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[Hunt: Showdown] 1.0 pushed to PC early, LIVE NOW! Consoles on the 27th!
KoopahTroopah
The koopas, the troopas.Philadelphia, PARegistered User regular
The koopas, the troopas.Philadelphia, PARegistered User regular
Hunt: Showdown - Website
Steam Page
Platform: PC, PS4, XBONE
Developed by: Crytek
Currently in: Early Access for $30 / $39.99 for release
Release Date: August 27th, 2019
What is this?
Hunt: Showdown is a hybrid of tactical co-operative shooter and the currently popular Battle Royale style of games. You play as a Hunter set in the 1920s era post-apocalypse where you and a partner must hunt down and collect clues leading to a Bounty of some large monster. Infesting the world are a manner of traps, devices, and deformed monsters (zombies; both regular and super). Once you collect a bounty, you must escort that bounty to an extraction point, all while dodging/dealing with other real life players trying to accomplish the same goal. I think the most in a map are 5 pairs of players (10 max). You can also solo queue if you're a mad man. If your character dies, it disappears forever, this is a perma-death game.
Gameplay & Trailer Videos
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=giguwjdoidU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9Sy-GOtKNY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-MlbAAaqNdAClosed Alpha Tutorial
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ocb3yTS7KkAHow do I play?
Currently the game is in Early Access on Steam. You can play by purchasing a copy of the game for $30 USD and downloading today! Watch the closed alpha tutorial for tips and instructions. Beware as servers are very messy as of EA release!
Koopah's First Impressions
The game loop is really solid. There's something different here that separates it from the other Battle Royale games like Fortnite and PUBG. You start by purchasing a hunter with in game currency who has starter equipment and traits. You can then level up that Hunter by surviving games and gain new attributes and traits. As this is happening, you're also leveling your account rank which in turn unlocks different equipment that you can then purchase for your Hunters if you're unsatisfied with their starter gear. If this game is still following the free to play model that it was following when it was a Darksiders spin-off, then I can see this working out in the games favor with dailies that give you in game currency, or the ability to buy in-game currency.
The graphics are impressive, the level of detail in particular is pretty stunning when watching a video or playing for the first time. However, the thing that sells it hard is the lighting. The textures can be hit or miss sometimes, but the foliage and the sway of the greenery really add to the immersion. Another thing that kills it is the sound. A big proponent of this game is stealth over run and gun as nearly everything makes noise. Gun shots are heard across the entire maps, nearby animals will groan or make noise only when players are near, there's broken glass from nearby destruction that causes loud crunchy sounds, or stringed cans/chains that produce noise when walking into them. For an alpha the production of the game is very strong.
However, it is clearly still an alpha.
Load times are abundant. It can take anywhere from 3-5 minutes to load a game after finding a match. Visual bugs are plentiful, shadow glitches, water reflections showing the wrong thing, team mate outlines causing weird hair glitches, zombies sitting up in mid air floating, T-pose loading, etc... The only major game play breaking thing I've found was I was ganked by a player who was outside the boundaries of the map when escorting my bounty to an extraction point. Everything else has been purely graphical or optimization level bugs. Audio has been all green for me.
I've really been enjoying my time with it, and have completely forgotten about Fortnite at this point. The PVE element is what really sells it for me, and the fact that it is also a Battle Royale is just icing on the cake. I can't wait for more content, especially in the form of new bosses/bounties and new maps. Currently there's only one map (daytime or night time) and there are only two bounties (A giant spider, and the butcher).
If you'd care to watch me play or have any other questions about the game, feel free to stop by my Twitch:
http://www.twitch.tv/KoopahTroopah/
The graphics are impressive, the level of detail in particular is pretty stunning when watching a video or playing for the first time. However, the thing that sells it hard is the lighting. The textures can be hit or miss sometimes, but the foliage and the sway of the greenery really add to the immersion. Another thing that kills it is the sound. A big proponent of this game is stealth over run and gun as nearly everything makes noise. Gun shots are heard across the entire maps, nearby animals will groan or make noise only when players are near, there's broken glass from nearby destruction that causes loud crunchy sounds, or stringed cans/chains that produce noise when walking into them. For an alpha the production of the game is very strong.
However, it is clearly still an alpha.
