First Look: The Hunter

An incredibly unique title through and through, The Hunter boasts a myriad of thoroughly innovative features that I've yet to see offered in either the current wave of first person shooters or the wide assortment of MMO properties that currently line the market.

First Look: The Hunter

While my only hunting experience including bouts of laser tag or perhaps dodging high-speed Nerf darts as they fly through the GamePro offices, I didn't quite know what to expect when I went into Avalanche Interactive's The Hunter. Sure, we've all seen the stacks of budget hunting games lined up on your way out of Target, Wal-Mart or Best Buy, but something about blowing away polygonal buck never really intrigued me - much less made me want to dish out $9.99 for the virtual experience. However, an hour after the good people from Emote Studios came down to show off their latest title, The Hunter -- a massively multiplayer online hunting experience -- I was just about ready to throw on my Catcher in the Rye gear and declare it open season with this unique MMO experience.

An incredibly unique title through and through, The Hunter boasts a myriad of thoroughly innovative features that I've yet to see offered in either the current wave of first person shooters or the wide assortment of MMO properties that currently line the market. Equal parts social networking and old fashion hunting, The Hunter allows each user to truly experience the game in the way that they want to, accommodating various hunting styles and techniques from across the globe. Where some players may be more dedicated to camping and waiting for that trophy buck to come prancing along, other gamers might want to get a bit of recreational hunting in before heading to work or in between lunch breaks. The hunter is incredibly obliging to any and all styles and forms of hunting, featuring a rich hunting environment, drastic changes in the game's weather, and incredibly realistic animal behavior. A "pick-up-and-play" attitude is open from the moment you grab your rifle, but with such an amazingly in-depth world to explore and camp on, you're almost guaranteed to never have the same hunting experience twice.

First Look: The Hunter

Hunt with Dick Cheney

The social networking aspect of The Hunter is a large part of the equation, and just as important as actually tracking that trophy buck. Each hunter is given a unique profile page -- similar to FaceBook or MySpace -- where users are allowed to post journal entries, pin-point locations of their favorite hunting spots, or even show off in-game photographs of their latest trophies. The profile pages highly modifiable, individual hunters can choose the way that they're seen by their peers on almost all accounts. If you want to be the hunting shut-in that won't dare share his hunting hot-spots in light of showing off his hard-earned trophy collection, then go for it. If you're the social butterfly who'd rather exchange tips on what gear you should take out into the wilderness or which mission you should tackle next, you have a whole community of like-minded gamers at your disposal to make friends with. Profile pages are also accessible via mobile devices, so you can constantly check on the hunting terrain, the hottest gun-slingers out there, and the latest buck reports on the go.

Featuring a hands-on development team that I can only describe as incredibly passionate about this project, stunning next-gen graphics that I was in shock to find in a hunting sim, and an absolutely engaging hunting experience filled with customization, networking, and unprecedented realism, The Hunter blew me out of the water with it's wide assortment of features and fantastically intricate gameplay mechanics. Oh, and did I mention that it's FREE? That's right -- the entire online experience that is The Hunter won't cost you a dime to play with a free downloadable client and interactive game world. You supply the internet connection, Avalanche and Emote supplies the rest.

Say what you will about the hunting genre (I know I've said quite a bit), but The Hunter looks to turn the entire experience on its head with its assortment of revolutionary features and an enormous social community that's yet to be seen in any other hunting experience. Hunting enthusiasts and curious parties alike should keep an eye out for The Hunter to hit the 'net in the near future, and stay tuned to the official Hunter website for more details on this extraordinary experiment as they come in.

First Look: The Hunter

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