Do I need to play the previous Kingdom Come game to understand the story?

[heg]

Thanks!

[Nozer]

Do you need? no
Would it be better for you to do so? yes
Shorter version is watching some recap of story on youtube, warhorse uploaded such recap, it's just 10min 12 seconds

[Roberto]

^
Do you 'need' to? No
'Should' you? Yes
2 is a direct sequel to the first game so playing the first game with give you a deeper understanding and appreciation of the characters and events of the second game.
Also it's broadly more of the same just with more polish. So you can pick up the first game for cheaper to see if you like it first rather than investing in the full priced second game.

[Philippe_at_bay]

A lot of the cut scenes in KCD 2 won't mean much if you haven't played the first game. If you have, you'll catch yourself thinking 'Aha, I know why they're showing that to me'.

And the Sasau valley is drop dead gorgeous.

Do you need to know what's going on ? No.

Will understanding what you're seeing enhance your experience ? Yes.

[Philobyte]

In a nutshell: It's highly recommendable.

[makbthemf]

Yes, definitely. You will understand your character much better and avoid KCD2 marketing retconning of character development. Understand the conflicts and general situation in the country better, e.t.c.

[Tenchuu Khan]

As far as I'm concerned, there is absolutely no reason to skip KCD1.
Wouldn't make any sense really - so, do yourself a favour and play KCD1 first.

[Dan2312]

KCD 1 is beautiful and joy to play.

Just be warned, some people struggle with the swordplay. its like marmite, you either love it or hate it.

[Tenchuu Khan]

Originally posted by Dan2312:

KCD 1 is beautiful and joy to play.

Just be warned, some people struggle with the swordplay. its like marmite, you either love it or hate it.

Or Vegemite :D https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_sUhTWtvG4&ab_channel=TheTonightShowStarringJimmyFallon

[Sempavor]

Originally posted by Dan2312:

KCD 1 is beautiful and joy to play.

Just be warned, some people struggle with the swordplay. its like marmite, you either love it or hate it.

Best comparison ever.

[Wobblyshrimp]

you don't necessarily need to, but I would. KCD2 starts exactly after the final scene of KCD1. You'll be quite lost story wise until you are able to piece things together. And you will be lacking serious amounts of character context.

KCD1 is also excellent and you should definitely play it. I envy anyone who gets to play these games for the first time.

[MinecraftBOSS]

I think you can see a theme going here to your question lol. I played KCD1 first and I am very happy I did. The story in the first game is totally worth experiencing and it will certainly give you a better appreciation and understanding of the events of the second. You will miss a lot of the emotional impact of certain events in the second game if you haven't played the first. I highly recommend you do yourself the kindness and play the first game first

[Ricky Icky]

I never played kcd1...well, i bought it and gave it a try but it was kinda poorly optimized and didn't run well, at least on release, so i shelved it and never went back...
I still wasn't sure if a non-fantasy rpg would be for me and i wasn't sure if i'd have the stamina to sit through both games, so i decided just to dive into the second game. I watched a video summary of the events of the first game.

I'm 55 hours in and a lot of the second game is self contained. I don't think i'm missing out on too much so far but i imagine as events progress the second half will introduce some characters i'm supposed to recognize....but whatever, its been fun and i've enjoyed kcd2 a heck of a lot, even without playing the first game.

[Sylvaa]

No, not really, it gives you a recap.

That being said, the first game was great, and if you plan on playing both, then start with the first one. The first one is just as good, but probably wouldn't be as good as some sort of long-flashback.