Hunt: Showdown comes from the ashes of Crytek USA.
At first glance Hunt may appear to be just another shooter in the battle royale/survival genre but beneath the surface it's way different from what you might expect it to be.
Comparing it to other shooters Hunt stands out by adding a truly unique twist to the genre of survival style multiplayer games, that use sandbox maps and unique load out kits.

Crytek has already released several robust updates since the first initial release a couple of months ago that introduced new weapons, environmental effects and a spectator mode which the community has been asking for.
They do a great job at making it easy for the community to keep track of their progress via the roadmap section of the official site that I'll link here[www.huntshowdown.com] but also the community Discord that lets the players interact with the devs directly.

When it comes to gameplay, players will find themselves as a bounty hunter in an atmospheric and terrifying but yet beautiful environment running through fields, sneaking through bushes or wading through the swamps of a plague-ridden corner in 19th century Louisiana.
The goal of the bounty hunter is to locate the lair of the boss by gathering clues and banish the demon-like monster to hell in order to collect their bounty.
To make things more complicated you're not the only bounty hunter on the map and it’s kill or be killed, in an unforgiving world that’s ready for intense firefights between you and the rival hunters.
You've got the option of hunting bounties lone-wolf style in a free-for-all match against nine other players, or with a partner in competitive mode against either four other teams or solo players inbetween.

When you first start the game you'll have to hire a bounty hunter to start hunting. Starting off there’s typically two bounty hunters to choose from, who each have a unique set of weapons, tools and consumables. As you progress through the "Bloodline" which is your permanent in-game level you’ll not just unlock new weapons, equipment (tools and consumables) but also socalled perks which you can then purchase and equip to your various bounty hunters once you reached a high enough level with them.

For bosses to face, players have the choice of the demon spider or the fittingly named “Butcher” if not both.
If you don't want to choose which boss to Hunt the game will make a choice for you.

The layout of clues on the map is randomly generated every game and players have a choice of two possible spawn locations, which are also randomly generated on the outskirts of the map. Once you’re actually in-game it is time for you to decide on how you want to play.

You can exit a match anytime you want by leaving through one of the several extraction points that are randomly placed around the edges of the map. Whenever you wish to leave the match or just think you'd be better off with a tactical retreat, make your way to an extraction point and survive 20 seconds near it in order to be removed from the match.
You don't have to hunt down a boss in order to use an extraction point but extracting without killing anyone or anything won't grant you XP you should prioritize - especially in the beginning.

Permadeath makes Hunt: Showdown one of the more unforgiving games out there and if you haven't played anything like it before you'll most likely learn that the hard way. Whenever your bounty hunter is killed, all his tools, gear, weapons, upgrades and perks you purchased are lost permanently.

If you want to survive in this cruel, diseased world you’ll need to rethink how you want to approach things, as Hunt: Showdown is anything but traditional. This game is all about tactics and planning, not running around, shooting everything you see.
The most important factor and one of the most important aspects of the game which dominates every tactic, every scenario and every approach to victory that you can imagine, is sound. Sound is everything.
Your choice of bounty hunter, weapons, equipment, strategy and partner are all secondary.
The atmosphere and environment are impressive in their own but the sound this game has to offer further enhances them to a level of excellence.
If you want to succeed you have to pay attention to noise being made at all times.
Wether it's broken glass on the ground you step on, approaching a group of birds and startling them, getting a little too close to caged animals or just opening and closing doors - it'll all create noise for not just NPCs to hear but most importantly other players.
When you aren’t worrying about yourself triggering soundqueues you’ll be listening for other players and enemies. Every single situation you approach will have sound at the forefront of how you plan your strategy.
By time you'll learn that sound isn't always a bad thing as you can use sound to your advantage to distract both players and zombies by either setting things on fire, shattering glass, starting machinery or throwing something as a distraction, for example decoys and blanks.
Using a melee weapon like a machete or a knife allows you to enter combat without creating too much noise and circles back to the tactics aspect of the game.
You only want to shoot your weapon when you absolutely have to.
Try to conserve ammo by aiming for the heads of your enemies as it is a recipe for moderate success.

There are various different types of enemies to contend with outside of boss fights, each with varying abilities, strengths and weaknesses. Your bounty hunter’s loadout will often dictate you which opponents to fight and which to avoid.
Having a partner makes things less challenging, especially if you can coordinate over voice chat. Be warned though, as using the in-game voice client will allow anyone within shouting distance to hear you.

