Warhorse Studios co-founder Daniel Vávra drew significant inspiration from The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim for the development of Kingdom Come: Deliverance, despite having previously authored a notorious, scathing critique detailing 100 reasons why he despised the Bethesda title.
From Scathing Critique to Creative Blueprint
During a recent Reddit AMA, studio content director Ondřej Bittner revealed that Skyrim served as a massive influence for Vávra. The irony is not lost on the team, as Bittner openly acknowledged the paradox: the game was a primary source of inspiration “even though he wrote a famous article where he listed 100 reasons that he hates about that game.” For context, Bittner noted that his own personal favorite in the genre remains Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines.
The Anatomy of a 116-Point Takedown
Vávra’s original critique of Skyrim remains a brutal assessment of Bethesda’s 2011 hit. His 116-point list meticulously dismantled everything from minor immersion-breaking details—such as the complete absence of toilets in the game world and merchants lacking basic supplies like lockpicks—to broader grievances regarding the game’s aesthetic and mechanical feel at launch.
Beyond the jabs at Todd Howard, the article provides a window into the development philosophy behind the Kingdom Come series. Vávra’s frustrations were largely rooted in logical inconsistencies: the weight discrepancies between raw materials and finished gear, the physics of armored characters floating in water, and the questionable AI behavior of NPCs who ignore home intruders. These observations highlight why Kingdom Come: Deliverance leans so heavily into rigid, grounded realism compared to its high-fantasy counterparts.
The “Toilet Metric” and Design Philosophies
Vávra’s critique also highlights a humorous, recurring theme: the importance of environmental detail. He recently suggested on social media that the inclusion of functional toilets in Crimson Desert is a definitive indicator of a “good game,” emphasizing his fixation on world-building consistency.
Beyond Skyrim: Other RPG Influences
The development team also drew lessons from other industry titans. Design director Martin Ziegler shared that the team long admired the “philosophy of Fallout: New Vegas and the older Fallout titles,” specifically regarding their systemic freedom. While the team chose to make Kingdom Come: Deliverance more restrictive to ensure quest coherence, the responsive nature of those classic RPGs remained a guiding light.
Looking ahead, the developers of Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 have remained tight-lipped regarding rumors of a Lord of the Rings project. However, they confirmed their focus remains on delivering an “immersive RPG rich with details” that aims to be significantly more stable than its predecessor.
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