Load times are abundant. It can take anywhere from 3-5 minutes to load a game after finding a match. Visual bugs are plentiful, shadow glitches, water reflections showing the wrong thing, team mate outlines causing weird hair glitches, zombies sitting up in mid air floating, T-pose loading, etc... The only major game play breaking thing I've found was I was ganked by a player who was outside the boundaries of the map when escorting my bounty to an extraction point. Everything else has been purely graphical or optimization level bugs. Audio has been all green for me.
I've really been enjoying my time with it, and have completely forgotten about Fortnite at this point. The PVE element is what really sells it for me, and the fact that it is also a Battle Royale is just icing on the cake. I can't wait for more content, especially in the form of new bosses/bounties and new maps. Currently there's only one map (daytime or night time) and there are only two bounties (A giant spider, and the butcher).
If you'd care to watch me play or have any other questions about the game, feel free to stop by my Twitch:
http://www.twitch.tv/KoopahTroopah/
I'll update as more details and development happens on the game. Good luck, Hunters!
KoopahTroopah on
+1
Posts
Hard pass. There's a billion and one games with PvP content, not nearly enough with worthwhile coop.
Yeah from what I've seen this is like horror dark zone from the division. Also my god it runs horribly, like optimization is something the devs heard of and ignored.
pleasepaypreacher.net
So far it works pretty well for me. Barely any slowdown at max settings 1080p, and I'm streaming. I have crashed twice so far though. I think there might be a lighting error. Devs just made a thread asking for specs though due to slowdown complaints so I expect an optimization patch to be their next big target.
Twitch: KoopahTroopah - Steam: Koopah
I'm still finding small quirks here and there, I noticed that melee attacks need to be at a certain distance away from the enemies or they just won't hit them. This can get annoying because almost all of the basic enemies make you bleed, and if you have 25% bars instead of 50% you just lose that bar due to bandage time.
Twitch: KoopahTroopah - Steam: Koopah
Twitch: KoopahTroopah - Steam: Koopah
1) I absurdly love having guns that are janky dumb, pre-WW2 guns
2) The game nails the atmosphere super hard. Aside from the obvious alpha stuff the general presentation is really solid
3) I think I adore the weird persistent mechanic? Actually making your hunter have worth and always giving you an option to dip out makes the choice of what to do always engaging. I've had two deaths so far and two extractions after finding all the clues but not wanting to push for the boss.
I think that's my problem atleast in Alpha, I never back out early. I always go for more clues or engage the bosses. Hence why I've bought maybe 20 different Hunters
Twitch: KoopahTroopah - Steam: Koopah
Clue 1 was being camped by one of the heavy dudes. So anyone who could see me was treated to the sight of me slowly back pedaling while unloading 8 shotgun rounds into it.
Then I decided I'd just get the XP for scouting the boss and head out. Only to be greeted by another player. I put a shotgun in his chest, he puts one in mine and also taps an oil lamp next to me. Creating a barrier of fire that blocks us from hitting eachother. At which point I call for a truce. We wait for the fire to go out and then step out from behind our cover. He's more trusting than me and even had a syringe out to show no harm (I'd kept a shotgun leveled at head height). I let him scout the boss and then we both head for extract together.
Part way wading back through the swamp my new friend provides one last kindness to me: taking a rifle round to the back of the head from a mystery assailant. I leave him to die in the dirt and make my way out. No more bullets come for me.
Honestly it really feels like they could do something to emphasize the idea that, until the banishing starts, there's not really a reason to kill anyone. Because the uneasy alliance is much more interesting than shoot on sight.
I do like that the system that they have now allows for exactly what you described to happen, it's just that both players had to agree to it first.
Twitch: KoopahTroopah - Steam: Koopah
Just to make efforts to make people aware that enemy hunters are useful tools until the banishing is done and may well be worth being left alone.
BUTCH WATERSIDE CAN NOT FAIL, HE CAN ONLY BE FAILED.
Anybody jumping in on early access or are you waiting for more polish?
The shining piece of gameplay for me is that it doesnt seem like you can twitch your way to victory. Its all about tactics, opportunity and not being caught in the open swamp.
Steam - NotoriusBEN | Uplay - notoriusben | Xbox,Windows Live - ThatBEN
You definitely need twitch aim to even touch the spider but in general yeah. It’s a pretty slow game (up until something goes wrong and then you die a horrific death)
EDIT: as far as early accessness goes it seems pretty fine except for the performance jank and load times.
