

I do respect Vlastimil Vondruska as an author of very successful books, but he is very well juggling with information, to make it more interesting for a reader. I think he knows much more that what he has to reveal or serve to the public

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Do you have your favorite place on in game map? Which one?

I like running through the forest. Here and there.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Have you found in during your studies for the game, graphical evidence, be it wood-engravings, illiustrations, tapestry, effigees (esp, donor figures) or textual information for a dedicated accoutrement for caring axes (no not the belt itself but a dedicated accoutrement, worn at the belt)? My earliest findings are from the 16th century, it was a wood engraving of either Dürer or Burkmaier but I don’t find the picture of it anymore.

Hi, I will have a look what we got. Send us your email, so I can share more details.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

What kind of books did you used, of course the “Kroje, zbroj a zbraně doby předhusitské a husitské” from Eduard Wagner, Zoroslava Drobná, and Jan Durdík I presume but could you give a list of other books of this caliber, which you have used. Of course a list of codices would also be appreciated at some point of time?

Hi, well the list would be pretty long as I use Czech, English, French, German and Polish books mainly, so please send us your email and I will provide it to you in separate email.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Have you found something interesting, stumbling in your research?

Oh yes, a lot of things. I loved to read about dyeing and textile in general and find all the substances they used for getting a colours, they even could not named!
Moreover, the history of the camel in Plzen’s coat of arms was interesting to me, because it has got a Polish accent.
Then facts about the bodies of the Luxembourg family, of the life in a monastery (secret details from Sasau!), of customs and preys during the year, attitude towards animals… I also extended my knowledge regarding each craft – from the baker to a tanner, how the executioner’s job was different for what we believe in… Really, countless information. Especially when you, fans, are writing to us, that something was or was not, I always dig in the subject and mostly have some new arguments to the discussion etc.etc.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Will you publish eventual results of your research, if you found enough to release a paper?

No, I will never agree to do so. I am searching information about everything for the game, commercial purpose. This means I cannot give one thing, aspect, subject a proper amount of time. I do my own researches and I know how many years of work it requires to establish enough material and arguments to proof or suggest some thesis. Repeating – true or speculation – from another is the worst what people can do in academic society. And I read many articles and documents, that literally copy someone’s else work. I despise this kind of action.
But if I am going to work on some specific subject for longer time and truly find something new or in contradiction to current state of research, I will think about a publication of an article.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Will you publish the sources you have used at some point of time. I would be very interessted.

It is impossible to embrace all the sources and I guess pointless.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Will you publish photos of effiges, tapesty or illustration (first hand sources) at some point in the future. I think scientifically interessted persons would love to see evtl. rare findings.

_No, we cannot hire a group of archaeologists and academics to organise and do years long research. _
This is a job for some professional institutions and universities.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

What is the status of the scabbards and straps (for shields and quivers)? If they are not there in the game yet (presumably from the latest live stream) what is your opinion of this IMHO situation that there are no scabbards and straps in the game albeit small details like the correct color of carrots and chicken are considered?

There will be scabbards and straps, no worries
IMHO, of course I would make some other decisions regarding accuracy of few things, aspects in the game. But it this is a game made by more than 100 of people. A result of collective effort to bring something new to live. Those, who made their choices had enough struggles and there will always be someone, who will disagree with us. There are no fixed: equations or recipes or requirements to make one and only good decision. So please, be tolerant and understanding. It is very challenging to make each step in developing this game.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

What can you tell me about bucklers in Kingdom Come Deliverance? Are they implemented? If they are, do we get the cool bucklers with spikes on them as well?

Hello Cr4aydave, no, unfortunately we could not include these in our game due to time limit and technical issues.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

What would like to tell about Henry like a person. Do you like him or do you have some other favorite character(nemusíš psát jména je to tajemství)

Hi Vojtroslav, well Henry is not my favourite one. My favourite character is actually a historical figure, a very talented…. Engineer Hope you will like it too!

