Czech game developer Warhorse Studios met with Korean fans officially for the first time during their visit to G-Star 2025. Warhorse Studios is the developer of the open-world RPG Kingdom Come: Deliverance, which previously garnered attention when news spread that users thirsty for a Korean translation had gathered to translate over 80,000 lines of text themselves. It is as if the bond that began with fan translation eventually led the developers to Korea.

In this interview, conducted for the first time since the success of 'Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2', Executive Producer Martin Klíma and Communications Director Tobias Stolz-Zwilling shared sincere stories about the Korean market, the community, and the studio's future direction. They expressed particular admiration for the active translation efforts within the Korean community. We met with Warhorse Studios Executive Producer Martin Klíma and Communications Director Tobias Stolz-Zwilling at the G-Star 2025 venue to discuss the Kingdom Come: Deliverance series and the fan community.

Tobias Stolz-Zwilling, Communications Director (Tobi): This visit is meaningful both personally and for the studio. I have visited Japan and China, but this is my first time in Korea. Looking back at the 'Kingdom Come: Deliverance 1' era, Korea already had a passionate fan community. The Korean fans even carried out translation work themselves. I am glad to be able to meet and greet you in person like this. I arrived in Korea yesterday evening, and I am planning to taste Korean barbecue today. Right next to me is Martin, the Executive Producer of Warhorse Studios. He is a more important person than I am.

Martin Klíma, Executive Producer (Martin): That is not necessarily true. Isn't the person who sells the product more important than the one who makes it? I am honored to be able to stand on the G-Star stage, and at the same time, I feel a great sense of responsibility.

Martin: This achievement makes us very happy and humble. This is because many players have invested their time and lives into our game. This success can be said to be beyond expectations.

Tobi: To add, we were not sure despite having developed it for a long time before release. Developers are always in an environment where they think, "It could be good, or it could not be." However, when we received the media's reaction and, more importantly, the players' evaluation in February, we could not help but be surprised by the explosive growth and response of the community. We thought it would be a good game, so we expected positive feedback to some extent, but we did not know it would show such a heated reaction. For example, the memes and SNS activities created by Korean fans are a case in point.

Martin: I have let go of all the stress. The pressure is always high during development, but the final DLC has been released and the game has left our hands.

Tobi: The previous work was also successful enough, but at the time, we felt a bit of a sense of crisis. Because no one knows what they expect. However, this time, everyone, including fans and media, had a certain level of expectation due to the previous work. This was a higher expectation than the previous work. That's why we couldn't be sure for a long time. Only after checking the results after the release did the stress disappear.

Martin: We released 3 types of DLC for the users. The last DLC was released in Korea on the 12th, and this DLC is the final additional content for Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2. It is difficult to disclose future plans.

Tobi: Warhorse Studios has made 'Community First' its core value. Our secret to success is also the direct and consistent communication with fans that has continued since the Kickstarter days. We tried to do game announcements, developer streaming, DLC, and events with the community. We try to stand in front of the community as human to human, not as anonymous developers. We meet, talk, listen, and try to reflect some of it directly if possible.

Although I cannot reveal our next move, I want to continue making RPGs. We have already proven our capabilities with two successes, and we have also established our own RPG writing style. Detailed information will be announced next year.

Martin: There are so many stories like this that we could talk for hours. To summarize, historical elements are important, but the verified history that can be shown in the game is only a part. The history of medieval Bohemia that we know is also only a part.

For the fun of the game, it is necessary to add some fiction. For example, it is unknown whether the weapons used in France were also used in 15th-century Bohemia. However, in terms of game design, presenting various weapons gives players pleasure. In this context, we presented various choices by highlighting the characteristics of each weapon. Even if it goes against historical research, if it expands the player's choice, I think it has value.

Martin: I don't think I am in a position to compare with other developers or give advice. Development is inherently a difficult task, and each developer is doing their best. Conversely, I would like to ask you a question. What do you think makes a good game?

(After the reporters' answers) Various answers came out from person to person. There are various criteria for a good game, such as diverse choices or narratives that lead to emotions. However, the more you add these elements, the more difficult optimization becomes. If you add just one thing, the optimization collapses quickly. So, we decided to secure enough time for optimization. After adding all the essential elements, we invested more than a year in verification. The result of spending so much time can be called a difference if it is a difference.

Martin: First, selling features that should be in the main game as DLC is unfair. I will first clarify that our existing DLC did not forcibly sell elements missing from the main game. Ideas that could not be included in the main game, such as the barber system or horse racing content, were added as free DLC after release.

The new DLC is characterized by being set in the Sedlec Monastery, a beautiful and magnificent medieval building, rather than a new system. Players will be able to encounter various problems and unique experiences trapped in this monastery.

Martin: It is a sound team of about 10 people. The recording was about 240 hours long, and we edited it in detail.

Tobi: For example, we went into the forest and recorded bird sounds ourselves, and invited medieval knight actors to record the sounds of actual weapons. We even recorded the sound of pulling a bow.

Martin: Realistic sound is just flat, so it doesn't sound exaggerated like a movie. We tried to capture the 'actual sound' of these various elements.

Martin: It is natural in the Czech Republic. The Czech Republic has always been caught between neighboring countries, invaded, interfered with, and experienced wars, forming a culture of enduring with satirical laughter. It seems that this Czech-style black humor resonated in Korea, which has a similar history.

Tobi: To point out, this is a secondary achievement created by the game. Even though we are not the Czech Tourism Board. This was a very unexpected achievement, but I see it positively. Because it is an element that shows how active the community is. I think it is lucky to have a community of this level.

According to a recent announcement by the Czech Tourism Board, I heard that visitors to Trosky Castle, the background of Kingdom Come: Deliverance, increased by 30% compared to last year. When a game acts as a cultural asset, I thought there was nothing more wonderful than that. Personally, I hope Korean developers also create works that contain history and culture like this. Wouldn't that be a new genre in itself?

Martin: I sincerely thank the Korean fans.

Tobi: I am very happy to come to G-Star. I remember that the community created the translation themselves during the Kingdom Come: Deliverance 1 era. I hope this visit will be some kind of reward. I hope we can meet again in Prague, Gutenberg, or even at next year's G-Star.