Cryptemental

Theme

The theme of the game jam this was an entry of was 'aberration'. I took two approaches to this as "an unknown spin on what is known" and "beating destiny with your own power."

The creatures you find in this game are similar to our own but come from neighboring dimensions but with slight twists. A unicorn would be a great example, as it is similar to our own dimension's horse, but with magical powers and a horn.

In this game, you can deny destined damage by staggering enemies before they even get to attack. The strength of this will that fate holds in the enemy attacks being successful is communicated through the dice present in the game. For more information, read on.

Controls

This game was made to be played with keyboard but it is compatible with xbox controllers. Other controllers have not been tested. Direction inputs can only be performed with the left joystick and not D-pad.

Field Controls

W or ↑	Move forward
AD or ←→	Turn either direction
S or ↓	Turn around

Battle Controls

WASD/Arrows	Left Joystick	Command Selection
Enter	A	Command Comfirm
Backspace	B	Command Cancel / Undo

Goal

Your goal is to find the exit rift of any given labyrinth and to get through as many labyrinths and possible. The exit rift looks like a spinning portal emanating a blue light.

Entering a rift will fully heal the party and rest some of the protagonist's SP, so finding them quickly is key to success.

Battle

Venturing around a maze for long enough will attract creatures to your location. Your danger gauge will rise from blue, to green, to yellow, to red, indicating how close you are to an encounter. Once creatures have appeared it is important to understand how to master this combat system.

Affinities

Every creature has affinities that they are susceptible to and those that they aren't. These are a creature's resistances and weaknesses. In order to be successful in combat, you must be able to identify a creature's weakness and exploit it to end the conflict as fast as possible. 

Dice

At the start of your turn, each enemy will roll dice. These dice indicate a creatures posture and how prepared it is for it's next attack. This can be exploited as well to gain the upper hand. Striking an enemy with lower it's dice value by one point, and striking their weakness will lower it by 3. If an enemy's dice have been eradicated, they will become staggered, receiving extra damage on further attack this turn and will be forced to forfeit their retaliation attack. While striking bursting enemies down is an effective tactic, it also pays to be smart.

Recruitment

Occasionally after battle, a defeated creature would like to join your team and you'll be provided a selection of two choices. Either you forfeit some of your health and give up on a creature already in your party. It is recommended that you switch out your party members as often as possible as recruited creatures can not regenerate SP unlike the protagonist. The choice is ultimately yours.

That should do in regards to the game. Thank you for reading and playing and I hope you have a lot of fun! :)