The King is Watching Review

I’ve been glued to my screen for the past week playing The King is Watching, and it’s essentially completely hijacked my free time between other games. I usually start with “let me just get a few minutes in” but, well, it never last just a few minutes. Ever.

The King is Watching takes a brilliantly simple concept and runs with it: what if your workers only did their jobs when you were literally watching them? It sounds like a joke about office productivity, but Hypnohead turned it into one of the most addictive roguelike kingdom builders I’ve played in years.

The Gaze That Pays

Congratulations. You’re a king. (Starting as a mouse king, fittingly), and your kingdom operates on a single 4×4 grid. You’ve got farms, mines, barracks, all the usual medieval fantasy stuff. But there’s the catch: these buildings only work when they’re under your royal gaze, which starts as this L-shaped Tetris piece you can move around the grid.

This mechanic transforms what could’ve been another generic tower defense game into something truly special. You’re constantly making split-second decisions about where to focus. Do I watch the wheat farms to feed my troops? Or supervise the barracks to pump out more swordsmen before the next wave? Maybe I should check on those iron mines… oh wait, the goblins are already at my gates!

The King is Watching starts you off gently enough. Begin by building some wells, unlocking some forests, watching all three of them to gather resources. Pretty standard stuff. Then you recruit your first peasants just in time for the enemy waves, and that’s when things get interesting. The real-time nature means you’re always scrambling for incoming attacks, but you can pause whenever you need to catch your breath and plan your next move.

The Medieval Machine

Resource management in The King is Watching goes deeper than you’d expect from looking at screenshots. You’ve got 14 different resources split between basic and advanced types. Water, wheat, wood, ore…these are your bread and butter. But then you’ve got crystal for magic units, grapes for… well, I’ll let you discover that yourself. And each resource building uses finite nodes that don’t regenerate, so every placement matters.

What really pushes things to the next level in the genre though is the prophecy system. After a few waves, you get to essentially design your own difficulty curve. You can stack up to three layers of enemies in upcoming waves, choosing between easy blue enemies (small rewards), orange intermediates (decent loot), or red risky encounters (big rewards if you survive). It’s like the game asking “how confident are you feeling with this current build?” every few minutes. Had a rough start? Take it easy with the blues. Having the best RNG of your life? Double down with the reds.

The troop variety also caught me off guard. Most tower defense games give you maybe five or six unit types and call it a day. In The King is Watching you’ve got swordsmen that buff each other, mushroom warriors, undead armies, goose riders (yes, really), ash dragons, and dozens more. Each unit type has its own stats and passive abilities that synergize with others of the same type. My personal favorite strategy involves stacking up the swordsmen. They get 2% stronger for each other swordsman you own, which snowballs ridiculously fast once you get some on the battlefield.

Beyond Your Village

While most of your time will be spent defending your starting village, the Graveyard map adds a whole new layer of strategy. Instead of just using gold (well, Denarii), you’re collecting relics by sending out Ruin Scouts or fighting special enemies. It changes the entire economy and forces you to adapt your strategies. The atmosphere shifts too as gone are the bright greens and blues of the village, replaced with a darker, more ominous vibe that reminds me of The Nightmare Before Christmas rendered in pixels. It’s a complete change up in playstyle which is awesome for an already extensive roguelike.

Between runs, you’re spending Town Denarii (earned based on how long you survived) to unlock permanent upgrades. There are seven different kings to play as, each with unique abilities that drastically change your approach. The mouse king you start with is balanced and straightforward, but wait until you see some of the later ones that you can unlock. Without spoiling too much, one king completely changes how resource generation works, while another turns combat on its head. Each king is a unique playstyle which, once again, further bolsters the roguelike experience here.

You’ve also got 28 advisors to unlock, including Gustav the duck with glasses who guides you through tutorials. These advisors provide various buffs and bonuses, and choosing the right combination can make or break a run. The meta-progression feels meaningful without being too grindy as every run teaches you something new, whether it’s a unit combination you hadn’t tried or a building placement that maximizes efficiency.

Will the King Watch You?

After spending way too many hours with The King is Watching, I can confidently say it’s worth your attention. It takes familiar genres – roguelike, tower defense, city builder – and combines them in a way that feels fresh. The gaze mechanic isn’t just a gimmick; it fundamentally changes how you approach resource management and combat.

I could keep going about unit synergies, boss strategies, or the surprisingly deep lore hidden in item descriptions. But here’s what you really need to know: The King is Watching respects your intelligence while remaining accessible. It’s challenging without being punishing, deep without being overwhelming, and addictive in the best possible way.

If you’re into roguelikes, strategy games, or just want something different from the usual indie fare, give this one a shot. Just clear your schedule first, as the King demands your attention, and trust me, you’ll want to give it. The developers are actively improving the game based on feedback with several key QOL patches already, and with all the kings and advisors to unlock, you’ll have plenty to keep you busy.

Now if you’ll excuse me, my goose riders await.