Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 Boasts Impressive Performance on Consoles

Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 (KCD2) is poised to deliver a strong performance across PlayStation, Xbox, and PC platforms, offering players customizable settings to optimize their experience. Read on to discover how KCD2 performs across various platforms and settings.

Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2: Performance Across Platforms

Photorealism Powered by CryEngine

Early tests and reports paint a positive picture of KCD2's performance. PlayStation and Xbox consoles offer smooth gameplay at both 30fps and 60fps, with the PS5 Pro showcasing enhanced graphical capabilities. KCD2's unique photorealistic rendering, achieved using CryTek's CryEngine, sets it apart from many other titles.

Warhorse Studios' continued use of CryEngine, also employed in Kingdom Come: Deliverance 1 (KCD1), leverages the team's expertise and allows for significant feature enhancements in the sequel. PC Gamer highlights CryEngine's focus on performance through its old-school rendering techniques, prioritizing efficiency over sheer shader complexity and advanced lighting effects.

Despite this approach, KCD2 achieves stunning photorealism by utilizing physically based materials. Eurogamer notes that CryEngine's SVOGI (sparse voxel octree global illumination) convincingly simulates indirect light bounce, resulting in realistic lighting interactions with torches, metal reflections, and other in-game elements.

PlayStation and Xbox Console Options: 30fps and 60fps Modes

PS5 and Xbox Series X offer two modes: a fidelity mode (30fps at 1440p) prioritizing visual detail, and a performance mode (60fps at 1080p) emphasizing smoother gameplay. Xbox Series S exclusively features the fidelity mode. Conversely, the PS5 Pro offers a single 60fps mode at 1296p, upscaled to 4K using PSSR.

Fidelity mode enhances visuals on PS5 and Xbox Series X with increased foliage density and improved shadow casting, particularly benefiting outdoor scenes and ambient occlusion. The PS5 Pro further elevates the visual experience, building upon fidelity mode with sharper imagery, enhanced ambient occlusion, improved object detail, and superior overall image quality.

PC: Upscaling is Optional

As expected, PC players enjoy complete control over upscaling in KCD2, with options to tailor settings to their hardware. PC Gamer notes the limited upscaling choices: FSR and DLSS. XeSS (for Intel cards), sharpening options, and frame generation are absent.

Even with CryEngine's performance-oriented design, running KCD2 at 4K with maximum settings will still demand significant GPU power. However, the game's highly scalable graphics offer five quality presets (low, medium, high, ultra, and experimental), ensuring a playable experience across a wide range of hardware configurations.

KCD2 provides a comprehensive guide to help players prepare their systems, detailing CPU, RAM, GPU, and storage requirements.

Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 launches February 4, 2025, on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. Visit our Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 page for more details.