 |
 |
|
|
Hunter was released in 1991 on the Activision label, and coded by long-time Amiga enthusiast Paul Holmes (who's previous credits include mostly 2-D fighting games such as Fly Fighter, Scorpion, and the awful Spitting Image). Hunter was the very first game to make use of filled 3D polygon graphics to produce a believable sandbox world; something which would become the stable environment for games such as Just Cause, Mercenaries, and the Grand Theft Auto series; which began to appear a full 10 years later. The game will run on a stock A500 but is noticeably smoother on machines with an 020 or 030 on board, and with just half a meg of memory. The whole thing comes on just one disk - and is not hard drive installable outside of a WHDLoad installation.
Basically, the back-story tells us that we are an elite soldier in the 'Hunter' corps; intensively trained under General Dartus to become a double-hard invincible warrior; assigned to protect the land simply known as 'The Archipelago'. One day, a report comes in that the islands are about to be attacked by forces unknown, and it's our job to go out there and create chaos wherever we can in an effort to stem the threat of total war. At this stage, everything is still rather peaceful, so we must get our kit together and move out quickly before the real action begins.
The game opens with a basic title screen and a selection of options. By selecting the 'Start New Game' option we are then able to select which of the three available scenarios we wish to tackle; the 'Hunter' mission, the 'Missions' mode, or the 'Action' scenario, and we can attempt these in any order. The next thing to do is to name our hero - which can be any name we like - and this will be our call sign for the rest of the war.
Lets take a look at the 'Hunter' mission first. It begins with a simple brief - 'Return 1 Generals Head to our home HQ by hour 1 of Day 6' - which means we must infiltrate the land being held by the enemy, locate their main general, kill him, and return his severed head back to our base before the dawn of day six. The clock is already ticking - so I guess we'd better get on with it!
Right from the start we can find a large number of items and devices which will help us complete this mission. The first two are already in our survival kit - a parachute, and four aerial observation satellites. By exploring the buildings nearby we will also come across a map, some fuel, a first aid pack, a clock, a logbook, some flares and some money. Of these, the logbook is the most valuable item as this contains the leads we need to begin our hunt. We can select any of these items at any time by either moving the mouse cursor forward to reveal our inventory (and clicking an item to select it), or by activating the item directly using a keyboard shortcut.
For example, pressing the 'C' key will activate the 24-hour clock, and we'll need to keep an eye on this for obvious reasons. Selecting the 'L' key will open the logbook. The first thing to notice at this stage is that the log is basically empty except for the co-ordinates of our base, the supply stores, and the first contact we will need to find and interrogate. Clicking on these will highlight their position on the map, and resuming the game and pressing the 'M' key will overlay this map onto our main screen. After all these items have been collected, we then head over to the speedboat floating nearby.
Transported To Paradise
Players can enter and operate ANY vehicle simply by wandering into it, and most modes of transport will function using the standard joystick controls. Pressing 'space' will then exit any vehicle. The next thing to do is to highlight the 'allied stores' building in the logbook and mosey on over to this island to load up with firearms and ammo.
There are nine forms of weaponry attack in the game; although only six of these can be carried by hand - the rest can be found in the various vehicles. The pistol is by far the weakest weapon in the game, and is rarely useful outside of hand-to-hand combat. The land mines come in handy if we are being pursued and need something to slow down the enemy. The Surface to Air missiles (SAMs) are great for removing high structures and armoured targets, and the grenades can be lobbed at things from a safe distance. Of all the weapons on offer, the most useful will be the timed explosives (for hit-and-run manoeuvres on ground defences), and the general purpose rocket launcher will take care of the rest. There is also an option to select how much ammo we wish to carry, but selecting the 'Auto' function will almost always equip us with all we need - so that at last we are ready to head out and take on the enemy.
The Archipelago area is quite a size, and the map will change depending on which scenario we wish to play - so to make our way between (and over) the islands we are going to need some form of transportation. There are 15 vehicles in the game - two types of helicopter, two types of combat tank, boats of all shapes and sizes, various cars and trucks, a hovercraft, and contraptions such as bicycles, wind surfers and even row boats. Vehicles can almost always be commandeered as long as they are not currently being used by the enemy.
The enemy AI is well developed in Hunter, and they will think nothing of using the multitude of land, air and sea defences (including a secret submarine) to knock us out. Our best defence against all this is our stock of aerial observation units. By pressing the 'A' key we will get a satellite map of our immediate area, with all the buildings, vehicles and enemy units clearly shown. This is great for locating vehicles when we need them, and also for finding all those crazy air and sea defences. Objectives and hidden items will not be shown on the satellite map, but we can add them manually onto our main map by entering their co-ordinates into the logbook.
Tactics also play a huge part of the game. To begin with, the player will be unfamiliar with the territory and will need to scout the area thoroughly. A helicopter is handy for this, but be careful - navigation into enemy territory is always going to end up with us taking a hammering unless we can sneak over and destroy all the defences in our way. Otherwise we may find ourselves swimming home. Swimming is by far the slowest mode of transportation in the game, and is made hard by the fact that our energy levels will fall as we swim - and also because sharks will soon discover a downed soldier, and will take a few chunks out of his body given the slightest opportunity.
