Hunted: The Demon's Forge Review

[SergeantAnt]

yeah this game was ok
i liked the little side dungeons. the combat was pretty fun for a while too, it did get tedious though after a while. they should of done more things to level up with crystals though -_-. only 6 straight lines of skills each. 3 of them they both have in common.

like dexter111 i didnt think the story was all that exciting. i barely even remember it lol.

the setting was very hit and miss, but i loved the outside parts :3

 

[uguito-93]

"Not Slutty, strategically placed", huh that actually made me laugh. Good to see the developers poking a bit of fun at tradition of having women in fantasy games being half naked.

 

[Hristo Tzonkov]

At least it's better than The Witcher 2.

Because it's "FUN".

Shut up.

So... it's as good as The Witcher 2 then? xD

It's a fun co-op game and they don't come that often, played 3 sessions of it so far with a friend and got to mid Chapter 4, nice Hacking and Slashing and secret finding but I wouldn't call the "story" anything to write home about... we had constant "Captain Obvious" moments from most of the cutscenes/conversations throughout the game.

Playing it on PC with X360 Pad and Ventrilo for voice on my TV (Online over GameSpy) and him on his and we didn't have any "Split-Screen" problems, just some bugs here and there like him falling through the floor twice xD.

Oh the story gets really interesting towards the end.There's actually several endings based on your choices although it differs from good to bad ending.What was interesting was that the 2 main characters are really different(well a bit obviously different like polar opposites of what you expect of the human/elf combo) and there's a lot of sexual tension between them that doesn't end in a stupid love story.

 

[Necromancist]

I like how "elf ass" is an actual tag in the article.

 

[Jake Martinez]

As can best describe most gaming fare these days - a moronic game for morons.

I'm really starting to get annoyed by this, I'm 35 and while I reckon most men in my age group (late 20's to mid 30's) all play games and have heaps of disposable income, I find absolutely nothing worth spending any money on (with I admit, the rare exception of a title or two a year). It's not even the subject matter (I enjoy a good juvenile bit of humor) or even the T&A factor (hell, I wish there were more.. uh.. any? AO games), it's just the damn game play mechanics keep getting dumber and dumber every year. I swear the next big "innovation" in gaming is going to be along the lines of, "Play the entire game by pressing only the X button on your controller!"

The longevity of the current console cycle, combined with the complete and utter lack of innovation in user interface has pretty much raped every single last bit of creativity out of the bloody corpse of gaming. I actually feel bad for younger gamers, and it's not all nostalgia bullshit, it's just that they do not know what it's like to literally have something completely freaking new and awesome pop up on the radar every year. Entire genres of gaming were invented right before my bleeding eyes. I don't think that this will ever happen again, especially not with the gaming industry's merciless pursuit of homogonization in an effort to appeal to the broadest possible audience to justify their enormous production budgets and (of course!) to keep their stock prices up quarter to quarter.

At this rate I think I'm going to have to pick up another hobby, like buying sports cars or keeping mistresses. Hell, it'd probably be more socially acceptable at work to talk about and definately less soul crushing.

Anyway... sorry for the rant. I'm going to go troll the indie titles at steam for a bit and hope to find something other than "yet another tower defense game" that I haven't played yet...

 

[Two Angels]

Totally agree with the review though sad it didn't touch on the awesome crucible Map Creator which does add a lil something something to keep me interested after I had completed the story mode.

Not worth £40.... £25-£30 would have been a more decent price range.

 

[kyogen]

I hadn't expected the strong point to be the story. Perhaps it's worth checking out after all.

It has a very good story with well-written dialog, but it's concentrated on the characters and situation at hand or "in-game". Some backstory is clearly there, but the game isn't an rpg and doesn't focus on telling much of it, which is fine, although I enjoyed what the game offers and would like to see more. Gameplay is solid enough with decent replay value, and the logic of the controls and stats didn't bother me as much as it seems to have troubled the reviewer. I'd have rated Hunted a full four stars instead of 3.5, but I'd also enjoy more complex puzzles if InXile and Bethesda see fit to continue the franchise.

 

[lacktheknack]

At least it's better than The Witcher 2.

Because it's "FUN".

Interestingly, it has the same rating as The Witcher 2. So you're clearly objectively wrong.

 

[Theotherguy]

At least it's better than The Witcher 2.

Because it's "FUN".

Says you.

 

[kyogen]

@RiouChan

Well, you're certainly entitled to your opinion, but I can't really agree with you. I think TW2 is the best WRPG I've played since its predecessor came out four years ago despite the fact that several excellent examples of the genre have been produced by other companies in the meantime. I'm also having a blast with Hunted: The Demon's Forge, but it's not really even the same sort of game, and I don't play it the quite same way or for the same reasons.

