In the world of open-world games, dropped items are usually just digital litter, waiting to vanish. But a recent viral video of the upcoming Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 shows something different. NPCs in the game don’t just ignore your discarded loot; they sort through it based on their social class, creating a fascinating and organic simulation of medieval life. This deep AI behavior was confirmed by a developer from Warhorse Studios.
A Social Experiment in a Digital Town Square
Most gamers are used to dropping items and having them sit there forever. In Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, that’s not the case. One player on Reddit, Mcloganator, decided to test the limits by dropping a huge pile of items, worth about 3,000 groschen, right in the middle of a town.
What happened next was a slow, methodical cleanup by the town’s residents. It wasn’t a chaotic free-for-all. Instead, the NPCs acted according to their place in society, creating a living display of the game’s world.
The behavior broke down along class lines:
- Beggars: These NPCs were the first on the scene, grabbing anything and everything they could find, from old bread to cheap daggers.
- Common Folk: The town’s regular citizens were more selective. They ignored the low-value junk but happily picked up mid-tier items like decent tools or armor.
- Nobles: The wealthy elite wouldn’t even glance at the common items. They only showed interest in high-value goods like jewelry or expensive weapons.
This created a natural-feeling scene where the pile of loot slowly disappeared as each social class took what they deemed worthy.
How Complex AI Makes It All Work
This impressive feature isn’t an accident. It’s the result of a carefully designed AI system. Patrik Papšo, a programmer at Warhorse Studios, saw the Reddit video and confirmed his involvement, stating, “Haha, that’s an NPC behaviour I made!”
He explained that an NPC’s decision to pick up an item is based on a few key calculations. The system is designed to feel natural while preventing bugs or situations where every NPC starts hoarding items uncontrollably.
The AI considers three main things before an NPC takes an item.
| Factor | Description |
| Item Value | How much the item is worth. More expensive items are more desirable. |
| Social Multiplier | A value tied to the NPC’s social class that determines if an item is “good enough” for them. |
| Competition | The system checks if another NPC is already on their way to pick up the same item to avoid conflicts. |
The Ambitious Features That Were Scrapped
As detailed as this system is, the developers at Warhorse originally had even bigger plans. Two particularly interesting features were considered but ultimately cut from the final game because they were too confusing or unpredictable for players.
One scrapped idea involved NPCs recognizing their stolen property. If you stole a ring from a noble and later dropped it in the street, that same noble could walk by, see it, and immediately call the guards on you. Developers felt this would be too confusing, as a player might not connect an arrest with an item they dropped hours earlier.
Another feature that almost made it in was a bug that developers found oddly realistic. In this version, an NPC might “reserve” an item they wanted to pick up. If the player grabbed it first, the NPC could become angry and attempt to steal the item directly from the player’s inventory. While immersive, it was likely too frustrating to keep in the game.
What This Means for the Future of Gaming
Watching NPCs meticulously sort through junk might seem like a small detail, but it points to a deeper level of immersion that games are starting to achieve. It’s a sign that developers are thinking beyond simple quest-giving characters and are building truly dynamic worlds.
This kind of emergent behavior, where simple rules create complex and believable actions, is what makes worlds feel alive. It opens the door for even more incredible systems in future RPGs, where items have histories, and NPCs have real agency. Games like Dwarf Fortress have long been praised for these deep simulations, but seeing it in a mainstream, graphically rich RPG like Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 is a huge step forward for everyone.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the new NPC feature in Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2?
NPCs in the game will interact with items dropped by the player. They will pick up loot based on their social class, with beggars taking anything, commoners choosing mid-tier items, and nobles only selecting high-value goods.
Who confirmed this Kingdom Come 2 feature?
A programmer and scripter from Warhorse Studios, Patrik Papšo, confirmed on Reddit that he created this specific NPC behavior. He explained the logic behind the AI’s decision-making process.
Why was the stolen goods feature removed from the game?
The feature where NPCs could recognize their stolen items if dropped was removed because it was deemed too unpredictable. Developers worried players wouldn’t understand why they were being arrested for an item they had discarded long ago.
Will NPCs trade or sell items they pick up?
The current information only confirms that NPCs will pick up items. The article speculates that future games could evolve this system to include NPCs trading, selling, or using the items they find, creating a more dynamic world economy.
How does the AI decide which item to pick up?
The AI uses three factors: the item’s monetary value, the NPC’s social status (which acts as a “worthiness” filter), and whether another NPC is already trying to claim the item.
