Video Game Character analysis - Kai'Sa

Kai'sa, Daughter of the Void

A small preamble before this essaykicks off in earnest. Those that know me know that video games playan important role in my life. In my view, video games are artisticexpressions of their creators that utilize a medium that allows forinteractive experience, as opposed to traditional medium's passiveexperiences. And it's this mix of art and interactivity that allowvideo games to construct and deconstruct thoughts and experiencesthat other mediums couldn't touch. And for these reasons, I wantedto pay homage to the characters and stories that have made an impacton my life. With that in mind, I'd like to introduce my firstcharacter pick...

Kai'sa is a playable character fromthe 2009 game League of Legends. In League of Legends, each playerhas a choice to play one of 158 (at time of writing) differentcharacters, each with different abilities, playstyles, personalities,and stories. Kai'sa herself has been a playable character sinceMarch 2018. League of Legends itself is primarily a competitive gamewith major emphasis on team versus team objective-based gameplay. League of Legends itself is an exceptionally complex game which takeshundreds or thousands of hours to understand. However, for thepurposes of this essay, most gameplay information is irrelevant. We're here for the character, after all!

The lore from League of Legendsencompasses hundreds of characters across various nations and planesof existence. Most of it isn't relevant for the purpose of thispiece. But I want to review the key parts of the story of Kai'sa inorder to empart why she's such an important character to me. I alsowould like to highlight the short story "The Girl Who Came Back"by Michael McCarthy. This piece serves as the primary bio for Kai'sain the League of Legends universe. It's also exceptionally wellwritten and provides a first-hand account of the lore relevant tothis piece.

The Void is plane that exists solelyto consume other planes of existence, ever trying to satiate itsinsatiable hunger. Kaisa was a child of 10 when she fell into theVoid. An average, innocent girl suddenly dropped into a place ofpure terror. The Void housed creatures of every size and shape, mostviolent in nature. Kaisa survived off of meager scraps of foodwhile avoiding the otherworldly creatures of the Void, who surelyintended to end her life. Over time in that place, Kaisa became moreadept at survival. She had managed to even slay one of the creatureswith a knife, though it attached itself to her arm as it died. Thiscreature began to spread all over Kaisa's body, forming a hardcarapace and even weapons that would work to protect her Hersurvival instinct and iron will now had a physical counterpart. Sheno longer had to hide. She could now face the monsters from whichshe hid for so long. Kaisa was now able to fight back against theever-encroaching darkness. Kaisa had evolved from hunted to hunter.

Kaisa spent 10 years in the Voidbefore she found a way back to her own world. Using this "gift"from the Void, Kaisa was determined to ensure the Void did not spreadto her own world. She knew she was not the same child from all thoseyears ago. She had seen things that others couldn't fathom in theirworst nightmares. And she would hunt them to ensure that no onewould ever share in the experience. In honor of her new purpose, shechanged her name to Kai'sa in recognition to the place that shapedher.

Kai'sa's character model as well asall associated art (and cinematics) depict her as a young adult womanwith straight black hair, face paint markings (made out of voidspawnblood) and a full body suit with a strange texture. The body suitalso has a weirdly low neck line (which I can only fathom exists totitilate... heh... young boys) and a floating shoulder pod on eachside. The shoulder pods hold missiles which rain down massivedamage. But honestly, they still seem stupid to me. In my opinion,the visual design is easily the worst part of the character.

On the other hand, Kai'sa's abilitiesrepresent her story and character quite well. Her 4 abilities dividenicely into 2 themes present throughout Kai'sa's story: use yourspeed and courage to find your target, and ensure you blast it backto whatever hell it came from. Her abilities are easily adaptable toa wide range of situations. She can use her speed to escape a fightor jump into the middle of it. She can use missiles to ensure herenemies aren't hiding from her or to forcibly separate her opponentsfrom their mortal coils. And her ultimate ability, while not themost flashy, is a perfect encapsulation of Kai'sa and her promise tothe world. She dashes to her foes with lightning speed to meet thethreat face-to-face. Kai'sa's other gameplay mechanic involvesevolving her suit over the course of the game. This can increase herspeed, her damage, or her range (based on the evolved abilities). Survival and adaptation were major themes in the lore. And while Ithink the implementation is a bit bland, the evolution mechanic is ontheme and allows the player to change their approach as needed.

Most who know me are well aware of mybattle with anxiety. Anxiety has been a part of my life for as longas I can remember. In retrospect, I was showing signs of anxiety asyoung as age 5. And into middle and high school, the anxiety was socrippling that I was frequently avoidant of even the most mundanesituations. Reading the story of Kai'sa was like reading afantastical version of my own life. Back then, I felt like I was inthe Void. Everything was terrifying. Everything was ready todestroy me. I could only hide. I could only run.

One night, I was accosted by familymembers for not wanting to attend a school dance. I was too scaredto go. Naturally, it was way easier to find solace and safety invideo games and isolation. Yet the pressure continued. My sisteragreed to help me get ready for the dance I didn't want to attend. And I'll never forget the moment that she ran her hands through myhair and spiked it for the first time. I looked in the mirror andcouldn't believe that I saw the same person. I had adopted my ownvoid carapace, armor and weapons, against the things that terrifiedme. Character lore frequently refers to the void carapace as itchyor feeling like needles on Kai'sa's skin. Obviously this is a stronganalogue for both somatic symptoms of anxiety as well as my ownpersonal history with Eczema (which also contributed to my anxiety ina large way).

As time went on, a new person evolvedfrom the old. I was me. And I didn't have to avoid the monstersanymore. Not long afterward, I adopted the online moniker I keep tothis day, Sir Danzig (Sexalot) Vainglorious. I joined several bands,started dating (badly), and doing all of the other things I was neverable to do. I was fighting my anxiety head-on. I was still scared. But I don't run. Not anymore.

These events also contributed to mydesire to be a therapist. I had lived in the Void. And the Void hadbecome a part of me. Like Kai'sa, I learned that the Void could beterrifying, but could also be a weapon and shield for others againstthat same terror. I'm now fortunate enough to not feel trapped bythe Void. And I'm able to take those experiences, knowledge, andiron will (read: stubbornness) to help others find their own waythrough it. And it's this goal that provides me with the meaning andmotivation to continue fighting.

"TheVoid has taken so much from me, but I refuse to let it takeeverything. These moments, where kindness and humanity shine through,where innocence and trust extinguish fear—they fill me with hopethat we can defeat the rivers of timeless poison that flow beneaththe world."

-Kai'sa,Daughter of the Void