[DrFusselpulli]

Silvia Wipfler is responsible for the german translation of Kingdom Come Deliverance. She was born in Graz in Austria. As she works from her home, you will not find her in the Studio, although she is a Warhorse member.
Do you have any questions to Silvia Wipfler? Just ask here.
You can find a Spanish translation of this interview here.

1) How did you hear about Warhorse? How/When did you join?
I met Toby, the PR Manager, in Poland at the Poznan Game Arena. We had a chat and becasue I’ve localised two other games (both from Czech studios, by the way), he sent me a sample. Well, obviously Warhorse liked my translation and I’ve been on board ever since.

2) Describe your position. What is it about being a translator?
I’m responsible for the German localisation of the game. Apart from translating, editing, and proofreading, I look for story glitches, report issues, work on our glossary, and do research. I ensure that the characters have individual speech styles and that they are maintained throughout the game. The speech styles are as distinct as the characters; they range from peasants, merchants, artisans to noblemen and women. I’m always trying to keep up the medieval atmosphere and I’m also coordinating the German translation team being the creative lead, so-to-speak.

3) Did you ever worked on Videogames before?
Yes. I’ve translated other titles like the Cyberpunk RPG Dex by Dreadlocks Ltd. Before that, I worked as an editor for an Austrian game magazine.

4) Please describe one of your colleagues or your department:
I’m working together with so many talented people, so let me introduce the best translation team in the world: Maxi Lange, Philipp Kolleritsch und Bernhard Trecksel. They are skilled, reliable and it’s a pleasure to work with them! I also work closely with Joanna Nowak, our Historical Consultant and Localisation Manager. As you’ve probably read in last week’s Weekly Torch, she’s a linguistic genius and she always supports us with her vast and invaluable knowledge about the Middle Ages. Without her the localisation would never run so smoothly and we probably would have descended into chaos a long time ago.

5) What are you currently working on?
I’m working on some of the side quests, mainly as an editor. This means I read the German translation, compare it to the English version and I make sure that the style is appropriate. If a character appears in another quest and speaks a bit differently than usual, I correct these lines, trying to keep everything consistent.

6) What do you (really) like the most about Kingdom Come: Deliverance?
The rough language. I love putting in wonderful words like Hundsfott, Auswurf or Galsterweib. So be prepared, German speakers!

7) How, when and with what platform or game did you first get acquainted with videogames?
With my cousin’s NES. My first own gaming device was a GameBoy Color with Pokemon Yellow: Special Pikachu Edition. God, I’ve spent ages playing that game!

8) What was your most touching video game moment?
Shadow of the Colossus was the most touching game I’ve played so far. Every time I had to kill one of these wonderful beasts, it felt as if I was selling a part of my soul. Well, as it turned out, the main character’s fate wasn’t that different …

9) Which videogame character or figure is the best?
Geralt of Rivia. He’s such a hunky badass.

10) Which class, gender, or type do you usually pick?
A female elven spellcaster, if possible.

11) Which videogame character are you?
Spyro the dragon (in the original PS1 games). He’s tiny, lively, always running around, and admittedly also a bit pesky. He’s eager, motivated, and probably as impatient as me. He’s basically me in the guise of a dragon! And purple. I love purple.

12) Are there any videogames you repeat playing over and over again?
Pokemon - I’m a first gen. fan so-to-speak. I simply love these creatures and being a Pokemon trainer in real life would be soooo epic. I also went back to World of Warcraft again, if that counts. How could I not? Illidan is finally back and practically got his own expansion!

13) How do you relax after a hard day at work?
Functional training or trail running. When I’ve got the time, I also go running with the dogs at the local animal shelter. I love being outside and I need a certain amount of physical activity to stay happy and healthy.

