The Kenny Dilemma

[distortion]

I recently did a playthrough of the game where my main goal was to get Kenny to at the end of episode four say, "You're my best bro, of course I'm coming with you to save Clementine." But at the same time, I also wanted to see what happened when I made choices I had not yet made.

• In episode one, I saved Duck when before I saved Shawn. For Kenny.

• In episode two, I helped him kill Larry when before I tried to save him. For Kenny.

• I chose to steal the food from the car, didn't before. For Kenny.

• In episode three, I killed the girl while on the run to the pharmacy. I had already played through both ways and didn't want to sit through those screams again. Against Kenny.

• I kept my past a secret. Against Kenny.

• I chose to keep Lilly where before I always left her behind. Against Kenny.

• I fought him in the train instead of trying to talk him down. Against Kenny.

• I made him kill Duck. Against Kenny.

• In episode four, I also made him kill the boy in the attic. Against Kenny (arguably).

• I dropped Ben. For Kenny.

By this count, that is 4 decisions for Kenny, 6 against. And yet when I asked him to come with me, he didn't hesitate. He was there for me. Out of curiosity, I went back and didn't drop Ben. When I asked him to come with me again, I got the "Would you be there for me?" spiel.

My reason for saying this is disturbing is that the decisions that have the most impact on how much Kenny likes me are the ones where I must consciously choose to kill a living, breathing human. The Larry decision without a doubt holds the most amount of clout in the game, with the Ben decision a likely second. Yes, Larry may have already been dead, but we don't know, and in any non-zombie situation a person would automatically attempt to save him. The point is that in both situations, Kenny opted for killing, and yet he is made to be Lee's greatest friend nearly from the very beginning.

I know that most of you likely have thought about this somewhat, but when all is put together, how much does Kenny deserve his (possible but likely) death? And are his actions worthy of redemption? Should we view him with sympathetic eyes, or should he still be remembered as a monster?

[DreadMagus]

Yup, that's why I don't really like Kenny.

He was all rainbows and lolipops until I refused to Murder Larry With Him - then it's WHAT HAVE YOU DONE FOR MY FAMILY!!?!?!?!

The dude is cracked.

[HiggsBoson2142]

I knew we couldn't trust that mustache...

[Toasty]

He completely hated Ben because Ben basically got his family killed, and then if you save him, he doesn't want to go with you to save Clemtine until you tell him Clementine is your family. But however, if you want to take Ben with you along with Kenny, Kenny flips out and says there is no way he is going with "That asshole who got my family killed". If you drop him, he doesn't hesitate. Sure, nobody would want to be with somebody that killed their family, I know I wouldn't. But if he goes with you based on one desicion that kills someone, and not a bunch of other small desicions that he agrees with, you could basically classify him as a monster. But I still think that he had some justice behind his desicions.

[Rozzer616]

Each action has a different impact on his loyalty, just because you didn't drop Ben doesn't mean thats the reason he didn't go with you...I didn't drop Ben and I got a great speech. Obviously the Larry part has the biggest impact on him but other than that you can't really know. Imagine each action has points and you need a certain number for him to come with you, one action could make all the difference.

[distortion]

Originally Posted by Rozzer616

Each action has a different impact on his loyalty, just because you didn't drop Ben doesn't mean thats the reason he didn't go with you...I didn't drop Ben and I got a great speech. Obviously the Larry part has the biggest impact on him but other than that you can't really know. Imagine each action has points and you need a certain number for him to come with you, one action could make all the difference.

Interesting. What were your choices?

[distortion]

And was anyone able to get him to give the best friend speech without helping to kill Larry?

[Rozzer616]

Originally Posted by distortion

Interesting. What were your choices?

1st Episode: Saved Duck. I can't remember it all but I think I might've accidentally sided with Larry (stupid reason with him bit) in the drug store, but after that I sided with Kenny.
2nd Episode: Agreed with Kenny rather than Lily; fed Clem, Duck, Carley and Larry. Helped him with the Larry situation and took the food.
3rd Episode: Didn't kill the girl, got rid of Lily, killed Duck.
4th Episode: Killed Fivel, (?) didn't agree with his plan, saved Ben and left Ben behind.
5th Episode: Shouted at him.

I liked Kenny and mostly agreed with him. Personally, I think TT made a mistake in making killing/saving Larry have the same impact on both Lily and Kenny. It should've been that there were 2 situations...one for Lily and one for Kenny.