The Hopelessness of KENSHI

I just want to clarify a few things here:
-I forgot to mention Dark Souls when talking about "hopeless games" and sure there are probably a lot of games that do hopelessness perfectly but these are the only ones I've played.
-I did not mention the Hive as a major faction because you can't really "join" them.
-I knowingly explained the lore in a really basic way in order to not give too many spoilers since one of the best parts of Kenshi is piecing together the lore one by one.
Anyways, thanks for watching and reading this.
Music:
Barricading - Project Zomboid
Overture - Halo Reach
Epilogue (There'll be another time) - Halo Reach
Fertile - KENSHI
Kenshi - KENSHI
Bonus Track - KENSHI
As It Is - KENSHI

[@justinbaker5749]

Project Zomboid reminds me of the book "How to build a fire". No matter how hard you try, no matter if you do everything right, all it takes is just one slip up and you're done, even if you don't realize it yet. 1 mistake will lead to a snowball effect that creates problem after problem, as your hope fades and you sit there looking at everything going wrong, you'll realize that you were doomed from the start.

[@vivechjorviani5440]

You didn’t touch enough on the lore behind the skeletons, how they wallow in guilt over their decision to wipe out mankind while stobe who had the most reason to do so sacrifices himself to save them, and then again when they tried to make amends with the second empire only for its brutality to only push mankind down again. The skeletons once had ambition to be like their creators and build civilizations but their emotions and traumas have no reprisal in their artificial minds, it only builds until insanity or they can commit complete ego death and lose all they are, they were not built to rule and they never can, they know this now.

[@Dod8t]

Yep I did it on purpose. I intentionally didn’t touch too much on the lore because I wanted people to learn those details by playing the game.

[@yawarapuyurak3271]

I'll like to add that Skeletons also represent our own failures as parents to them. In a way, skeletons can't escape their creators limitations. Because despite giving them a higher intellect, we also inherited them emotions. Which are their chains, what trully bounds them to us but also stop them from becoming something greater than us. At least, that's how I interpret it.

[@breklaberif7553]

The most hopeless part of kenshi is trying to level up your skills past 90. The exp curve really feels like a gut punch at late game.

[@yawarapuyurak3271]

The developers never intended for you to go beyond level 80ish. If memory isn't failing me.

[@Dod8t]

I try to keep my characters' skills at about 80-90 or else I fear it might become boring. I don't think I want my characters to surpass Cat-Lon.

[@richman123432]

The flotsam ninjas are are really good example that I'm sad to see you didn't include. They are about as major a player as the anti-slavers too. Really the only "morally" good faction as they're tolerant, have a decent plan in place if they're able to overcome the holy nation and their leader isn't entirely insane. Hell Moll let's you join their faction so long as you aren't a sexist okranite. Yet despite all the good. Their situation is hopeless as they can't maintain their farms due to cannibal raids and the holy nation coming knocking to from the south.

[@simpleshapes8113]

The holy nation didn’t stand a chance when my clan of warriors decided to side with anti slavers and flotsam ninjas. Waging a war on all fronts with all slaver and I’m still toppling their cities and slave markets. Despite how capable my forces were I made the mistake of only sending beep to deliver the lord phoenix to Moll and the flotsam ninjas. The retribution of god came and nearly killed everyone at the flotsam ninja camp while beep killed who he could and holed up in a building as the raid raged on. My crew was on the way but there were far too many casualties. We arrived and cleaned up the mess and luckily moll and her toughest ninjas were still alive

[@daha1214]

they are fucking racist too and my beautiful shek waifu Soto could not shop there becouse of diskrimation.

[@TamTroll]

i wouldn't say tolerant, not fully at least. There's at least one merchant who won't talk to you if you're not a human, actively refusing to speak to both my hiver and skeleton characters. As well, I'm pretty sure they're sexist towards men to some degree. it's justified consider the society they come from, but that doesn't mean it's right.

[@richman123432]

@@TamTroll they're tolerant in comparison to the rest of the holy nation attacking skeletons on sight and enslaving non human males. I used quotes when I said "morally" because it's subjective. At the end of the day I'd rather face some sexism that will fade away over time than just being outright enslaved for being the wrong race/gender

[@simpleshapes8113]

@@TamTroll being poor and hungry is enough to be enslaved. Legitimately made it a crime. I did want to ally with them until the holy nation was gone but I figured an alliance with tinfist would be dope and I paid the price

[@ghost_breezy8749]

I remebe when I got enslaved for trying to steal a katana let’s just say it took more than I’d hope to find freedom

[@CaptainNoodle]

I absolutely love Kenshi, the game makes you feel so small in such a large world. You have to work for absolutely everything and someone can come in and take it all away from you. Awesome video dude!

[@Dod8t]

Thank you! And I love Kenshi for the same reasons.

[@billbillinger2117]

Kenshi reminds me of a playable version of Warhammer's Age of Strife.