14) Your favorite movie or book?
That’s tough! I have to name a few books: Harry Potter, 1984, the Witcher Novels by Andrzej Sapkowsi, the WoW novels by Richard A. Knaak and The Walking Dead Comics.
Movies/TV-Series: Fight Club, The Dark Knight, Pitch Black, Game of Thrones, Nikita, Dark Angel

15) Your travel tip?
Prague! It’s a great city: beautiful buildings, castles, and lots of green areas. And it’s cheap!

16) What is your weakest trait?
My impatience. Seriously, I’d rather walk 15 minutes to the next bus station rather than waiting 1 minute for that bus to arrive.

17) What was your favorite subject and your most hated one at school?
My favorite subjects were Sports, Arts, and English. I really hated Italian, as I’ve never wanted to learn that language. However, I partly owe it to my good English skills, as I used to read English novels under the table. My grades in History? You wouldn’t want to know! I was too bored at school to care, so I had pretty bad grades.

18) If you could say something to the fans of Kingdom Come: Deliverance, what would it be?
Thanks for all the support! We’re so happy that so many people are joining us on this journey. And for our German speaking players: Ich hoffe, ihr werdet die deutsche Übersetzung mögen. Ich und mein Team geben unser Bestes, um euch gut geschriebene, vielseitige und vor allem derbe Dialoge zu liefern. Hoffentlich habt ihr beim Zocken genau so viel Spaß wie wir beim Übersetzen!

Do you have any questions to Silvia Wipfler?Just ask here.

[DrFusselpulli]

here are Silvias answers to your community questions:

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Czech beer, german beer or no beer?

I guess some of you might want to lynch me for that, but I’m not a beer drinker at all. I’m more into a good old whiskey and mead. In Austria apiculture is still relatively wide-spread and you can buy high quality mead, honey and other products from local producers.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Nice Galsterweib. I never heard this word and had to google the meaning.
I like that there will be individual speech styles. You mentioned peasants, merchants, artisans to noblemen and women. How about craftsman with some technical jargon or spouting priests?

I’m glad that you liked googling Galsterweib! And yes, I’m trying to include some old words, when I see fit.
There are several craftsmen in the game, but the technical jargon will be relatively limited. They will only give Henry detailed descriptions of their trade when it makes sense. But you will find some uncommon artisanry like “Striegler”.
Priests and monks were educated people, so they will use high register of course. Some words and prayers will even be in Latin.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

How do you deal with lack of German as “other” language in the German version of the game?
How do you project the Czech-Geman tensions when Czechs are speaking German in your language version?

You’re right, there are Germans in the game and in Germany they are speaking German of course. But the tensions between them and the Czechs are still there and represented by the usage of eloquent and charming names like “Kackdeutscher”.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

OTOH, looking across the translation, there’s the bit of dialogue that is actually quite funny in the original:
“He was still sleeping when I went out”
“At this hour!? The blue-blooded idler”
“Well, it looks like he was out all evening drinking like a lord”
Unfortunately, the pun is lost completely in the translation.
Now I know, translating is never trivial, especially when it comes to playing with language as in the example above. So how do you go about it? Seeing how you’re basically working off an Excel document (that’ll be a sure way to stifle any creativity on the spot, in my book!), do you just translate line by line, or do you look at the bigger context, the flow of a dialogue and come up with something that retains the sense of the original, at the expense of the exact wording?

Yes, idioms are always a tricky thing because they are hardly ever the same in the target language. In this dialogue we are lucky that the pun is already foreshadowed with the word “blue-blooded”, so it didn’t get lost in translation. Generally it always depends on the situation. If an idiom conveys important information like in the snippet above and the German equivalent does not, I will translate the dialogue very freely and rewrite it, so that the meaning is kept.
I do work in Excel, but I’ve played the game and I know the plot and characters. Translating line by line without knowing the context is not uncommon, but for me it’s an absolute no-go! Keeping the meaning, flair and style can only be achieved if you’re translating creatively and freely and sometimes this means to rewrite certain lines and dialogues.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

You are only translating german-english. Have you experience with other languages?

