Kādomon - Hyper Auto Battlers Preview

Have you ever wondered what would happen if you mashed Pokémon together with a deck-building game like Slay the Spire? Roguelike title Kādomon — Hyper Auto Battlers is here to satisfy your curiosity. Australian indie game studio Dino Rocket has created this title to combine everything you love about the monster-collecting and deck-building genres to make something that feels totally different from those previously mentioned titles. Will this mix result in a game that is fun and addictive to play?

Upon starting the game, you will instantly realise that, at this time, there is no controller support, so you will be using your mouse for all the actions. I started with the tutorial to learn what I was doing before jumping into the main game. We meet Professor Gnock — a gnome that everyone calls Professock — this researcher will help guide you through your adventures in this mysterious world. We learn that this world is full of mysterious creatures, known as Kādomon, that you will both battle against and team up with if you can prove that you’re strong enough.

Professor Gnock informs you that if you want to meet them all, you will need to be prepared to fight. But, at the moment, you don’t have anyone to battle with, so he offers you the choice of three rare Kādomon that you can select from to start building a team. Pick from: Beleaf: a grass type who isn’t very strong on its own but excels at supporting allies at the start of a battle; Monku: a fire type who is an aggressive fighter who can quickly counter attacks coming from its opponents; or Creeze: a water type that is great at defence and is able to protect itself and its allies. Once you have made your choice of who is going to accompany you, the professor gives you a Gnock to help you fight. This little gnome isn’t the strongest, but at this point, anything will help!

Here, we are taken through everything on the user interface that appears when you start your adventure. Placed at the top of the screen, there is a metre that helps you keep track of the Kādomon that you have on your team. If you acquire two or more of the same type, you will unlock abilities called Synergies that will combine their attacks to unleash a powerful strike. There is a map of the region that you will be exploring, showing multiple routes that you can travel to get to your goal. Some of these paths seem easier than others and offer opportunities to acquire new items and characters, along with spots to rest and reorganise your team at the campfire. Each path has 11 nodes to visit, including battle spaces that have you fighting the Kādomon that reside there or event spaces to acquire items and cards. On the left-hand side of the screen, you will be able to see which types of creatures you may encounter at that location. In the beginning, the images of the Kādomon will be silhouettes, but as you battle the different ones, you will be able to see exactly who you may be facing.

Enough with the descriptions; let’s dive into the fun part, the battling. Select the node where you want to travel, and then you will select which Kādomon you will be using, what order, and their position; this will matter more than the members you select for the team. Some characters do better being placed right at the front so that they can protect their allies, while others are better placed towards the back to offer rear support. To switch up the order, just click on the Kādomon you want to move and drag them to the spot you want. Once everything is placed in position, it’s time to jump into battle. This is where you lose control and the Kādomon take over and start fighting the wild creatures attacking.

Both sides will start attacking, throwing water drops, chunks of ice, leaves, rocks, and other items, depending on their type. They will also help teammates out with shields to raise defence and batteries to increase their morale. When a Kādomon loses all their morale and the metre hits zero, they will faint and be taken out of that battle, though they will be back for the next fight. If you are victorious, you will gain a variety of rewards to power up your team, along with a choice of a Kādomon that you were just fighting to add to your group. You can look at each of the character cards to see their stats and attacks and pick the best fit for your deck. There are a lot of really cute Kādomon that you will encounter, so it’s hard to pick the strongest one when you just want the strong scorpion Scorpet or the adorable kitty Whispurr! The reward pyramid also gives you golden berries to spend at the shop, Field Effects — permanent bonuses, and Reward Items that give you a special attack to use. Along with this, all the Kādomon in your group will earn experience points. Once their XP bar is full, something “wonderful” happens, which will strengthen your team. Even if you lose the battle, the game will give you some rewards, so you won’t leave empty-handed; you will just have to start at the beginning of that route again.

I’ve been having a tonne of fun playing Kādomon — Hyper Auto Battlers. Since this is a preview, as soon as you battle the main boss of that area, your game is done. It was really different not being able to select the attacks that my character was doing and who the target was. Though, it was entertaining to sit back and observe the battle as it happened. If you find it to be slow and tedious to watch through, there is the option to fast-forward the fight and make it end faster if you choose. I am looking forward to seeing the 180 plus Kādomon that will be available in the full release and all the new areas that will be available to explore. This is a vibrant and fun title that is sure to be worth keeping an eye on!