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Remember when the best selling computer game involved shooting dangerously armed previously human marines and monsters armed to the teeth with shotguns, machine guns, and rocket launchers? Move aside Doom, Quake and the rest -- there is a new game in the top spot of the best seller list and this time we're hunting cute little defenseless animals.
The success of outdoor sporting titles such as fishing games has prompted a game based on deer hunting. Deer Hunter, an "interactive hunting experience" from WizardWorks has come out of nowhere to be the top selling gaming title at computer stores according to PC Data's Best-Sellers list.
What's going on with that? You would think that Deer Hunter would have a limited
appeal and not even make it into the top ten. Well, think about what a Best
Seller list really is -- it's a list that includes a lot of impulse buys and
if you're into deer hunting and you suddenly see a fluorescent box with a picture
of a deer caught in the cross hairs, you can't resist buying it. The very low
price also adds to the ability to sell as an impluse buy. No bad review here
is going to stop hunting fans from trying out the only game in their interest
area.
As a pure game Deer Hunter is ok when you play it the first few times. But after awhile it becomes more like one of those shareware prarie dog shooting games. Like most fishing games, you pick a place to start the hunt from an overhead map. You can hunt in two areas (an add on CD is being released called Extended Season which adds more hunting locations) Indiana Winter and Colorado Alpine Meadows. There is also a target range to practice your shoots. The game lets you pick from three weapons, a bow for the quiet but close kill, the 12 gauge shotgun for up to 4 rounds of quick, close range kills and the .270 caliber rifle for those long range sharp shooter shoots. The overhead map gives you clues to the deer activity in the area - deer rubbings, deer dropping etc. Pick an area and you are transported to the spot with a panaromic view of the surrounding scenery. Use the bioculars to scan the area. Use the calls to attract deer. When you see one, aim for the kill zone (front of chest to just behind the front leg), squeeze the trigger or release the bow and see if you have a trophy for the living room.
I don't claim to understand the sport of shooting animals for fun. I understand camping, hiking and wanting to be outdoors in the wild. I understand the need to thin out overpopulated deer herds or the right to hunt for meat but I don't get the idea of buying high powered rifles and shooting animals just to display their heads on a wall. This is the element of deer hunting that is simulated by Deer Hunter . I suppose we'll see some follow up games such as Moose Hunting and Elk Hunting.
Ultimately Deer Hunter works best as a tutorial for hunting. The game will familiarize you with the tools of the trade including tree stands from which you can drink a beer and wait for the unsuspecting deer to wander by, "attractant scent" which is doe scent created to attract bucks, "cover scent" to mask your human B.O. along with "deer calls" and "deer antler rattles" that simulate the sound of fighting bucks. Fights always attract a crowd. Hunting strategies and tips such as "deer will avoid open fields", "deer have an excellent sense of smell so stay upwind" etc will help the newbie learn how to "down the big bucks". Unfortunately as a game it ultimately fails because there is no challenge other than a best score or, in this case, a "Trophy Room". Fishing game developers realized that to make the typically solo activity of fishing more exciting as a game they had to add some kind of competition. So they created timed fishing tournaments and added online competition. If you're into deer hunting I can't really recommend you don't buy Deer Hunter when it's offered at such a low price, but if you're just curious about this title because of its sales activity avoid the temptation.
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