From cult favourite to mainstream contender
The research repositioned the franchise as a credible option for a much broader gaming audience.
Our work
Transforming a cult RPG into a breakout mainstream success
Plaion partnered with 2CV to help define the go-to-market strategy for Kingdom Come: Deliverance II, building on the success of the original game while overcoming barriers that limited broader audience appeal.
Through a multi-market research programme, we helped the team understand what drove engagement with the franchise, identify growth opportunities beyond its core fanbase and shape a strategy capable of unlocking mainstream commercial success.
Sector:
Gaming & Entertainment
Market:
US & Germany
Expertise:
Audience Insight, Go-to-Market Strategy, Proposition Development
The Challenge
The original Kingdom Come: Deliverance had built a passionate following, but the sequel faced a more complex challenge than simply expanding an existing audience.
Perceptions of punishing difficulty, uncompromising realism and ongoing developer controversy risked limiting broader appeal. Before committing to a launch strategy, the client needed to understand what had made the original game successful, what was preventing new players from engaging and whether historic concerns still influenced purchase decisions.
The challenge was to identify a path to growth without losing the authenticity that existing fans valued.
Our approach
We designed a multi-stage research programme combining qualitative and quantitative insight across the US and Germany.
Our work included:
- Focus groups with RPG and Action-Adventure players to explore franchise perceptions
- Large-scale quantitative research testing audience motivations, barriers and feature appeal
- Competitive benchmarking against major upcoming titles including Star Wars: Outlaws and Avowed
- Commercial evaluation to assess market potential and positioning opportunities
This provided a robust evidence base for audience targeting, messaging development and launch planning.
The Results
Market-specific launch strategy
Delivered distinct messaging and creative territories for the US and German markets, maximising local relevance and appeal.
5 million+ copies sold
Kingdom Come: Deliverance II achieved breakout commercial success, selling more than five million copies in its first year.
The bold decision
Rather than positioning the sequel around its reputation as a historically accurate hardcore RPG, we reframed the opportunity around broader player motivations.
Our research revealed that the game’s strongest growth drivers were player agency, compelling characters and immersive storytelling. Not realism or difficulty.
By shifting communications towards these more universal triggers, we demonstrated that Action-Adventure players represented a significant untapped audience, transforming the conversation from defending a niche proposition to building a platform for franchise growth.