Warhorse Studios has confirmed that its next project after Kingdom Come: Deliverance II is an open-world RPG, with the studio targeting delivery within the next fiscal year, as confirmed via the studio’s own communications. No setting, platforms, or title have been announced yet, but the genre commitment and window signal that Warhorse is moving quickly to keep momentum off KCD2‘s launch rather than letting the studio go quiet between major releases.
Here’s the context: Warhorse built its reputation on Kingdom Come: Deliverance, a historically grounded medieval RPG that sold over 6 million copies by April 2024, as reported by PC Gamer. Its sequel, Kingdom Come: Deliverance II, was announced by publisher Plaion under Embracer Group in April 2024, featuring a significantly expanded scope – dual cities, denser quest systems, and a much larger voiced-dialogue count. The studio has also grown from roughly 110 staff during the first game’s production to around 250 developers, positioning it firmly in AA+ territory. Separately, Warhorse has confirmed a second project entirely: an open-world RPG set in Middle-earth, described as “immersive” in early teasers, though that title carries no release window and is distinct from the newly confirmed follow-up.
Honestly, this is a fascinating – and slightly nerve-wracking – move. Warhorse is essentially running two major open-world RPG projects in parallel, one of which carries one of the most scrutinised IP licences in all of fantasy. The fiscal year target for the unnamed post-KCD2 game feels ambitious for a studio that has only fully shipped one original title, and the open-world RPG space is arguably more competitive now than it has ever been. That said, Warhorse has earned serious credibility with its systems-heavy approach – the kind of European RPG sensibility that a specific and very loyal audience actively hunts out. Embracer Group CEO Lars Wingefors has already flagged Warhorse as one of the group’s “key premium IP creators” expected to deliver significant earnings in the second half of the decade, which means there is real financial pressure baked into that fiscal year window – not just creative ambition.
What remains unclear is almost everything about the game itself: whether it’s set in the Kingdom Come universe or a new IP entirely, which platforms it’s targeting, and whether the fiscal year window is a firm internal target or an aspirational one shaped partly by Embracer‘s restructuring needs. The Middle-earth project’s relationship to the studio’s resourcing picture is also an open question – fans on Reddit are already speculating the unnamed follow-up may be leaner in scope precisely to hit that window. Watch for Embracer Group‘s next financial reporting cycle and any dedicated reveal stream from Warhorse, which the studio has suggested will come once post-launch support for KCD2 stabilises.
Are you excited to see Warhorse turn around a new open-world RPG this quickly, or does the pace make you nervous about scope and quality? And with two major projects now confirmed, do you think the studio can deliver on both without overextending? Sound off in the comments below, and keep your eyes on GameLuster for more Warhorse and RPG coverage.