Hunted and TW2 share a gritty aesthetic and a sensibility for using but also overturning fantasy conventions, but the mechanics take them in different directions. It's relatively linear co-op combat that tolerates a bit of button mashing vs. an rpg with a branching storyline and a fighting system in which button mashing is the fastest way to a game-over screen. Hunted also doesn't have the benefit of five novels, two volumes of short stories, and another game behind its narrative, although as I suggested in my earlier post, I'd really like to see where InXile could take this franchise, especially if they continue to tweak the gameplay and graphics (the glitches, not the art direction). Props to the voice actors, too, for making solid writing sound really nice in-game.

I'm sorry you didn't like TW2, and it's great that you seem to like Hunted, but I'm not convinced that the comparison works very well.

 

[Yokai]

I hadn't expected the strong point to be the story. Perhaps it's worth checking out after all.

It has a very good story with well-written dialog, but it's concentrated on the characters and situation at hand or "in-game". Some backstory is clearly there, but the game isn't an rpg and doesn't focus on telling much of it, which is fine, although I enjoyed what the game offers and would like to see more. Gameplay is solid enough with decent replay value, and the logic of the controls and stats didn't bother me as much as it seems to have troubled the reviewer. I'd have rated Hunted a full four stars instead of 3.5, but I'd also enjoy more complex puzzles if InXile and Bethesda see fit to continue the franchise.

That's great. It's like TF2 storytelling, and that's brilliant, done correctly. Definitely looking into it.

 

[kyogen]

That's great. It's like TF2 storytelling, and that's brilliant, done correctly. Definitely looking into it.

It's at least worth it to check out some gameplay footage on Youtube or have a look at other reviews and user comments.

TF2 isn't really my cup of tea, so I haven't played it much. I prefer the aesthetics and story of games like Hunted, and that goes a long way toward making up for minor technical issues and such for a gamer like me. However, my sense is that TF2's level design is generally better because--even though it's not quite my thing--it's a very very well-made game. I'll give it its due. That's why I recommend doing exactly what you said and "looking into it" more. I'm really happy with my purchase, but I know it's not for everyone.

 

[NewYork_Comedian]

Hehehe that end conversation gave me a good chuckle.

If the Dialogue between the two of them is good throughout the game, then I may be inclined to at least rent this.

 

[kyogen]

Hehehe that end conversation gave me a good chuckle.

If the Dialogue between the two of them is good throughout the game, then I may be inclined to at least rent this.

It's all delivered well by veteran voice actors, but the writing varies from really funny to solid and serviceable--jokes are great but they have to get the exposition done as well. *shrug* I like listening to the two of them go back and forth. One of them hates bugs, the other one hates heights. They step on each others' feet, they argue about who has killed more enemies, etc.

 

[inFAMOUSCowZ]

I'll play this game with a good friend a bit down the ways. Just doesn't look too compelling.

 

[NewYork_Comedian]

Hehehe that end conversation gave me a good chuckle.

If the Dialogue between the two of them is good throughout the game, then I may be inclined to at least rent this.

It's all delivered well by veteran voice actors, but the writing varies from really funny to solid and serviceable--jokes are great but they have to get the exposition done as well. *shrug* I like listening to the two of them go back and forth. One of them hates bugs, the other one hates heights. They step on each others' feet, they argue about who has killed more enemies, etc.

So its basically Legolas and Gimli if Legolas was the opposite gender? ...Actually that sounds kinda cool...

 

[Jyggalag]

I had REALLY HIGH expectations for this game, but from what I've seen in the reviews is a huge downer.

 

[Jyggalag]

Double post. Sorry

 

[kyogen]

I had REALLY HIGH expectations for this game, but from what I've seen in the reviews is a huge downer.

Really high might be too high, but I think critics generally have a hard time with idiosyncratic games that refuse to play by the strictest rules of convention, and H:TDF is certainly one of those. When you're writing for the broadest possible audience, it's hard to know what to say about a game that decides to mix genres and mechanics. Reviews like this one or the one over at Gamespot seem to be trying to give the game some credit while cautioning players that it might not be for them.

Personally, I love it and hope that there is eventually more of it. Give it a look if you're the kind of person who likes melee and shooter action and can get into games like inXile's The Bard's Tale, cavia's Drakengard or NieR, or possibly even something like DICE's Mirror's Edge or Frictional's Amnesia: The Dark Descent--games that lack perfect technical polish but that have fun taking a few risks with the gameplay and storytelling. If you like GoW or TF2 for the gameplay but also like fantasy, you should also check out Hunted, but if you really only like modern/futuristic shooters and nothing else, then Hunted probably isn't for you unless you can somehow convince yourself that it's all post-apocalyptic.