Kingdom of Loathing (abbreviated KoL) is a browser-based multiplayer role-playing game designed and operated by Asymmetric Publications, including creator Zack "Jick" Johnson with a small team.

It uses hand-drawn stick figure graphics and writing characterized by surreal humor, word play, parody and references to popular culture.

In KoL, a player's character fights monsters for experience, and acquiring meat (the game's currency), and/or items, through a turn-based system.

These players form an active community which frequently organizes fan meet-ups and runs an internet radio station.

[2] Gameplay involves fighting monsters, completing quests, gaining skills and stats, and accumulating items and meat.

[5] Players who successfully defeat a monster receive experience points, pieces of meat (the game's currency), and various items.

Characters can combine items by using "meat paste" (a substance analogous to glue),[7] and can also cook food, mix cocktails and smith weapons and armor.

[4] Puzzle-solving is an important part of the game, with the solutions often involving a certain item combination or the completion of tasks in different zones.

[5] While Kingdom of Loathing's player versus environment content is largely single-player, some features allow multiplayer interaction.

[8] The game features an integrated chat system which is available only after completing a basic test of English grammar and spelling.

In 2008, a multiplayer dungeon was added which allows clan members to raid cooperatively in Hobopolis, the underground city of hobos.

[9] Additional clan dungeons have since been added, including the Slimetube, Dreadsylvania, and the limited-time Haunted Sorority House.

[6] This functionality has created a complex in-game economy which author Ted Friedman, in his book Electric Dreams: Computers in American Culture, described as "vibrant".

[4] Ascending players can also choose to make their ascension more difficult by taking on various restrictions, such as not being able to eat or drink,[4] in exchange for special rewards.

The game is humorous in nature, and most quests, battles and individual item descriptions include jokes, witticisms, or references to popular culture.

[13] In Me and My Nemesis, when the player first arrives to the kingdom and finishes the tutorial, they are advised to join their class's Guild Hall.

After defeating them for the fourth and final time, the nemesis will destroy the statue, burying themself as well as their lair, but no mystical artifact to be found.

Prior to the Naughty Sorceress Quest, the Council of Loathing will gives quests to the character as they increase in level,[15] from finding a mosquito larvae to starting (and finishing) a war between the Hippies and the Frat Boys, all in hopes to either fixing issues around the kingdom, finding possible ways to defeat the Naughty Sorceress, or for profitable gain.

After finding the wand, the character will fight the Naughty Sorceress once more and rearrange the spelling of her all-caps attack to counterattack, eventually leading to her sausage defeat.

However, they also reveal that jumping into the Astral Gash will allow the character to ascend to Valhalla, afterlife hub of reincarnations and new routes, and only then will the monsters stop attacking the kingdom.

[13] The game was released in early 2003,[17] and Johnson soon invited his childhood friend Josh Nite to contribute content as a writer and designer.

[20] According to Nite, the game's writing style owes itself to a humorous email exchange between himself and Johnson that began when the two separated after high school.

[24] Fans often gather at both official conventions, run by Asymmetric, and unofficial player-organized meet-ups,[12] including the annual KoLumbus event.

[21] Players support the game by writing scripts to perform various in-game functions, using Greasemonkey, Java, Perl, and Lua, and have also developed a player-run wiki which offers puzzle solutions and walkthroughs.

[4][27] Longtime player and nerdcore rapper MC Frontalot is active in the community[28] and included a Kingdom of Loathing-themed song on his 2010 album Zero Day.

[29] Brett Bixler, founder of the Educational Gaming Commons at Pennsylvania State University, has hypothesized that the Kingdom of Loathing community is successful because it accounts for Richard Bartle's model of player personality types in massively multiplayer online roleplaying games, creating a balanced gameplay system that appeals to a wide variety of players.

[32] Critical response for Kingdom of Loathing has been generally positive, with consistent praise for the game's humor and surrealism.

[36] Gamezebo criticized the interface, calling it "clunky",[3] and several reviewers expressed concern that the game might be confusing to new players.

Johnson denied the allegations of physical abuse, although admitting to "emotional immaturity and anger and cruelty" in a written apology.