Reigns: Her Majesty

Posted byShira ChessPosted inGames for CirclesTags:, , , , ,

Synopsis:
Reigns: Her Majesty is a strategy card-based game that takes place in a fictional Renaissance-like society. The player directs the action of a rotating (reincarnating) set of queens, deciding on choices (through swipe actions) based on advice from various advisors. While the game is a sequel, it is standalone and (arguably) better than the original, and authored by feminist game journalist Leigh Alexander.

Who Should Play:
Reigns: Her Majesty is probably not a good first game for a novice gaming circle, but it is a good game for people who have played a few other games. The swiping mechanic is easy to pick up, but the game itself can be a bit confusing with little direction if you don’t follow a game walkthrough. It is good for discussion.

Made by: Producer: Devolver Digital; Developer: Nerial

Available on: Android, iOS, Linux, Mac OS, Microsoft, Nintendo Switch

Price: $2.99

Play time: 3-10 hours (average 5)

Questions about Reigns: Her Majesty:

  1. How does regular death in the game (the fact that part of play was your character dying over and over) affect your feelings while playing?
  2. How many of the choices you made in this game were based on what you would do in reality versus pragmatism of doing what you think would work best?
  3. When you did make pragmatic choices, did that make you feel differently about leadership and governance in the real world? How so?
  4. Was this game too complicated?
  5. Did you feel compelled to complete the game? For those of you who finished, was that completion worthwhile?
  6. There are other versions of the game that are not queen-centric. How do you think you might have responded differently to those games?
  7. The game has a sort of wry sense of humor. How did this affect your feelings and play?
  8. Did you enjoy the binary (yes/no) type mechanics? Was there something pleasurable in its similarity to non-game (swiping) apps?

General Gaming Circle Questions:

  1. What did and didn’t you like about the game?
  2. How much time did you spend playing? Did you play all at once or break up your time?
  3. Did you play during other activities, or dedicate time solely to playing?
  4. Did the game feel like a waste of time? A good use of time? Explain.

Links & Walkthroughs:

• App Unwrapper (Walkthrough)
• Touch Arcade (Walkthrough)

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