I speak a little Russian and Japanese and the former has helped me once or twice, when certain character roles were in Czech for example or when I did some research on etymology. I found it very interesting that кикимора (Kikimora) is somehow related to the German Mahr or Alp.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Have you played the Beta to get a feeling for the game and the dialoges?Is KCD a kind of game you like to play? And if yes, will you play the game after release, or not, because you know every story twist?

Like I stated before, I did play the Beta and Kingdom Come: Deliverance is definitely a game I like. You are right though, I do know every story twist and dialogue, but I still want to see what it all looks like once the game is finished.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

How many hours will you need to translate all the dialoges (approximately)?

I cannot say how many hours it takes to translate all the dialogues, because I joined the team relatively early (a few months before the Beta was released) and I’ve worked on the game since then. The texts have been iterated and changed a few times and so has the translation. Having sad that, I also do a lot of other things beside translating, like research, updating the glossary, checking the consistence, reporting errors and story glitches, bothering the designers with questions…
I used to work alone, but since my three colleagues have joined me, I’m hardly ever translating myself. I’m basically the person who keeps it all together and ensures that the speech styles are consistent throughout the whole game, that the names and terms are correct and so on.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Will you voice act some parts? First translate the lines and then bring it to life…?

No, there are no plans that I will be voice acting. And to be honest, that’s better for the game, the players and humanity as a whole! My voice doesn’t sound so bad, but without training it would be pretty monotonous.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Do you know if there might be a middle high-german/czech localization?
Will there be a a mode with middle-high german subtitles?

A lot of people have asked me that and the answer is no. The game will be translated into standard, modern German and there is a good reason for it. Language evolves and changes over time and the German language is devided into three basic categories (I’m using German terms here):
- Althochdeutsch (~750-1050)
- Mittelhochdeutsch (~1050-1350)
- Neuhochdeutsch (~1350-now)
There are more categories of course, that further divide the language, like for example Frühneuhochdeutsch (~1350-1650), but you have to understand that these persiods are not set in stone and that there are regional differences. Some regions have adopted changes earlier, some later and you also have to keep in mind that there were severe differences between written and spoken language.
It would be an enormous if not impossible task to create a historically correct representation of the language that was spoken at that time. And even if we decided to use a written text like the Nibelungenlied as a template - which would not be a historically accurate representation of the language the people spoke - the players would have problems understanding the characters. Here’s a sample of the Nibelungenlied (Mittelhochdeutsch above, Neuhochdeutsch below):

Uns ist in alten mæren wunders vil geseit
von helden lobebæren, von grôʒer arebeit,
von fröuden, hôchgezîten, von weinen und von klagen,
von küener recken strîten muget ír nu wunder hœren sagen.

Eʒ wuohs in Burgonden ein vil edel magedîn,
daʒ in allen landen niht schœners mohte sîn,
Kriemhilt geheiʒen: si wart ein scœne wîp.
dar umbe muosen degene vil verliesen den lîp.

Uns wurde in alten Erzählungen viel Wundersames gesagt
von ruhmreichen Helden, von großem Leid,
von Freuden, Festen, von Weinen und von Klagen,
vom Kampf kühner Recken sollt ihr nun Wunder hören sagen.

Es wuchs in Burgund ein sehr feines Mädchen heran,
dass in allen Ländern kein schöneres sein konnte,
Kriemhild geheißen: Sie wurde eine schöne Frau.
Deswegen mussten viele Kämpfer ihr Leben verlieren. (Wikipedia)

As you can see, it’s pretty hard to understand the text and it would be impossible for us to translate the game into Mittelhochdeutsch. But if you want to read texts in Mittelhochdeutsch, there are plenty of books out there and if want to take a look at the handwritten original of the Nibelungenlied, please follow the link below, although you probably won’t be able to read it :
http://daten.digitale-sammlungen.de/~db/0003/bsb00035316/images/index.html?fip=193.174.98.30&seite=5&pdfseitex=

[DrFusselpulli]

Martin “Ziggi” Ziegler is one of our Technical Designers and he was already guest in our livestreams like the E3 Gameplay or the first quest. He was born in Prague in Czech Republic and joined Warhorse Studios shortly after the Kickstarter campaign in early 2014.
Do you have any additional questions to Martin “Ziggi” Ziegler? Just ask here.
You can find a Spanish translation of this interview here.