A Man On A Mission
The 'Missions' scenario turns this tactical effort into an art form as the player must head out, destroy all the prescribed targets, and then head straight back again - and all within a tight time limit. Here it is advised to take care of more than we need to in order to save time later, and to have a vehicle ready to whisk us home again. The 'Action' scenario attempts to combine the 'Hunter' and 'Missions' aspects as the player must destroy all the enemies supply lines within the time limit. Health packs are very scarce on this level, and there are only enough health packs to restore our hero to full health once - so even greater care must be taken.
Did I mention the fact that we only have one life? That's right, just the one - resulting in hasty retreats as we abandon our search for various artefacts and head home for vital medical R n R. There are other life forms inhabiting the Archipelago too - including rabbits, ducks, seagulls and bulls; who will charge after us if we happen to be wearing a red enemy uniform as a disguise.
Hunter has a lot going for it, and there are always plenty of things to do. The graphics may be rough-edged and jaggy compared to later developed games but have a simplistic charm of their own. The greens and browns of the land, and the blues of the sea and sky work very well, hiding the fact that this game uses a very small 16 colour palette. Another very nice feature - and again a worlds first in every respect - is the fact that the light levels change depending on what time of day it is. Dusk is hazy and moody, and the nights are often so dark that flares must be used to find out where we are.
Sound is limited in Hunter, but whatever there is has been put to good use. The only music in the game happens over the title screen and during the end credits, so players have to content themselves with an array of sound effects during the game. The waves crash, the winds blow, the seagulls squawk, and there are enough effects to give most items a unique sound. Even the dull drones of the various vehicle engines have been tweaked to sound slightly different in each case.
High Octane Action!
Playability is generally high in Hunter; although players can die quickly if they are not too careful. The action is often intense, and it isn't unusual to be shot out of a helicopter - then blown out of a land-based vehicle (leaving us with a long walk) - only to come across another mobility gadget and the whole game kicks into high gear again. The little things matter in this game. For example, all vehicles have a fuel tank, and fuel must be found, carried and rationed to ensure we can always get on the move. Passes are required to enter enemy bases, and there is even a prisoner on an island somewhere - who requires a hacksaw. This all adds to the hidden depth of Hunter, and complements the feel and longevity of the game.
On the other hand, the enemy's AI was sophisticated at the time but now appears rather basic - and the enemy will rarely instigate an attack but will rather wait for you to make the first dumb move. Also of note is that the time limits are quite tight in all three scenarios, and only after repeated plays will players finally get on top of the situation. There are a few bugs to deal with too. Sometimes grenades will get stuck in the landscape, or items may backfire - blowing us up in the process. Taking off and landing helicopters is also a pain to begin with - as pressing fire will always trigger the current weapon to fire off, even as we wrestle these flying hulks to the ground. For this reason, this reviewer recommends selecting the pistol before attempting a landing to minimize this potential damage - or to use the secret 'Help key' function to perform an automatic landing.
Overall, Hunter is still an eye catching, well designed, and exceptionally coded game. It was way ahead of its time on all fronts; with the competitors taking a full 10 years to bring out anything remotely similar. Sure, it can be annoying to have to reload after dying unexpectedly, but this doesn't stop Hunter from being a very enjoyable tactical action adventure. Highly Recommended!
      |
|
|
 |
|
 |
|
|
|
The graphics may have been superseded to a huge extent of late, but back in 1991 these filled polygons were the bees knees. All items are modelled quite well considering the heavy hardware restraints of the basic A500. The game is also enhanced by the unique dawn 'til dusk daylight feature, and the fact that there are always plenty of well modelled vehicles to hijack.
|
|
|
Sound wise, Hunter doesn’t fair as well. The only music appears over the title and end credits, and the sound effects are of very low quality. The endless squawking of seagulls gets annoying very quickly, and there certainly aren't enough sounds to flesh out the game to it's fullest. However, these basic SFX work well within the game, and the sound of engine drones and the 'whoosh' of a missile approaching is just enough to provide the atmosphere.
|
|
|
A few graphics glitches and bugs aside, Hunter plays very well considering all the technical mathematics involved. The land moves around smoothly in every vehicle, especially with an 020+ on board, and sabotaging enemy defences is always fun. The time limits are a bit harsh sometimes; especially during the 'Missions' scenario, and it would have been nice to leave one scenario and enter another without having to quit and lose our progress.
|
|
|
| I have to give this title its full deserving credit. There is a lot to see and do in this environment, and with so many vehicles and weapons, and with so many building and structures to knock out, Hunter rarely gets anywhere near boring. The strange atmosphere of the game is very tangible, and the action is exciting and rewarding. In fact, it's hard to imagine how much better they could have made this game on an A500. (except of course to have an expanded, better looking, better sounding version for AGA machines). A solid winner! |
|
|
 |
 |
|
Get Amiga Forever with pre-installed Workbench, games, applications, and much more.
It also contains the original Amiga ROM-files, 100% legally!
|
|
|
|
