Hunter: The Reckoning

"The hunt has begun..."

Based on the supernatural pen and paper RPG of the same name,Hunter is half Resident Evil and half Zombie Revenge(DC/Arcade).Players who love gore,slaying monsters and lots and lots of gunplay will feel right at home in the nightmarish town of Ashcroft.

Gameplay:Players who have played the recent onslaught of the Gauntlet(PS2,GC,DC,XBOX) games will feel right at home in Hunter.Basically,Hunter plays from a semi top down perspective(much like Gauntlet).Four players can play cooperatively through each of the game’s 23 different stages.WOW!23 stages you say?Settle down,most of the stages are really short featuring only a short walk from point A to point B before you move on(some of the larger stages need you to find certain items or keys to advance so its not all moving from A to B).But on the other hand some are really long,so it balances out to maybe having 17 or 18 stages if they’re all in equal length.Still,that’s more than enough right?After all,who wants to play through hundreds of stages and never see the end?Each of the stages will usually introduce some sort of new enemy(although they’re usually palette swaps of creatures you’ve encounter earlier).But even taking that into account,there’re still lots of different kinds of baddies which range from the normal zombies to the pee-in-your-pants bosses.Besides,you won’t have time to look at the baddies in detail as they’ll be swarming all over you the second you let up.The feeling of getting mobbed by a group of staggering zombies while slowly backing up and unloading everything you have is incredible and EXTREMELY satisfying.But even that could be marred if the zombies move awkwardly.Thank god that’s not happening in Hunter.Everything in the game is animated nicely with arms and heads flying of zombies and other creatures as you pummel them repeatedly.Even playing with 4 players,there’s no noticeable drop in animation and the frame rate stays silky smooth.

Players can choose from 4 hunters,each with their own individual strength and weaknesses.As an added bonus,if you play through the game as the same character,you’ll increase in abilities and become stronger.Not a bad move,considering it gives you incentive to play.But AFTER you finish the game,your powered up characters cannot be reused in a new game…Bummer!That’s one of my peeves with the game.If only stronger characters could be reused again,it’d give even MORE incentive to replay the game.Also,playing with more than a single player will reveal another flaw.The game screen will not stretch if you have more than 1 player.What do I mean?Basically,you cannot move away from the screen if you’re at the edge.There’s some sort of barrier that stops you.So if a horde of zombies close in on you while your teammates are on the other side of the screen,prepare to get munched on because the game wont let you out of the screen(even if there’s space behind you).If only they had included a zoom away feature,the game would be a blast to play at parties.As it is,the only way to survive in a multiplayer game is to stick close together(which is sometimes hard when you’re dodging projectiles…).Also,those hoping to go toe to toe using melee weapons will be sad to know that doing so will get you killed.Since there’s no way to block,you’ll be playing a battle of attrition if you decide to mix it up mano-a-mano.That’s probably unwise because they’re too many of the enemies to do much good anyway.That means 2 of the game’s characters are more or less useless(Avenger’s main strength is well…strength and Martyr’s is speed).Since guns are the way to go,the only useful characters are the priest and the sultry cop because of their high accuracy(higher the accuracy,the more damage your range weapons will have).Again,this problem could have been EASILY avoided if the game lets you save your boosted characters after you finish the game…

Gameplay rating:7/10

Visuals:While definitely not the best yet for the Xbox system,the graphics are definitely impressive.Good character models,great detail and lots of effects(bump mapping,specular lighting…just to name a few)abound in each and every level.Levels are also quite detailed,with glass that shatter when shot or weeds that sway in the wind.Anything that’s visible on the field(benches,chairs,cars…etc)can all be destroyed.Destroying everything in sight is also key as blowing up a car will take out nearly monsters or destroying a wall might lead to hidden goodies.You can also expect flying limbs and blood when each hit connects.Needless to say,bagging a zombie and then watching its head fly off is extremely graphic but deeply satisfying…in a twisted,perverse sort of way.This definitely isn’t a game for the kiddies,folks.Of particular note is the water ripples.No other game(save for Baldur’s Gate on the PS2)has such beautiful looking water that reacts to everything.Beautiful…simply beautiful.

Visuals rating:8/10

Sound:The music in Hunter is sparse and will only come on during boss fights or when you’re fighting a MASSIVE group of enemies.It works fairly well since you know you’re in for a fight when the music comes on.Silence,though,rules the rest of the game.You won’t hear any music during your romp through the stages.It wouldn’t be too bad if the sound effects were excellent but in Hunter,they’re kind of underwhelming.The shotgun’s ‘boom’ doesn’t really have that deep bass sound to it and neither does the magnum.A shame really,because avid CounterStrike players will tell you in a game with no music,the sounds of weapons can really make or break a game.The weakest of all is the priest’s crossbow which sounds more like somebody hitting a wall with a wooden stick instead of a deep thud as the arrow lodges in its target.On the other hand,Martyr’s twin pistols are nicely done and captures a pistol’s blast rather admirably.Other aspects of the sound in the game,like the zombies’ moaning and the various other sound effects also sound nice and creepy.All in all everything sounds good except for the weapons(and yes,the voice overs,though rare are decent).

Sound rating:6.5/10

Controls:Ah,here Hunter truly shines.To my knowledge,Hunter is the first game of its kind to use dual analog sticks.One is for movement while the other to aim.So strafing sideways while aiming forwards is a breeze to accomplish.This set up also allows you to retreat while laying down suppressing fire(and trust me,if you’re playing multi-player you’ll be doing this a lot).Everything is conveniently mapped,resulting in little to no learning curve.

Controls rating:9/10

Summary:All in all Hunter is a worthy game of your dollar.Lots of levels ensure that the game won’t be over too soon and the multiplayer option makes this an idea game for a large gathering.Even with all it’s flaws,Hunter is still a great game and shouldn’t be overlooked with all the commotion of bigger and better recognized games hitting the stores.

PROS:
-Tons of levels
-Nice graphics
-Great variety of enemies and weapons
-Good multiplayer
-Stable framerate

CONS:
-Can’t reuse your powered up characters
-Unable to zoom out screen in multiplayer games for easy escape
-Very little unlockables
-Sound effect and music not up to snuff
-Melee fighting is too limiting

Total Score:7

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 10/06/02, Updated 10/06/02