I'm in on the Early Access as well but I played almost 10 hours of Alpha servers.
The game is pretty great for an alpha, but both optimization and load times are serious issues.
Twitch: KoopahTroopah - Steam: Koopah
Edit - Servers are messy atm so I'm taking a break, but I had a great round before they started getting funky.
Twitch: KoopahTroopah - Steam: Koopah
Pros:
Fantastically atmospheric, especially the night maps.
Enjoyed the gun play. Less 360 noscope and more ya kinda have to actually aim.
Really likes not being able to tell how many players are still alive.
Map is fantastic.
Variety of mobs is great.
Loves that sound carries pretty far.
The scarcity of ammunition making you decide whether or not it is worth it to shoot or not is good. Also related to the above point.
Likes the extraction system.
Likes the clue system*.
Cons:
The way the game works currently it really lends itself to camping.
Would prefer the Boss monsters roamed the map hunting players. (related to the above, but would also just love to not know when or where the Boss might attack)
*Related to the above, would rather have the clue system lead players to either a special weapon that makes it easier to take down the boss or maybe even uncover extraction points.
Not a fan of the perk system. But mainly because for PvP games he prefers players to be on even footing. (various weapons not withstanding)
All in all he likes it and thinks it has great potential. Though as stated in the Cons would like to see some things changed. Since it is in early access Alpha there is a chance that may happen.
It is indeed a pretty pro-camping game, though, which is a bummer.
Yeah, and I desperately want to punch all the smug guys on forums/reddit going 'well you just hate that it's a PVP game and suck' and I'm like, no, it's just boring that every match devolves into a game of hide and seek and crushes the bounty hunting fantasy.
Also against all common sense I made a big post on reddit about how I think the Ghost Sense could be a bigger part of the game.
Right?!
Like, there is a reason all the best FPS games bend over backwards to squash even the more unfounded allegations of being a camp-fest.
I love me PvP. DayZ is one of my most favorite mods/games and in that one you’d routinely drop dead with zero warning because someone shot you from over a literal kilometer away.
So when I want a game to change some things so camping is less prevelant it’s not because I hate PvP but because I want quality PvP.
My issue is with the fact that the way it interacts with the perma death and the current risk/reward balance of the game creates a really unhealthy thing where all players on a map must be dead (or as many as you can ensure) before you do the boss if you want to play it smart.
Steam - NotoriusBEN | Uplay - notoriusben | Xbox,Windows Live - ThatBEN
So, this is basically a post about Ghost Sense and its role, both in the gameplay and as a lore tool.
In it's current state Ghost Sense is perfectly serviceable. You trade vision for access to tracking clues or bounty's down. It's neat but it's not really anything that couldn't equally be achieved by having Hunter's track their bounty by clues on a map.
So, considering that it's kind of a big deal that apparently in this world everyone can literally track hellspawn by viewing the ghost field/dimension, lets explore some concepts. To keep it simple I'm going to list most of the reasoning behind the various ideas separately but for clarity my main goals here would be:
A) To explore the lore space of Hunters being able to use Ghost Sense
C) The game currently doesn't really have a very good medium risk option. You either do an incredibly dull 2/3 clue run or try and go big or go home. Which is a shame because the structure of 'kill monsters for money and also there's other dudes there' is a good one to get some texture in and, honestly, is the games USP for me vs other battle royale/PVP stuff.
"Glimpses In the Dark" - Real simple this one: When in Ghost Sense you can see other players in Ghost Sense and they can see you.
The point of adding this would be:
a) reinforcing that the Ghost Sense is a 'place' you are looking into. You are all bounty hunters peering through the same lens.
b) making Ghost Sense an occult action with an uncertain risk. When you peer in you never know if someone else has seen you while you're looking the other way. Reinforcing a theme of magic/unholy things being fundamentally your enemy.
c) It's exciting! This one's a pretty game feel/wishy washy one but fundamentally the moment you look at someone in the veil and aren't sure if you're making eye contact or spying on them without them knowing would be an electric one.
d) It gives players uncertain information to act on. Helping add to the horror theme. The Ghost Sense is bad at conveying depth unless you're really close to someone. All seeing someone would do is tell them vaguely where someone is and that they're alive. Similarly you could try to actively scout out if other players are alive by sitting in Ghost sense while approaching the boss location but, even if you sat there for a minute, there's no guarantee that you didn't just happen to be looking in the wrong place or that they didn't dip into Ghost Sense while you were scouting.
