living on a latte and a prayer

Kynseed's gameplay is a great, big trap, and excellent for it.

Spoilers for the first ~10 hours of Kynseed play time.

Kynseed begins with a sandboxed tutorial, in which you play as a child to learn the mechanics of the game. It's likely that by the end of the tutorial, you will have grown attached to a lot of the local NPCs. So when you are asked which of two NPCs to sacrifice to appease the gods, it can hit hard.

During the festival of Summertide, a Herald is chosen to be sacrificed to the local deities, who grant protection for all the people of the valley in exchange. You choose whose life to trade for safety and power for everyone. One of the potential Heralds is even excited and willing to be the sacrifice, happily vanishing into thin air, never to be seen again.

Shortly after this traumatic event ends, the game's (arguably) main antagonist—the Fel Fae, Mr. Fairweather—offers his condolences for what you've been through. He acknowledges the practice of asking a mere child to pick the community sacrifice feels barbaric and small-minded. He implies that this is a practice no one should be comfortable with.

At the time he says this to you, you probably believe it. It feels good to have your shock acknowledged. It feels good not to be the only one judging the sacrificial rituals of this odd, little valley. It feels good to look down your nose at this tasteless practice.

And then he offers you power.

After the tutorial section, you skip ahead to adulthood. Mr. Fairweather begins to offer you magical artifacts to make gameplay much easier.

The price? Your life.

You see, in exchange for a mere 2 to 5 years of your lifespan—as well as the complete surrender of all remaining life beyond age 50—you can make your remaining years immensely easier. In fact, the artifacts you get in return for your life essence pass down your family line. When the original PC dies, you continue playing as the PC's child, who then also benefits from the deals you struck.

So, knowing all that, who wouldn't take what's being offered? After all, it's only a few years of your life per incredible artifact. And you don't mind dying so much after age 50, having lived a full life before that. And it helps more than just you. What's not to like?

And yet...

...aren't you trading a human being's life in exchange for a form of protection?

Is this not the same deal that was struck with the Summertide Herald?

But unlike your deal, at least the Herald's deal protects an entire valley. Meanwhile, your deal protects only you and yours. And since all choices for the Herald are the eldest members of their community, the Herald got to live out the entirety of their lifespan. Meanwhile, you carelessly toss your life away at the mere age of 50, not to mention all the years lost to artifact acquisition.

Perhaps now you understand why the community might agree to this arrangement.