Kenshi
Welcome… to Kenshi — a game so open-ended it makes Fallout: New Vegas look like a glorified dating sim with a side quest about war crimes.
If New Vegas gave you a bullet and a cause, Kenshi gives you nothing but pants (maybe) and drops you face-first into a post-post-post-apocalyptic wasteland with the grace of a drunk god saying:
“Figure it out, loser.”
🌍 The World of Kenshi: Australia But Worse
The game’s setting is a dystopian fever dream on a dead world that got kicked by every Lovecraftian horror and kept limping forward. The laws of civilization are optional, cannibalism is a career path, and slavery is a whole-ass game mechanic.
There are no chosen ones here. No main quests. Just the harsh whisper of the wind saying:
“Nobody cares about you. Build your storm house.”
🗺️ The Factions (AKA Who’s Gonna Hate You Today)
- The Holy Nation Religious fanatics who think women shouldn’t read, robots are Satan, and green people are definitely cancelled.
- United Cities Peak corrupt capitalist dystopia. Taxes, bribery, slavery, nobles with anime swords. You can join them or absolutely destroy them. No HR complaints.
- Shek Kingdom Bone-headed warrior jocks who think honor is more important than survival. No pain, no gains, no subtlety.
- Tech Hunters Essentially hoarders with academic credentials. Live in ruins, collect AI cores, and don’t want to share.
- Cannibals, Fogmen, Bandits These aren’t “factions” as much as “problems you will encounter every 10 steps until you regret leaving town.”
🧍♂️ Beep: The Divine Protagonist We Didn’t Deserve
Meet Beep, Kenshi’s version of Minecraft Steve, if Steve had self-awareness and a dream bigger than his IQ.
Beep starts as a nobody from the Hive — tiny, naked, fragile, and loud. He has no skills. Not even athletics. Beep is the “error404_protagonist_not_found” of the Kenshi universe.
But his confidence? Unbreakable. His loyalty? Absolute. His catchphrase?
“Beep is strongest warrior.”
You can leave him to die, or you can upgrade him — give him cybernetic limbs, train him in martial arts, put a laser cannon on his back and watch him solo the Holy Nation.
One minute he’s getting kidnapped by starving bandits, the next he’s a cybernetic kung-fu meth warlord running a hashish empire from a mountain stronghold.
He is the hero we all aspire to be but don’t deserve.
He is Beep.
He will not shut up.
And you will love him for it.
🏚️ From Hobo to Homeowner: Building Your Storm House
Building in Kenshi starts humble:
- Mine copper or iron until your spine curves.
- Sell raw materials to buy food so you don’t die of anime hunger.
- Research “storm house” and feel like Elon Musk inventing bricks.
- Place your first house.
- Immediately get attacked by dust bandits and dragged into the desert.
Congratulations. You’re a settlement now.
From here you can:
- Train an army of pacifist monks who accidentally overthrow empires.
- Build a drug cartel selling illegal hash to United Cities nobles.
- Become the mad doctor reviving skeletons with forbidden science.
- Roleplay a cannibal chef who just wants Michelin stars.
Kenshi doesn’t care what you do, only that you do it with conviction and accept that everyone will try to ruin your plans.
⚙️ Kenshi vs. Fallout: New Vegas
| Feature | Fallout: New Vegas | Kenshi |
|---|---|---|
| Storyline | Rich branching narrative | What Storyline? LOL |
| Start | Shot in the head, go find your killer | You have pants. That’s all. |
| Companions | Boone, Veronica, Arcade Gannon | Beep. Only Beep. |
| Factions | Complex and political | Violent, racist, and likely cannibalistic |
| Building | Optional house DLC | Build your base or perish |
| World Philosophy | Player-driven narrative | Darwin’s waiting room |
| Bugs | Gamebryo jank | Yes. But somehow funnier. |
| Beep? | Tragically missing | Fully voice-acted legend. |
TL;DR:
Kenshi is what happens when you put Fallout, RimWorld, and Dwarf Fortress in a blender full of ketamine and press “Survive”.
There’s no hand-holding. There’s no objective. Just your ragtag crew of weirdos trying to build a home, harvest some weed, and maybe overthrow a theocratic regime before bedtime.
And if you’re lucky...
You’ll find Beep.
And Beep will believe in you…
Even if the universe doesn’t.
