In Hypochondrinomicon, you need to plan out your attacks after viewing your enemy, choosing the best way you think you can counter their moves, and then let them play out for good or bad.
This beautifully animated pixel art action game has you picking one character (who will then affect how challenging the game is) before you start taking on various enemies. These enemies are under the effects of the Hypochondrinomicon, which has turned animals into monsters.
Taking them on, however, is a task of planning. Your character has a set amount of energy that can be used per fight, as well as four different places to put in attacks. This looks like four blank buttons down the side of the screen. Your enemy has a matching list of buttons, but there are different attacks placed in their slots. You can see what these attacks do to help you plan out what exactly you’d like to do. Your selection of attacks can be found at the bottom of the screen, as well as the number of energy each move takes.
You’ll have to plan out which attacks can be used to counter the enemy’s attacks and help you survive. Some attacks disable the attack an enemy is going to make, while others combo up if the enemy has already used a set amount of skills. Once you have locked in what you want to do, you’ll start the round. There’s nothing left to do but watch in anticipation while you continue fighting down that loop until one of you dies. After some rounds, you’ll gain more attacks which you can then play around with when you face the next enemy.
Hypochondrinomicon has a pretty interesting concept, especially since, once you have set your moves, there is nothing you can do but let it play out. In the demo I played at EGX 2019, I had a good time reading through the moves and picking out exactly what I needed. Paired with the lovely pixel art animations, this is a game to keep your eye on.
Hypochondrinomicon is currently in development, but in the meantime, you can find more information on the game’s site.