One game that I have enjoyed playing recently is Super Auto Pets.
Super Auto Pets is a unilateral competition-style game where players assemble a team of up to 5 pets that battle against other teams. The player starts off with 10 coins every turn that they can use to purchase pets or buy items from a shop. Both pets and items cost 3 gold each and the user can reroll the shop by spending one gold. Every pet and item has a certain effect that contributes to the game. After the player declares their turn is finished, the team that the player assembled faces off against a random player’s team of the same turn. Each pet has a certain amount of attack and health. The pets fight in order of their lineup by subtracting their attack from the opponent’s health. A team can either win, lose, or draw. A team wins by defeating all opposing pets and draws when both teams have no pets remaining. The teams roll over every turn so choices made in the prior round effect future rounds. The goal of the game is to get 10 wins before receiving 5 losses.
Team synergy, the random nature of the shop, and opponent play contribute to providing a competitive game aesthetic. Each pet has its own special ability that may or may not work with other pets. This allows for fun combos that can enhance the gameplay. Further, since the shop is randomized, the team composition will never be the same making it difficult to field a competitive team every game. Finally, opponents are randomized so the types of teams that a player goes against are varied. The goal of winning the whole game by achieving 10 wins also sets an arbitrary obstacle that the user must overcome.
