The voice of authority? Lore management strategies in Kingdom Come: Deliverance
The voice of authority? Lore management strategies in Kingdom Come: Deliverance
Author(s): Jakub MajewskiSubject(s): Social history, Sociology of Culture, ICT Information and Communications Technologies
Published by: Uniwersytet Adama Mickiewicza
Keywords: lore; worldbuilding tools; historical authenticity; worldbuilding objectivity; worldbuilding subjectivity;
Summary/Abstract: This paper examines the strategies employed in the medieval role-playing game (RPG) Kingdom Come: Deliverance (2018) to deliver and contextualise lore, or historical & background knowledge, to the player. These strategies are compared to the approach employed in other RPGs, in particular the faux-medieval fantasy The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (2011). It is argued Kingdom Come actively seeks to highlight the historical status of its content, projecting an impression of historical clarity, only occasionally highlighting uncertainty. By contrast, Skyrim conveys its lore in a nuanced and playful way that seems to acknowledge the limitations of the historical process.
Journal: Homo Ludens
- Issue Year: 15/2022
- Issue No: 1
- Page Range: 141-154
- Page Count: 14
- Language: English