Enemy preview
The game telegraphs enemy intentions before they act — showing next moves, attack targets, or damage — so the player plans against known threats rather than reacting to surprises. Into the Breach makes this its central pillar: every enemy attack is previewed, converting combat from reflex into a perfect-information puzzle. Slay the Spire shows enemy intents each turn. Designers use enemy preview to shift the skill from reaction to planning, to make turn-based combat a solvable-but-hard puzzle, and to guarantee fairness (no unavoidable surprise damage). Key decisions: how much is revealed (full intent versus a hint), whether previews can change (bluffs and adaptive enemies), how far ahead (one turn versus several), and preserving tension despite perfect information (limited resources, unavoidable-but-mitigable threats). Pitfall: full preview can make combat feel deterministic and dry if the puzzle has a single clean solution — the design must ensure previewed threats still force painful tradeoffs, not just correct answers.
- Dev effort: Small
- Timing: Turn-based
- Common in: tactics, puzzle