The King is Watching is an upcoming game that combines city-building and tower defence, centred on the constraint that resource-producing buildings only work when the king is looking at them. Players must continually move the king’s limited area of focus between wells, forests, farms, markets and other buildings while preparing troops to repel approaching monsters. This creates pressure to prioritise competing tasks, making attention management as important as town layout or military planning.

Initially, the king can oversee just three tiles in an L-shaped pattern, encouraging players to place complementary buildings carefully or concentrate production for a single resource. Enemies advance in waves and bosses require an army at the gates, while unlockable spells can slow foes, transform them into sheep or inflict extra damage. The article portrays the game as deliberately busy and distracting, asking players to decide which urgent signals can temporarily be ignored.