1) Where can we usually find you lurking in the holy halls of Warhorse?
My desk is in the scripter’s department. However, since I need to be in touch with a lot of people all around the studio, I’m running around quite a lot, or I’m sitting in a meeting.

2) How did you hear about Warhorse?
I learned about KC:D when it launched on Kickstarter. That was only several months after I finished my university studies, just when I was looking for an exciting project to join. When I heard about Warhorse, it all came together. I spoke with Tomáš Plch, who had supervised my thesis, until Viktor Bocan replied to me asking whether I would like to mediate between his scripters’ department and Tom‘s AI team. When I came in to do a test, there was neither a computer or a desk for me to do the test on, so I was sat down with someone’s 12“ laptop under a coat rack by the entrance door, presumably to prepare me for how punk this entire development actually is. I came on board two months later.

3) Describe your position. What is it about being a technical designer?
We are where the creative design ambitions meet the more technical development aspects. In the end, we’re here to make the entire game work together as a whole. It requires quite a well-rounded skillset, which is what makes it so attractive to me.

4) Please describe Warhorse Studios:
A picture is worth a thousand words:

5) What is your favorite team activity?
Developing badass openworld RPGs.

6) Describe your usual day at the studio.
I usually come in somewhat later than the early birds and then start the day with a sitrep of what everyone is currently up to within my department. After that, I try to move on with any work that I have on my plate at the moment, which may mean working on the AI scripts, on some internal tools that make our lives easier, or recently also on voiceovers/localisation, and/or wherever else I can help the best at the moment.

7) What are you currently working on?
My most important responsibilities are the openworld systems and mechanics, so I am now reviewing them one by one as we approach our release date to make sure that they will be in a solid shape when we will ship KC:D to the public. For example this week in particular, I am working on how NPCs react to player’s crimes, such as assaulting NPCs, stealing, etc.

8) What do you like the most about Kingdom Come: Deliverance?
For me, it’s an excellent case of how a whole can be larger than the sum of its parts. It’s an openworld RPG, an epic story, a virtual time travel experience, a tactical combat game, a history lesson, and a beautiful digital landscape all in one.

9) What do you think is the most important part in the game?
I think that the realism aspect is what holds the game together. The main storyline is a real historical event and the side quests tackle the social issues that people had at the time. This all takes place in a place that’s reconstructed based on a satellite map. Even very small details in our visual assets are meticulously well-researched. The music is a modern take on a music that would be contemporary to the time. Our combat is based on choices similar to how people had to think about combat in that historic period. We’re very ambitious with the AI in how much we try to simulate. Whatever we put in, we try to think about how that element actually works in reality and start there; we obviously need to compromise a lot, but the ambition to be realistic is what underlies it all and ties it into a coherent whole.

10) How, when and with what platform or game did you first get acquainted with videogames?
I was so little that I have no idea what the console was, but the game was a mono-color, top-down arcade where you first had to drive a firetruck on a highway to a burning building and then navigate the fireman on foot between the flames in order to rescue the victims. I think that the faster you were with the truck in the first stage, the more time you had in the second stage. It’s pretty much the earliest memory that I have at all.

11) What was your most touching video game moment?
Spec Ops: The Line was overall quite intense and it made me think.

12) What video game are you playing right now?
Darkest Dungeon. I haven’t played such a well-designed game in a long time.

13) Which class, gender, or type do you usually pick?
I almost exclusively prefer the longer-range classes, usually casters. I virtually never play melee-damage dealers; I just cannot ever get into their flow.

