Warhorse Studios, the developer of the widely acclaimed historical game Kingdom Come: Deliverance, has made it known that their next title will be made with Unreal Engine 5 instead of CryEngine. The studio announced it on X with a quick post from its official account and allowed for instant and very intense discussions on the possible consequences of the change on both the technical and creative sides. This rare engine swap for a studio renowned for its thorough historical research could affect the creation and performance of new titles.

To cut a long story short, the replies were super interesting to read. Warhorse Studios, those guys who created the hyper-realistic, absolutely immersive medieval RPG Kingdom Come: Deliverance where you start off being nothing and no one, just announced that “A new game powered by Unreal Engine 5 is coming!” thru their twitter page! The replies were no shocker since the internet was already halfway to losing it.

To start off with, moving from CryEngine to UE5 is a massive shift without a doubt. Kingdom Come was on CryEngine and it was nice at that time, but also famous for being… let’s say it was kind to the environment regarding PC resources and not much on performance. So, it looks like the switch is not just on paper – everyone is raving about Unreal Engine 5 now, with its ultra-realistic graphics and high-tech lighting tools like Nanite and Lumen. But the gamers are not just looking at it as a tech upgrade. They are already picturing an upcoming disaster.

The comments are a wild mixture of fear, confusion, and, in certain instances, the culture war nonsense. For example, one user called AllAboutGaming is shrieking: “For heaven’s sake, no more UE5 garbage. All the games made with this engine are just performance disasters.” And you know what, the users somewhat have a point. We have witnessed some UE5 games having issues at the time they were launched; it is a powerful engine but still, it is not a “make the game run good” magic button. Optimization is still the developers’ job and it is no easy task.

A practical worry from Mascarpone states, “They are throwing away a proven performance investment by switching to an engine that won’t be able to provide the same visuals. It sounds like they are giving up on investing in knowledge and expertise. These tools take years to master.” It could not get any more accurate. Warhorse spent years mastering CryEngine to make Kingdom Come one of the best. Moving to a completely new toolkit will feel like starting over and it is a very risky and expensive bet.

But the situation is going to be stranger than fiction. Some comments simply did not hesitate to leap to… politics? A user called Yisan asserts that the problem is not the graphics but rather that “Warhorse is betraying the audience by enforcing absurd identity politics on a scenario where they are not needed.” What? How did that happen? Kingdom Come has been lauded for its historical accuracy (apart from a few controversies) and has not been highlighted for being politically charged either. It appears that some players keep a “woke” accusation on standby for any studio announcement. Another comment just states “Gay race communism and unreal engine.” which is… not even a complete sentence but it gives one an idea of the mood in some circles of the gaming community.

Despite the chaos, there are still a few who cheer them on. Priv8Code comments, “If any developer could make a good game with Unreal, it is the CK devs.” That is a vote of confidence in the team’s skill over the tool. And nk just puts it simply, “I am interested in whatever this company does,” which is the very positive vibe we need. However, the sheer number of “NOOO PLEASE NOOOO” and “Too woke for me” reactions is somewhat daunting. It is the technological switch – not very public and deeply technical – that has turned out to be a lightning rod for all gamer grievances regarding contemporary game development practices, and the doubts extend from performance to culture war fears.

Warhorse is unquestionably eager for the production of a larger, more visually stunning game. UE5 indeed offers features that CryEngine might not, mainly with bigger teams or more complex scopes. On the other hand, the players’ reaction is a harsh reminder that trust is fragile. Gamers valued Kingdom Come for its unique atmosphere and the CryEngine is often seen as part of that identity. The change to a more general, albeit powerful, engine is regarded as a move towards the mainstream, and that is indeed a nightmare for the fans of the niche and the special. The success of this transition will depend not only on Warhorse’s technical skills with UE5 but also on whether they can express their distinct vision in this new medium without losing the essence that players related to in the first place. The split response of the community indicates that upcoming titles for PlayStation and Xbox will be watched very closely.