Domina is a gladiatorsimulation video game developed by Bignic and released into early access through Steam on April 3, 2017. In the game, the player takes on the role of a woman who must manage her father's ludus and train gladiators in order to restore its reputation.
On September 2, 2022, Domina was removed from sale on Steam following several comments made by the developer in the game's update notes, which were interpreted as transphobic[1]. Since September 5, the game has been available for purchase on Gumroad.[2])
Gameplay
Domina feature both real-time combat and gladiator management, where the player can train and purchase new armor and weaponry.[3] During fights, the player can control a single gladiator in order to combat hostile, AI-controlled opponents.[4]
Reception
Eurogamer Italia's Davide Pessach gave the game 8 out of 10, stating that "the experience is really fun".[5] Nate Crowley of Rock Paper Shotgun called the game "ultra-brutal" and mentioned "wild balance issues", but concluded by praising the soundtrack, calling it "fucking spectacular".[6]PC Gamer's Christopher Livingstone also praised the game, calling it "a lot of fun" but criticized the AI of allied gladiators.[7]
Controversy
On March 12, 2022, developer Bignic added an anti-mask message to Domina' patch notes, writing "Women don't like dudes who cover their faces in fear. What are you afraid of? Getting laid? Grow up." The game was subsequently review bombed by Steam users.[8][9]
In early August 2022, Bignic was banned from Domina's Steam community forum for making inflammatory comments towards other forum members. Bignic responded in a patch note for Domina, stating that "if you hold a mirror up to the world 80% of them will throw a brick at you." Insults were also directed at Valve in response to the ban. Bignic had also previously flagged several Steam reviews for the game as "fraudulent" and "lying." The reviews in question were cleared by Steam's review moderation team and thus remained on the platform, prompting Bignic to insult Valve further.[10]
Later that month, all of Bignic's games were removed for sale from Steam due to the presence of transphobic comments within Domina's patch notes, including insults aimed at transgender Canadian streamerKeffals.[11][12][13]
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
