What Hodgepodge Hunch is about
Hodgepodge Hunch is a who-done-it game built around cooking. You and the other players split into two groups: the Staff and the Spy. The Staff head into dungeons to gather ingredients and charms, then combine them in the pot for a shot at a high score. The Spy works against that plan from the inside, slipping forbidden ingredients into the pot so the dish turns into a dreaded Hodgepodge. On top of that, the Spy spreads false rumors to make the Staff suspect each other, which is where the arguing and the accusations come from.
The setting follows Cocotte, a former hero who has taken a job at a hotpot shop and is competing in the Hotpot Contest. While practicing with the other staff, the shop's hotpot keeps getting ruined, and the shop itself is invaded by demons, stalkers, and assassins. The Staff have to work out whether there really is a Spy among them, and who it is, while still trying to win the contest.
Playing it with your group
Up to four players can join a session, and the roles are dealt out between them. If your group is short on people, CPUs fill the remaining seats, so you do not need a full lobby to start a round. The Staff side has a defensive tool as well: players can "ban" each other, which limits how many ingredients that person is allowed to put into the pot. That gives the group a way to protect the final dish once suspicion lands on someone.
Between rounds you spend time talking to the other characters, comparing what everyone claims to have done, and deciding who is telling the truth. The tension comes from that conversation as much as from the dungeon runs, since the Spy's rumors are designed to pull the group apart at exactly the wrong moment.
Before you start
The game includes tutorials and a Solo Mode, both of which are populated by CPUs, so you can learn the rules and practice reading the other characters at your own pace before bringing friends in. Expect a mix of two things happening at once: collecting and combining ingredients for score, and keeping a running mental list of who is acting suspicious. Those two jobs are what the Staff has to balance, and the Spy only needs to exploit the gap between them.