I completed this game in two sittings, a 45-minute session and the rest of the game in the other (about 4 hours and a half). This game isn't perfect, has a few flaws and has some mechanics that definitely could have been fleshed out more in the end. But honestly? The amount of games that can hold my attention for me to want to actually finish it are dwindling every year and Yes, Your Grace is another I can add to my list.

I'll be honest: my entire life I've clung to this power trip in my head that I'd love to be a king in all its medieval glory. Deciding over matters both trivial and grand, juggling relationships with neighbouring kings and lords for favours when I need them, fill my coffers and chests with all the gold and food you can eat? Sign me up yesterday. Yes, Your Grace let me live that fantasy for a few hours with a bunch of rewarding storytelling to boot.

No, not every event unlocks a chain of grand consequences that shape the rest of the story. Yes, you're bottle-necked into certain events that HAVE to take place in order for the story to continue. But there's plenty of variety regarding the people you can side with, issues you can decide on, peasants you can deny because you're either suspecting them of bull******** you or you just don't like the colour of their shirt that day. Or your General is out shaking pots in random villages for gold to drop out and they can't help that particular villager's raiding bandit problem of the day. It all has SOME consequence; people come back to you reporting on how your choice benefited or negatively impacted their community. Or some guard will drag in some shmuck you handed half your gold to because he said he'd invest it for you but ended up boozing it all away. What you do feels like it matters.

In between all this decision-making you get to be a father and husband to your royal family. This part particularly impressed me. I don't know what it is, but conferring with your wife who gives you valuable advice on how to approach certain issues your kingdom is facing just felt so... humane. You felt part of that marriage, you felt that Eryk and Aurelea trusted each other and she helped rule the kingdom as much as you did. You felt that support man. That support of someone who loves you and cares for you but also trusts you to make decisions they might not particularly agree with. Add to that your daughters with wildly different but engaging personalities and you've got a family life that might draw you in as much as it did me.

This game genuinely tugged at my heart strings several times. It's got death, betrayal, plot twists, magic, war... and family. Highly recommended. Give it a chance, let it charm you. You'll find it hard not to check on your kingdom that one extra week.