Kingmakers may be the chaotic, time-travelling Medieval shooter I’ve always wanted

“A single Dorito has more extreme nacho flavor than a peasant in the 1400s would get in his whole lifetime” read a Tweet from former The Onion writer Matthew Crowley. His statement is one of true fact, but it also posits a much bigger question. What piece of modern technology would you show a Medieval peasant to absolutely blow their mind?

Would you be accused of witchcraft if you played The 1975 on your iPhone? What if you shredded Stairway to Heaven on an electric guitar at a banquet? Would the nobility be impressed with the comedy stylings of James Cordon? All very valid questions, but the forthcoming game Kingmakers presents a different ‘what if?’ conundrum. What if time-travelling knights had guns?

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War, no peace

Kingmakers transports you back to a war-torn medieval empire on the brink of collapse. Your mission? Travel back in time with a huge arsenal of modern day weaponry, and bring a hail of bullets and explosions to the battlegrounds of old. Why, exactly? As of yet, we’re not too sure, other than the wholly bonkers premise of the game. But many games have taken an original premise, only to lack any real substance on release day. The more I learn about Kingmakers however, the more excited I become.

Kingmakers fuses solo or co-op combat with city builder features. As your kingdom grows, you must lead sprawling armies in gigantic, real-time simulated battles. The gameplay looks fast-paced, frenetic and, perhaps most importantly, lots of fun.

Will Kingmakers prove to be little more than a silly gaming concept that doesn’t quite land? We’ll have to wait until later in the year to find out. But for now, I’m taking the bait.