theHunter: Call of the Wild™

Graphics – 5/5

Stunning! theHunter is a first-person simulator, with the highly detailed realistic world, where every leaf or blade of grass, every scream or breath matters. Various terrains with lots of species to track look like the Happy Hunting Ground you’re lucky to visit while alive. The animals look like they’ve been filmed, and interface elements are mostly hidden and only show when needed now. There’s no option of third person view, and it just enhances the immersion.

Gameplay – 5/5

What do you expect from the game called theHunter? As you start, you select the character, his or her appearance, and the first land to hunt. You’re guided by some local wizard, each time with specific manners and perfect awareness, no matter if it’s Scotland or Africa. With your rifle, binoculars, and instructions you pursue an animal and hunt it down. Don’t hurry, or you’ll be noticed.

Then your mission may differ. Though hunting is, in fact, killing, your character is opposed to some really wicked ones, like poaches or predators. You’ll need to complete more complicated missions to become rather a protector than a ruthless hunter.

Your trophies are stored in a special section, and your success always brings you money you can spend on new weapons and equipment. These can also be obtained with DLC packs featuring many innovations each.
Every little thing counts. Watch the trails. Listen to the sounds. Mind your own sounds and don’t get noticed. And follow what locals tell you to do: their accents may sound funny, but the wisdom they bring is good.

Controls – 5/5

That’s the case the controlling is perfect. Each call for action is accompanied with an exact instruction what to do. The basic operations (moving, selecting devices, interaction, camera rolling) are bound to traditional controls: WASD, numbers, E, mouse movement. The right button is for aiming, left one is for pulling the trigger. Other actions are always explained, too. The only serious downside is limited gamepad support, down to none at all.

Replay Value – 5/5

We have said: it’s the Happy Hunting Ground that never exhausts. Nor is it only due to procedural terrain generation and AI-controlled smart animals, but also because of numerous DLC packs, expanding your geography to new lands. Along with reserves, DLC packs include new species, weapons, equipment, and campaigns. Besides that, you can have several games simultaneously, checking your skills grow. After the release in 2017 theHunter review needs to be rewritten each time the new DLC appears.

The Bottom Line

No byte of the 36 GB theHunter requires is wasted. The game is probably the best hunting simulator for PC available so far, and you will probably like it. Those familiar with its console version may be confused by lack of gamepad support, but keyboard and mouse are fine too.