Hey gamers, hope you're all doing well and having a great weekend! As you know, I'm always jumping around trying different games, and this time I finally gave Chivalry 2 a real shot. It had been sitting in my Epic Games library for a while now — Epic gave it away for free a few years back — and I just never got around to seriously trying it. I had heard a few things about the original Chivalry back in the day and seen some footage here and there, but honestly never committed to sitting down and playing the sequel properly. Well, that day finally came, and let me tell you, I have some thoughts.
My First Online-Only Paid Game Experience
And yes, you read that right. This is technically the first time I've ever sat down with a game that is online-only AND paid. Think about it — most of the online games I've played have been free-to-play titles. I've never really committed to buying something that gives you zero campaign, zero solo story, just straight multiplayer. Those kinds of games have always existed, obviously, but it was never something I was willing to spend money on. So in a way, Chivalry 2 is a first for me in that very specific sense, and honestly, if Epic hadn't given this away for free, I guarantee it wouldn't be in my library. The price tag on this game is not cheap for something that's pure online, so shoutout to Epic for making it accessible.
But with that said, when a game is paid and online-only, you kind of expect the developers to put in extra work to justify that price. And from what I can see, Torn Banner Studios has actually done their homework. Over the years, they pushed a massive amount of updates — going from 5 Team Objective maps all the way up to 13, adding mounted combat, new game modes, new factions, new weapons, and hundreds of customization items. The game eventually wrapped up its major development cycle, but by then they had more than doubled the original content they shipped with. That's the kind of commitment that makes you feel okay about spending money on something like this.
That Tutorial Though… Yikes
Alright, let's talk about the actual gameplay because that's where it really matters. First thing I hit was the tutorial, and wow, it is bad. Like, really bad. It's one of those old-school tutorial setups where you walk in a straight line, hit a dummy, move to the next dummy, repeat. Zero immersion, zero excitement. The narrator doing this kind of medieval warrior voice is just painful to listen to — it sounds forced and honestly pretty terrible as a voiceover performance. They should have thrown you into a simulated battle to teach you the mechanics because when you actually jump into online matches, nothing about the tutorial prepares you for what's waiting there. The real combat dynamic is so different from what you practice in that hallway of mannequins. So yeah, I hated the tutorial, no sugarcoating it.
The Combat Is a Different Story
Once you get past that awful tutorial and into actual matches though, things change completely. The combat is something else. It's difficult, it's challenging, and it takes real adjustment to understand the physics at play here. You can't just spam attacks — your character gets tired, you have stamina to manage, you need to time your dodges correctly before you can land a hit. It genuinely feels like what medieval combat would be like in chaos: messy, brutal, and demanding of some real technique. The game isn't letting you feel like a superhero swinging endlessly. There's weight to every action, and that's something I really appreciated even as a new player getting destroyed repeatedly.
The 64-player battles are genuinely insane in the best way. You're in the middle of a massive siege, people screaming, swords clashing everywhere, fire burning across the field — it feels like being inside an epic medieval movie scene. The objectives in Team Objective mode have layers to them too: breaking into fortresses, escorting characters, eliminating targets. Each phase of the battle shifts, and if your team fails to push the objective in time, the defenders win. It's not just mindless deathmatch, there's actual strategy happening even if it feels like total chaos on the surface.
Four Classes, Twelve Subclasses — A Lot to Learn
Here's where I realize I have a ton of homework to do. Chivalry 2 has four main classes: the Knight, the Footman, the Vanguard, and the Archer. And each one breaks down into three subclasses, which is twelve total options to eventually explore and understand. Right now I'm barely scratching the surface of this, but let me tell you what I do know so far.
The Knight is the tank of the group — highest health in the game at 175, slowest movement, but can absolutely absorb punishment and deal serious damage. Perfect for beginners still learning to dodge and block because even if you mess up, you have extra life to work with. Within the Knight you've got the Guardian, who leans into defense and can heal nearby allies with a banner; the Crusader, who is pure offense wielding heavy two-handed weapons and throwing axes; and the Officer, a more versatile leader type.
The Vanguard is basically the opposite — fastest class on the battlefield, high stamina, but much lower health. High risk, high reward. Experienced players who know how to time their blocks and dodge correctly will love this class. Meanwhile the Footman sits comfortably in the middle — decent health at 150, good armor, and importantly comes equipped with bandages that let you heal yourself or teammates, which makes it arguably the best support option. And then there's the Archer, which I haven't touched much yet, but it's your long-range specialist for pelting enemies with arrows, bolts, and javelins from a distance.
I've mostly been sticking with the Knight since I'm still figuring everything out, and it's been a solid entry point. That extra health gives you room to make mistakes while you learn.
One thing I can say with confidence even at just a couple hours in: the weapon system is impressive. Each class and subclass gets access to specific weapons, and the selection is genuinely deep. You're talking swords, axes, spears, polearms, crossbows, greatswords, maces, hammers — and each weapon type has different damage categories. Blunt weapons wreck armored Knights and Footmen. Chop weapons like battle axes deal bonus damage to heavy targets. Cut weapons like greatswords and longswords favor speed and reach. It's not just cosmetic variety, the weapon choice actually matters for how you approach different opponents on the battlefield. There's clearly a lot of depth here that I've barely started to understand.
Graphics: Easy 9/10
No complaints here whatsoever. The game looks great. It's very well optimized, runs beautifully at 1080p with everything pushed to the max, and the visual design of the battlefields is genuinely impressive. The depth of field, the blood, the piles of bodies mid-siege, the fire effects — it's all polished and detailed. This feels like a proper production, not something that cut corners on presentation. For a game that came out in 2021, it honestly holds up really well even now.
Still Just Getting Started
I'm sitting at maybe two hours of playtime and I can already say this has been a good time. There's clearly a huge amount I still need to learn — the game modes, the factions like the Agathians and the Tenosian Empire, all the subclass abilities, how to properly modify and set up loadouts. It's one of those games that rewards the more time you put into understanding it. The combat alone is going to take a while to truly master, and that's exactly the kind of depth that keeps you coming back. So hey gamers, I hope you enjoyed this first impression piece, and if you've played Chivalry 2 or are currently playing it, drop a comment and let me know — would love to hear how you got into it and what class you run!