[@FirehawkSHD]

>kenshi >Not known "Hey hey people sseth here"

[@Dod8t]

I had no idea that video had 7.1 MILLION views.

[@hozic9929]

I love how all of them have similar promise

[@ketolcob]

Awesome video, I could 100% see "hopeless" games making for a good video series.

[@theprelate4219]

The world of Kenshi is only hopeless if you worship human achievement. There are still families, faiths, causes, and heroes in Kenshi. All Kenshi really lacks is technology, which, if you have been paying attention, does not yield peace. At least on the moon of Kenshi no one has a nuke.

[@blackriptides]

Awesome video would like to see something about skyrim next.

[@Dod8t]

Thank you but I haven't played Skyrim that much so idk if I'll be able to make a video on that.

[@girleater5886]

Whats about frostpunk?

[@Dod8t]

I haven't played it but it looks like it would also fit.

[@iraklimgeladze5223]

Do you get lore info from game? like books from shops? I tried to read some in holy kindgom but it sounded bulshit

[@Dod8t]

Well it is The Holy Nation after all. There is this place called The Great Library: (SPOILERS for a location) It is located in a city called Black Scratch. It contains a lot of lore books and blueprints.

[@iraklimgeladze5223]

@@Dod8t First run i tried to build place and got around 20 recruits. It's good to figure out how that works, but i stoped that run and begin new, now i level up one character and explorer. I think game should have beginners quest and with scripted events to push us right way. Any way thanks for tips, still i will not google it and try travel and learn from books and NPC's. I think i did mistake to playing this game taking to much time from my life) I like to taking small breaks from work and study but this gae became my work)

[@EX0DIA.]

You should play fear & hunger , :)

[@moon_jumper]

fear and hunger doesnt make you feel hopeless, its just hard you die, you die, you die, but eventually you overcome everything and feel like a total badass

[@dominicanfrankster]

Hopelessness? What were you hoping for?

[@Dod8t]

To not get brutally beaten to near-death by 17 Dust Bandits while mining some iron.

[@alpalbay]

More Mass Effect content pls

[@donaldpetersen2382]

Everyone but Tech Hunters is fuuuuuuuucked

[@ColdNorth0628]

5:36...i mean so is the courier. By all means in new vegas you really are not important. You just make the moves that would have already been done one day or another but the game makes you do it as the main character. A lack of game over screen does not mean all that much imo when I can list a few games that do this.

[@Dod8t]

The lack of a game over screen isn't a big thing but it certainly does contribute to the overall theme of hopelessness at least in my opinion. What is more important than the lack of a game over screen is the fact that the game doesn't pause which is something not a lot of games do.

[@WretchedRedoran]

The courier is NOT a random nobody, sadly. Really wish they did have a blank slate backstory, as it was the perfect chance to have a blank slate character in a fallout game. But then Lonesome Road came out, and revealed that all along the courier really did have a backstory, and quite a detailed one at that.

[@udobybreak6393]

I love Kenshi but come on what's the point in continuing playing when you've already researched everything and built a big arse base? Don't care about the bosses the game ends there for me.

[@Dod8t]

Yeah, I care a lot about the lore and the bosses of Kenshi but even I start to get a little bored after completely finishing my base.

[@depressedcheems9961]

So it's just like every open world sandbox game. The top is always more boring than the bottom.

[@Dod8t]

I wouldn’t say that. Kenshi is a lot more different than most of them but yes it shares many of the same problems. The more you progress the more boring it gets. However the reason why I say Kenshi is different is because there is a HUGE spike of fun near the end that many sandbox games don’t have.

[@udobybreak6393]

@@Dod8t Forget what I said man lol, I did spend over 178 hours playing it, more than some AAA games I have.

[@bryanwalker492]

shek talks shit but thats all

[@user-ix4sq2wt4d]

the world is so messed up and every major factions are immoral but you, the player, can do something to change that! ...well, just mind that what ever good thing you try to do IS going to make the world worse. I really love the fact that citizens of holy nation and united nation are in fact suffering but if the player try to do something the cities will simply fall to the cannibals and fogmen and everyone stop suffering that is the Hopelessness there.

[@DeadMeat991]

Kenshi developers confuse difficulty with tediousness.

[@Dod8t]

I don't think Kenshi's that tedious. Of course it's an RPG so it's going to have some grinding but except leveling up skills like Dexterity, I don't think Kenshi is tedious.

[@gabfortin1976]

wtf go outside lmao

[@Dod8t]

what.

[@afanwithtoomuchtime4375]

Bruh, who are you even? WTF wastes their time saying this in a KZbin comments section to a content creator who makes content on video games? Are you mentally handicapped? If so, I hope you have a good day.

[@HaykInWonderland]

​@@Dod8ti believe that was someone who was watching youtube and typed out a comment, for you to go outside. Irony lost.

[@Dod8t]

hmmm I shall go outside then.