Brought to you by the same studio that made the legendary Crysis series, Hunt: Showdown is a bounty hunting game where you traverse the dark areas of an unknown land and search for monsters.
As is the case with every game released by Crytek, you can expect great graphics and good optimization. However, there is not much else to expect unless you have played the game.
Hunt: Showdown is out now on Early Access via Steam. We had a go at the game and thought we would give you our Hunt: Showdown Impressions.
Let’s go ahead and see whether this is a game that could be something that completely revitalizes the FPS genre with perfectly combining both PvE and PvP elements, or is it just another one of those games that has a great idea but fails to deliver on it.
Hunt: Showdown Impressions
First thing is, that Hunt: Showdown seems to carry over elements of traditional hunting games and mix them up with the new inventory system found in survival games.
Just like Escape from Tarkov, whenever you venture out into the world, your gear is on the line. If you die, you lose it and it can be picked up by other players. However, you can still gain experience with your party as all the experience that you have earned will be transferred to your bloodline (Party).
The game also has a lot of traditional elements. There are bosses which are quite difficult to beat and there are tons of customization options for you to try. Apart from that, the maps will be procedurally generated so you will be playing missions that are completely unlike anything you have ever played before.
As a concept, the game seems amazing, right? But then again, which game doesn’t? So let’s dive right in and see what Hunt: Showdown is worth.
What Is Hunt: Showdown?
In a game like this, it is best if we skip over all of the menu section and the plethora of options that the game provides before you head into the game.
When we launched into a mission, the first thing that we noticed were the absolutely gorgeous graphics. It was kind of expected as the game was developed using the CryEngine, but the experience was still mesmerizing.
The sun shone down on us as we started to walk around and get the feel of the game. The trees were spectacular and the shadows photo perfect. Everything in the game seems to blend seamlessly into the background to give you a rush of excitement, as if you are actually living in the game’s world and hunting monsters in real life.
The game tries to be as realistic as possible in terms of the mechanics. As far as the gunplay is concerned, the game behaves like a simulation shooter would. However, the game is set in a fantasy world and has fantasy elements for you to use.
The monsters also add a bit of a horror element to the game, and there will be numerous times during the course of your playthrough that you will be surprised by a monster coming onto your screen without you even realizing it.
Whether intentional or not, it is quite easy to see how the game carries over certain elements of other games. Just like in DayZ and Escape from Tarkov, you need to look around each location that you enter to ensure there are no other players nearby. You never know where another group of hunters might have set up traps and are patiently waiting for your arrival.
Another thing that is almost impossible to notice is the fact that it is quite clearly an Early Access title. Of course, a lot of these issues will get resolved as the game etches closer to its final state. However, there are quite a lot of bugs and performance issues with the game.
The game is demanding enough as it is, with its minimum processor requirements being a 2.7 GHZ i5 processor along with 8 gigs of ram, so the performance issues can really cause a strain on your hardware.
Perhaps the biggest issue with the game is the clunkiness of the controls. Even when you are watching videos, you can quite clearly see how clunky the controls feel. Although some of that can be justified by the fact that the weapons are supposed to be as realistic as possible, we are starting to see games that do this with finesse like Rising Storm 2 or Squad.
However, Hunt: Showdown fails to impress when it comes to the general feel of the weapons. Whether it be aiming or the animations, the gun mechanics definitely need some work before the final release.
That said; the game seems to show a lot of potential. It is quite easy to see this becoming a title with its very own dedicated following. The fact that it is set in a multiplayer setting and has matchmaking means that finding people to play would not be a problem.
Moreover, in the modern world, where online is king, Hunt: Showdown seems to be a game that understands its own identity and is willing to embrace its very own niche within the world of games.
The biggest reason for that being that it combines so many genres such as FPS, Horror, Survival, Tactical Shooter and RPG. Each of these genres fit in their place perfectly and do not seem forced.
Those were our Hunt: Showdown Impressions. If you have played the game, then let us know what you thought of it using the comments section below!