14) Are there any videogames you repeat playing over and over again?
I finished the original Deus Ex at least six times. I would like to say that it is because you can approach it in so many different ways, but I always end up playing it with pretty much the same build and I make pretty much the same story choices.

15) How do you relax after a hard day at work?
I develop my own small games in my spare time. That may seem like a bizarre way to relax after a day spent developing KC:D at the studio, but developing small, well-focused games actually really does help me to relieve the stress of working on the huge, 5-year, 100-man, wild beast that Kingdom Come: Deliverance is. Other than that, I work out and I love to travel and read.

16) Your favorite music?
Pixies.

17) Your favorite movie or book?
Fight Club and Lost in Translation.

18) Do you have a Bucket List?
I’d like to travel around the world at some point.

19) Is it possible to buy you with candy?
French pastries certainly do increase your chances.

20) Who is your favorite historic character?
Aristotle, Émile Zola, and David Bowie came to my mind as an answer most quickly.

21) If you could say something to the fans of Kingdom Come: Deliverance, what would it be?
Thank you; we really wouldn’t be able to work on KC:D without you.

Do you have any additional questions to Martin “Ziggi” Ziegler? Just ask here.

[DrFusselpulli]

Now Martin “Ziggi” Ziegler answered your community questions

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Can we get to play your small games somewhere?

The most recent ones are a board game and a card game, so unfortunately not really. I would like to upload more games over to itch.io when I have the time to polish them.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Seriously, I have to know. What is the Badassness check?

Badassness is a number that we use to express how brave, well-equipped and overall combat-ready each NPC is. We use it to drive many decisions, such as whether someone will run when they see you do a crime, or rather will engage you themselves.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

What happens after the NPS have watched the crime. After some minutes, did they return to their work and and “forget” this incident? And everything is like before? Most games do it this way, but is quite unrealistic.

When the situation is resolved, they will return to their usual activities, which I don’t even think is that unrealistic. Your reputation with them will have been lowered, so their future reactions toward you may change.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

If you are bad at stealth (in a banditcamp), and the bandits raise an alarm, will they also wake up all the sleeping bandits, to search you?

Yes, NPCs within camps raise an alarm, which calls nearby NPCs to help them resolve the situation. This also wakes NPCs up, in case they’re asleep

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

If they don´t find you, will they stay alarmed “forever”?

They will cool down in a while, and return to their routines.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

Is the vision of the NPC limited by darkness or bushes? Can you hide in the dark? Is there an indication/indicator if you are visible, or not? If you are useing a torch, are you more visible?

Yes, everyone has worse vision during the night, which makes stealth easier. The luminosity of the particular position where you’re at also plays a role, but it is not explicitely indicated in the UI. The torch should work like you said, but I’ll have to check.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

How does the minigame pickpocketing work?

We haven’t showcased the pickpocketing minigame yet, so I can’t say too much, but it’s a pretty solid minigame that mixes incomplete information, time-pressure, and luck.

Weekly Torch - the barrel of questions

If you kill a bartender or a blacksmith, will another NPC respawn and do this job? If you kill everyone in a village, stays the village empty, or maybe,can bandits use this place as a hideout?

No, the NPCs do not respawn when they die.

[DrFusselpulli]

Luke Dale was born in Sheffield in England and came to Prague to work as an actor on Kingdom Come Deliverance in the role of Capon (or in Czech - Jan Ptáček), a young nobleman.
Do you have any questions regarding Luke Dale? Just ask here!
You can find a Spanish translation of this interview here.

1) How did you hear about Warhorse?
Well considering I am British and (unfortunately) haven’t played video games since being 16, I had never heard of Warhorse. But I was submitted for the role by my agent in London, and boom, the journey began.

2) Describe your usual day at the studio?
Each time I have been there it has been quite different, my favourite time visiting Warhorse was the week I spent filming the cut scenes. I had never before experienced motion capture so I was thrown in the deep end and I loved it. The scenes were fun to shoot and the team were great.

