Knight's Path, an upcoming game that has been criticized for being a possible asset flip that's heavily similar to Kingdom Come: Deliverance, down to the chosen font, has yet again been met with another wave of backlash. In short, the developers of Knight's Path dismissed LGBTQ+ romance as a "modern agenda," while revealing its first romance character: a woman who does not look like she belongs in its Holy Roman Empire-inspired low fantasy setting.
Given the back-to-back nature of this backlash, it's worth highlighting that the original Kingdom Come: Deliverance didn't feature LGBTQ+ romance either, with the developer choosing to focus on protagonist Henry as a fleshed-out character as well as historical realism. Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 did introduce an optional gay romance with Hans, with developers arguing that it was a highly requested feature and optional without breaking immersion in their world. It's worth noting that KCD is set in real-world Bohemia, and Knight's Path is a pure fantasy setting inspired by the Holy Roman Empire.
For example, Knight's Path features dragons, gigantic snails, and other clear indications that it is more of a fantasy setting than a historical one. However, players do take on the fully-developed role of Alyrk, a young disgraced noble who is forced to rebuild his life from nothing. That includes the romance department, where developers revealed the first romance option: a woman named Amelie. When a fan expressed interest in LGBTQ+ representation in the game, the developer responded with, "We care about gaming and fun not modern agendas."
This tweet, which has been viewed at least 2.4 million times, is the source of strong backlash. Fans were quick to point out the inclusion of dragons and snails, with Larian Studios' director of publishing asking if there would be giant snail romance in the game. However, perhaps the biggest contradiction to this remark from the studio lies in the character of Amelie herself. The one image of her released so far includes mascara, false eyelashes, blush, and lipstick—all modern inventions and kinds not found among period-accurate makeup of the Holy Roman Empire.
Knight Path Meets Backlash Due to LGBTQ+ Remarks
Of course, a lot of this controversy rides on the dismissive response that LGBTQ+ people are a "modern agenda." It's possible Knight's Path would have gotten some flak from ignoring such comments, if not simply saying no, but to dismiss one thing as a modern agenda while making characters who fit the "modern agenda" of beauty standards in 2026—not the Holy Roman Empire—shows a certain level of hypocrisy. Another simple choice would have been to say that Alyrk is a fully fleshed-out character, not an insert, and for whatever reason, is completely heterosexual. "Hey, sorry, he's straight!" Is not nearly as bad as dismissing a question from a would-be player.
After all, romance is rather common in video games and does not always feature LGBTQ+ options. Dispatch was released just a few months ago, with protagonist Robert Robertson the third only having two options, both women. When Dispatch releases on Nintendo Switch on January 28, that won't change. It did not receive any real flak for this design choice, nor would Knight's Path if it just responded with respect. Instead, a game with giant snails and dragons purports to be rooted in a historical low fantasy setting where, apparently, anyone or anything can be "modernized" except love—even the very imaginary video game kind.