Hardcore Mode in Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 has been free since patch 1.2.4 on 15 April 2025. It takes away your position marker on the map, fast travel and combat cues, and on top of that you pick permanent negative perks at the start. This guide covers how to start it, exactly what it changes and what all ten drawbacks do. Everything reflects the game as of 19 October 2026.
What Hardcore Mode is and when it arrived
Hardcore Mode is a tougher way to play the whole game, not a separate quest or expansion. Warhorse released it for free in patch 1.2.4 on 15 April 2025 and announced it in a post on Steam. It’s one of the free post-launch additions, alongside Barber Mode and Horse Racing. The paid story expansions are covered in our DLC guide.
How to start Hardcore Mode
You choose Hardcore Mode when you begin a new game. Once you’ve started with it, you can’t switch it off, so decide before you begin. Right at the start you then pick at least three permanent negative perks from the list below. They stay with you for the whole playthrough.
If you run into trouble picking your drawbacks, update the game. Patch 1.5.6 from 25 June 2026 fixed a bug with the selection.
What changes in Hardcore Mode
- No position on the map. The map doesn’t show where you are. You find your way by the landscape, roads and villages.
- No fast travel. You walk or ride everywhere yourself.
- The compass doesn’t help. You can’t rely on it to find your way.
- No visual combat cues. The interface gives you no visual hints during fights.
- Enemies don’t surrender. You have to fight it out, nobody begs for mercy.
New compared to the first game: you can ask people for directions. When you don’t know where to go, ask passers-by. Just watch out for the Bashful perk, which takes that option away.
Hardcore Mode negative perks
You pick at least three of these ten, and you can take more.
| Perk | What it does |
|---|---|
| Bad Back | lower carry capacity and a risk of injury when picking herbs |
| Bashful | you can’t ask for directions |
| Hangry Henry | hunger lowers Speech, Charisma and Intimidation |
| Heavy-Footed | you make more noise and wear out your boots faster |
| Menace | your criminal brand is permanent and punishments are harsher |
| Numbskull | you gain experience 40% more slowly |
| Picky Eater | food spoils faster and hunting yields less meat |
| Punchable Face | attackers are stronger against you |
| Somnambulant | you sleepwalk and wake up somewhere else |
| Sweaty | you get dirty faster and people can smell you from further away |
Who Hardcore Mode is for
Hardcore Mode makes the most sense once you’ve finished at least one playthrough or know the first map well. Without your position on the map and without fast travel, you’ll get lost mainly in places you don’t know yet, and without combat cues you have to read your opponents yourself. Combat is directional: an enemy holds their weapon left, right, high or low and attacks from that direction. Our Master Strike guide explains how to deal with it.
If it’s your first time, start in the regular mode and read our beginner’s guide. Save Hardcore for a second run, when you already know where things are.
Join our Discord to share which three perks you picked and swap ideas on how to survive with them: Discord GamersTogether.
FAQ
You choose Hardcore Mode when you start a new game. You can’t switch it off afterwards, and you pick at least three negative perks right at the start.
Yes. It came out for free in patch 1.2.4 on 15 April 2025, so you don’t need to buy any DLC.
No. Fast travel is disabled, the map doesn’t show your position and the compass doesn’t help. You can ask people for directions, unless you’ve taken the Bashful perk.
At least three out of ten: Bad Back, Bashful, Hangry Henry, Heavy-Footed, Menace, Numbskull, Picky Eater, Punchable Face, Somnambulant and Sweaty.
Information verified on 19 October 2026. More guides are in our KCD2 guides.