3) What do you like the most about Kingdom Come: Deliverance?
Every time I come I always feel totally welcome by the people that work there. I have always said it, the best part about the job has been working with everyone else.

4) Was this your first MoCap acting?
Yeaaaaah baby.

5) What is the main difference for an actor between acting for a video game compared to acting for TV or the theatre?
It’s a very, very odd mix of things with motion capture. There’s no audience, so you can’t feed off of anything. So in that way, it’s like TV. But then it completely doesn’t matter what I do with my face because no one will see that. So it’s odd. The best thing to do is to use your imagination as if it’s all happening for real and be as truthful as possible. (Although, miming water in the bath house proved to be tricky).

6) Can you describe your character a bit?
Oh Capon. He’s a teenager, so of course he’s still figuring out who he is and how he relates to the world around him. He’s testing things out, going too far. Which can make for hilarious situations. But as a member of the royal family it doesn’t earn him much respect. He’s moody, agitated, wants everything now and has a lot to learn about being a prince.

7) Playing some character from a foreign culture and time can be difficult, how did you get into your role?
I had help from the directors, but the main thing was to not worry too much and to approach the character as if it was me in those situations.

8) What was totally different than expected, when you worked on Kingdom Come Deliverance?
I didn’t expect the formality of T-Pose every time you start and stop the scenes. Let me tell you, after a few days of that, it gets a little old.

9) Do you remember any funny moments, being in your role?
There was a scene (which I’m told unfortunately hasn’t made it into the game). Where I recite Shakespeare to a girl in a tower, whom I supposedly “love”. And all the while Henry is looking out to make sure her father doesn’t catch us and kill us. That was pretty hilarious.

10) In a video game you are able to solve things in different ways. How does this combine with linear acting?
Well I do like the multi-option fate aspect of the game. It gives the player control over the world they’re in. This isn’t the case with any other form of entertainment really. It would be very satisfying for an actor to play out different endings to films, as much as it would be for the audience to choose the ending of a film or reaction of a character, who knows maybe that will happen?

11) What do you think about the late medieval period in Bohemia, now that you played a character from that time?
Whenever I think about any time prior to today, I do think how lucky I am to be alive now. We take for granted everything we have. Back then if you cut your finger and it got infected, you might die, and there was very little to be done. Other than chopping it off.
Also, the smells. Can you imagine how bad everyone smelled?

12) How, when and with what game did you first get acquainted with videogames?
I can’t remember what game I first played. Probably an ancient verison of Fifa 97 or something silly. But the games that stick out to me that I’ve played and loved are: Abe’s Odyssey, Runescape, Spider-man (a very early version) and Gears of War.

13) How do you relax after a hard day at work?
Watching a film or a documentary usually.

14) Your favorite music playlist?
Arctic Monkeys. We grew up in the same town and their music was the soundtrack to my youth.

15) Your favorite movie?
Best films ever are:
Nill By Mouth
Lord of the Rings (All)
Barney’s Version
Selfish Giant
Big Fish
Flashbacks of a Fool

16) Your travel tip?
Learn: Hello, Please & Thank you. AT LEAST.

17) What’s your guilty pleasure?
Surely I can’t tell the internet that!

18) Do you have a Bucket List?
I do, it’s very long. The biggest thing is to go to Norway. I don’t know why, I just like Norwegians.

19) What is your weakest trait?
I don’t always wake up early. And I should, it’s wasting time!

20) Knights or Samurai?
Knights

21) If you could say something to the fans of Kingdom Come: Deliverance, what would it be?
I really hope that you enjoy the game. I know how passionate and hard working the team are, so it would be a shame if you didn’t, but I’m pretty sure you guys are going to love it.

Do you have any additional questions to Luke Dale? Just ask here!

[DrFusselpulli]

Luke Dale is not available at the moment, but you will find his answers to your community questions here quite soon.