Kenshi cover art

Kenshi

Building a faction and base from nothing in a brutal open world through layered squad and economy systems.

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Here's the argument for where this game sits - disagree freely.
Match your experience?
EXECUTION3 /10READS0 /10VARIANCE6 /10OPTIMIZATION8 /10

the cheat-test profile

The four axes - the argument

Each axis is rated on its own - how far one cheat would trivialize the game here. They don't trade off; low on all four means the game is an experience, not a contest.

  1. Execution

    cheat: Aimbot - perfect inputs

    3/10

    Real-time squad combat has marginal positioning skill ceiling

  2. Reads

    cheat: Out-predict an adaptive opponent

    0/10

    Faction and bandit AI follows scripted patrol and raid logic

  3. Variance

    cheat: See what's hidden / map the RNG

    6/10

    Bandit encounters, world states, and loot are substantially randomised

  4. Optimization

    cheat: A perfect solver / coach

    8/10

    Squad composition, base design, and skill levelling routes are deeply solvable

How to read this

Each axis is named by the cheat that would break the game along it. Execution is the hands. Reads is out-thinking an adaptive opponent. Variance is hidden information & RNG. Optimization is the solvable systems layer. A game's region is the top one or two axes.

These four aren't one rating split four ways - they're independent 0-10 questions. A 9 on one axis takes nothing from the others, and a game low on all four isn't missing data: it's telling you there's no skill here to cheat.

The basis is how the majority actually plays this game - not a niche mode or a personal run. For a game with very different modes (a story campaign versus ranked multiplayer), that's the version most people mean.

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Game details

Released
2018
Developer
Lo-Fi Games
Platforms
PC
Modes
Single player
IGDB critics
84/100
IGDB users
83/100
Real Time Strategy (RTS)Role-playing (RPG)StrategyAdventureIndieActionFantasyScience fictionSurvivalStealthSandboxOpen world