Recent reviews by nautilus

In my original review (~100 hours), I complained about lack of depth, performance issues, and the UI. After 140 more hours, new hardware, and a few updates from the devs, I'm changing my review from not recommended to recommended. With 240 hours in this title it just doesn't make sense for me not to recommend this game, BUT I do want to make a few things clear for new players, since I do believe this game can be frustrating in spite of its many virtues.

A few things to know about Kenshi:

THIS GAME HAS A VERY STEEP LEARNING CURVE! That's just how it is. You will die a lot when you first start playing. The world is super hostile and the game does not hold your hand. The downside is you might break your monitor. The upside is that when you do succeed, you feel like some kind of super-genius for finally figuring it out!

THERE ARE A LOT OF RED HERRINGS! This game gives you a lot of freedom to choose how you spend your gametime, but a lot of the things you might be used to doing in other RPGs or RTSs just don't work in Kenshi. Approach this game with an open mind! Kenshi will mercilessly troll you if you approach this game like a traditional RPG. Question all your assumptions and don't be afraid to dump a strat if it seems like it's not panning out.

THIS IS AN INDIE GAME! There is a healthy amount of jank. Think of it as extra flavor. All the main game systems work great. The odd bug here and there is a nice reminder of the humanity of the developers :)

FEAR IS THE MIND KILLER. This game is 10x better if you play it in YOLO mode. Get out there and get maimed!

MODS MIGHT HELP BUT DON'T OVERDO IT! A lot of players seem to use a ton of mods on this game and I don't really agree with it. The one mod I kind of like improves the world map by adding borders and roads, but honestly this does kind of feel like cheating. It's also easy to rely too heavily on the map mod, which will mean you'll miss some of the locations not on the marked roads.

It's a great game. It has a souls-like ability to deprive you of your sanity but it's worth it once you finally master the game systems.