"The recently departed, bitter and exploitable" - You can see dead players in Ghost Sense two minutes after they die. You can also go to their corpse if you weren't the killer to harvest a memoir for some extra bounty based on the level of the hunter. Additionally, if the player was slain before the boss picking up their memoir will drag you into the ghost veil for a short second and show you a glimpse of where the killer is.
Okay, so explaining time:
a) This adds a medium risk activity for players: You chase gunfights and corpses, where killer players are or at least were, to get cash. I'd make it like $50 per 'team' (solo players drop a whole $50).
b) If combined with the first suggestion it creates more uncertain information: Is the ghost you're looking at a live player using Ghost Sense or are they a corpse?
c) It helps break up boss area stalemates by revealing players or forcing the killers to keep watch over the body. Either way it provides teams with information they can act on to try and clear out situations.
"A Portal to Banish it to Hell" - While Banishing the bounty the walls of the bounty area bleed the Ghost Sense, letting the defending players catch glimpses of nearby players.
Obvious thing to buff 'actually taking the boss' by giving successful bounty hunter's an information advantage that helps offset the fact that they just shot all their ammo and announced loudly (via gunfire) where they are. Also encourages the opposing teams to set up more interesting ambushes based on where they think the Bounty Holders will try to extract/exit too.
"Tools of the Godless, Desperate and Bounty Hunters" - Add Tools and consumables based around the Ghost Sense, things that let you see more information, mark targets or even manipulate the map and so on.
I don't really think there's much to say for explaining her because 'add magic and tie it to the Ghost Sense' is such a broad suggestion that there's not much to comment on past bringing it up as an option
Twitch: KoopahTroopah - Steam: Koopah
Got into a tense standoff with another solo guy over a clue that ended with me letting him sneak away so I could tap it, then got eaten by dogs trying to trail him to the next one.
Would've been okay with a partner there, but I just didn't have 3-4 hellhounds and a grunt's worth of bullets to dish out.
Twitch: KoopahTroopah - Steam: Koopah
AMC
Always Maximum Coward: if you’re not comfortable at all with your play state just extract
Yeah, that was actually the gameplan, I just didn't expect to get wrecked on my way to the next clue. Was gonna try to tag all 3 and leave.
Steam - NotoriusBEN | Uplay - notoriusben | Xbox,Windows Live - ThatBEN
I should be around to be bad at shooting and good at spotting if you want company.
Steam - NotoriusBEN | Uplay - notoriusben | Xbox,Windows Live - ThatBEN
This is a problem with me. Not necessarily that I act too late, but that I almost always F bomb after dying. This is probably the only game where that happens too. Overwatch I'm okay with dying, Dota I was okay with dying, Hearthstone when a game ending combo happens I'm okay with it.
This one is different somehow, maybe because it's so instant and usually unexpected.
Twitch: KoopahTroopah - Steam: Koopah
I was partnered with a cool guy who clearly knew what he was doing and we were coming up on the boss area. We hid in a house for a minute and someone started firebombing it then breached and cleared us in fairly short order. I was mad, not least because I got two shotgun blasts off when they came in and it didn't work out.
That one and the probably-by-sniper-rifle out of nowhere death were the only two that got to me, though. Even the solo dog-bothering death wasn't infuriating.
I mean, it's literally baked into the rogue like aspect. It's why I think the game would benefit so much from embracing more of an RPG/immersion 'you're here to do a job' attitude and less of a raw deathmatch style.
God I'm glad I'm not the only one. I was getting really excited until I saw that other people spawn in the game with you. Oh well.
At least even with the double barrel shotgun, you still got to dump both shells on a guy to kill them outright, but then again, damn near everyone dies to two barrels of shot.
Before the pallet change, sitting in a dark room was very doable, now im not so sure. I need to see if turning up the gamma on my monitor is going to be a thing.
I watched youtubers during banishments turn out all the lights and spark off flares into coners and sat in the harsher darkness it created to great effect.
Now im not so sure...
Steam - NotoriusBEN | Uplay - notoriusben | Xbox,Windows Live - ThatBEN