THIS REVIEW IS A WORK IN PROGRESS

[h1]Hunt: Showdown is still in early access - expect the final product to differ substantially from what’s available today.[/h1] Hunt: Showdown comes from the ashes of Crytek USA. At first glance Hunt may appear to be just another shooter in the battle royale/survival genre but beneath the surface it's way different from what you might expect it to be. Comparing it to other shooters Hunt stands out by adding a truly unique twist to the genre of survival style multiplayer games, that use sandbox maps and unique load out kits. Crytek has already released several robust updates since the first initial release a couple of months ago that introduced new weapons, environmental effects and a spectator mode which the community has been asking for. They do a great job at making it easy for the community to keep track of their progress via the roadmap section of the official site that I'll link [url=https://www.huntshowdown.com/roadmap]here[/url] but also the community Discord that lets the players interact with the devs directly. When it comes to gameplay, players will find themselves as a bounty hunter in an atmospheric and terrifying but yet beautiful environment running through fields, sneaking through bushes or wading through the swamps of a plague-ridden corner in 19th century Louisiana. The goal of the bounty hunter is to locate the lair of the boss by gathering clues and banish the demon-like monster to hell in order to collect their bounty. To make things more complicated you're not the only bounty hunter on the map and it’s kill or be killed, in an unforgiving world that’s ready for intense firefights between you and the rival hunters. You've got the option of hunting bounties lone-wolf style in a free-for-all match against nine other players, or with a partner in competitive mode against either four other teams or solo players inbetween. When you first start the game you'll have to hire a bounty hunter to start hunting. Starting off there’s typically two bounty hunters to choose from, who each have a unique set of weapons, tools and consumables. As you progress through the "Bloodline" which is your permanent in-game level you’ll not just unlock new weapons, equipment (tools and consumables) but also socalled perks which you can then purchase and equip to your various bounty hunters once you reached a high enough level with them. For bosses to face, players have the choice of the demon spider or the fittingly named “Butcher” if not both. If you don't want to choose which boss to Hunt the game will make a choice for you. The layout of clues on the map is randomly generated every game and players have a choice of two possible spawn locations, which are also randomly generated on the outskirts of the map. Once you’re actually in-game it is time for you to decide on how you want to play. You can exit a match anytime you want by leaving through one of the several extraction points that are randomly placed around the edges of the map. Whenever you wish to leave the match or just think you'd be better off with a tactical retreat, make your way to an extraction point and survive 20 seconds near it in order to be removed from the match. You don't have to hunt down a boss in order to use an extraction point but extracting without killing anyone or anything won't grant you XP you should prioritize - especially in the beginning. Permadeath makes Hunt: Showdown one of the more unforgiving games out there and if you haven't played anything like it before you'll most likely learn that the hard way. Whenever your bounty hunter is killed, all his tools, gear, weapons, upgrades and perks you purchased are lost permanently. If you want to survive in this cruel, diseased world you’ll need to rethink how you want to approach things, as Hunt: Showdown is anything but traditional. This game is all about tactics and planning, not running around, shooting everything you see. The most important factor and one of the most important aspects of the game which dominates every tactic, every scenario and every approach to victory that you can imagine, is sound. Sound is everything. Your choice of bounty hunter, weapons, equipment, strategy and partner are all secondary. The atmosphere and environment are impressive in their own but the sound this game has to offer further enhances them to a level of excellence. If you want to succeed you have to pay attention to noise being made at all times. Wether it's broken glass on the ground you step on, approaching a group of birds and startling them, getting a little too close to caged animals or just opening and closing doors - it'll all create noise for not just NPCs to hear but most importantly other players. When you aren’t worrying about yourself triggering soundqueues you’ll be listening for other players and enemies. Every single situation you approach will have sound at the forefront of how you plan your strategy. By time you'll learn that sound isn't always a bad thing as you can use sound to your advantage to distract both players and zombies by either setting things on fire, shattering glass, starting machinery or throwing something as a distraction, for example decoys and blanks. Using a melee weapon like a machete or a knife allows you to enter combat without creating too much noise and circles back to the tactics aspect of the game. You only want to shoot your weapon when you absolutely have to. Try to conserve ammo by aiming for the heads of your enemies as it is a recipe for moderate success. There are various different types of enemies to contend with outside of boss fights, each with varying abilities, strengths and weaknesses. Your bounty hunter’s loadout will often dictate you which opponents to fight and which to avoid. Having a partner makes things less challenging, especially if you can coordinate over voice chat. Be warned though, as using the in-game voice client will allow anyone within shouting distance to hear you. [b]THIS REVIEW IS A WORK IN PROGRESS[/b]