The Hunter

[Skybird]

I knew it was around since years, but their business model and the online-only-mode had me stand apart for all these years. Which now I consider to be worth a regret.

Got it now and tested it over the weekend, even better, I activated via the - Germany-exclusive - DVD package, which gives the player plenty, really plenty of additional weapons and equipment that else would be needed to be bought in the virtual shop for virtual money (that must be exchanged for real money).

Wowh. Just wowh. Beautiful, stunning, addictive, many details so very realistic. Will maybe write a (years late :D) review some time later.

This one is gonna stay on my HD for years to come, no doubt. A new longtime-performer.

Must leave now. The wilderness is calling, and she is a harsh mistress if you let her wait for too long.

[RickC Sniper]

I've been playing this sim since it was first released. It is easily the best hunting sim\game ever.

Elk, Whitetail, Blacktail, Mule Deer, Roe, Red Deer, Wild Boar, Pheasant, Black bear, Moose, coyote, turkey, and half a dozen hunting areas each with their unique vegetation and terrain.

You can play free with limited tools. (hunt one species only, one rifle caliber only, etc)

Take a free walk through the free hunting reserve and maybe take aim at a big Mule deer. You'll not regret it.
http://www.thehunter.com

There are also a lot of gameplay videos on youtube.

[Skybird]

It'S like with a decent flight sim - you get as much simming and realism out of it as you are willing to put into it. Fly realistic flight plans, procedures, obey real world rules, and your flight sim is most challenging and rewarding. Fly like a moose in love, and you have an arcade game. Same with The Hunter. Approach this like you would approach real world hunting, and you get the most out of it.

I totally love it! And it is hands down the best-looking world-simulation I have ever seen. It is relaxing to just look at this.

Today I was sneaking on a blacktail, but the boss of the herd remained invisible. Spend one hour avoiding those females to become aware of me and fleeing, having the whole herd going to alert mode and stampede away. Like a sub avoiding the escort to get close to the real bummer. It is totally satisfactory gameplay even when not firing a single shot in hours.

Not perfect though. Sound could be done better, it is already great, but calls by animals are always the same sound level, and distance and direction is not properly matched by what you hear in the earphones. Grasshoppers still chirp like crazy even in severe raining. Steps by animals are too loud, imo. Lures work to easily, I think.

But that are luxury issues. :)

[Skybird]

A german guy has made a long series (over 40) of Hunter movies, and many of them are very well done and explanatory. The title is "Hunting with Pratze". He started them in English, but since 4 or 5 films has started a parallel series with German comments. What I like about these films is that he takes his time, like a TV docu.

Check his channel:

http://www.youtube.com/user/pratze86?feature=watch

[RickC Sniper]

Today I was sneaking on a blacktail, but the boss of the herd remained invisible. Spend one hour avoiding those females to become aware of me and fleeing, having the whole herd going to alert mode and stampede away. Like a sub avoiding the escort to get close to the real bummer. It is totally satisfactory gameplay even when not firing a single shot in hours.

Not perfect though. Sound could be done better, it is already great, but calls by animals are always the same sound level, and distance and direction is not properly matched by what you hear in the earphones. Grasshoppers still chirp like crazy even in severe raining. Steps by animals are too loud, imo. Lures work to easily, I think.

But that are luxury issues. :)

I do not have surround sound, but I'm told that if you do you can tell the direction of sound. I cannot.

The focus on competitions is my gripe. Many of the competitions force you to play unrealistically so I ignore them almost totally.

There is always that line between a true sim and a game. If you could go for days or without finding an animal worth shooting like in real life they would have few players and go broke. One must as you say, use a realistic play style to get the most enjoyment from it if you want to play it as a true sim.

The team of devs working on this game are very good at listening to the community and making changes or adjustments when they feel it is warranted. They have made many, many tweaks and as they do the game slowly gets better and better.

The original developers of this game went broke and after Avalanche Studios picked it up it began to show its true potential.

EDIT: Those videos you posted show off the beautiful environments very well.

[Skybird]

I love open world, or better: open landscape simulations. That's why I love Skyrim and Oblivion, ArmA and ArmA2. The action is not that important to me.

As a child I also loved to play "Kriegen", I think that is "Cowboys&Indians", "Hide&Seek", yes? Hiding from the other while trying to sneak on him at the same time. That's why I love Steel Beasts Pro. Few games allow that so well.

Like you, I also do not care much for highscores in The Hunter. I have simulated a day's roaming by having 3 sessions: From 07 to 11, from 11 to 15, and from 15 to 19. I use to set up a tent now at the end of a session - and starting right there again in the next. That way, I can wander for example from the very North to the very South of - what was the name: Whitesomething Island. Could be done in one session only when running in a straight line. But then you do not see any animals. The forests there are very nice, plenty of underwoods.

But of course I need to adapt to the activity time tables of the species sooner or later. A bear I probably will not get the way I play now, not without setting up a bait some days earlier. those beasts so far have only shown me their backs on two occasions, in another reserve, running, and from great distance. But I got one coyote, from a blind stand, luring.

I think the blind stands, especially the one on the ground and the tripod, are too effective. The callers are too effective, too.

A self-imposed rule I obey is that I do not shoot it if it ain't give me a score, that rules out all female deer already, and female turkeys. But they stay around, and I must avoid making them panicking, else they flee and make the trophy-carrier leaving Dodge, too.

But the best part is to just wander around, looking, staying hidden. It's like a mini-holiday.

Question, by your experience, what do you prefer, the Deer Grunt Caller or the Deer Bleat Caller? I think I so far missed their difference, if there is any. Should attract Blacktail, Whitetail and Mule Deer, but is there a difference between both callers?

Scents I have not used so far.

I hope they are going to implement night time, too.

[Red October1984]

Hunting? I don't need this game. I do this in real life. It's much more fun in real life.

It is also glamorized by games. Have you ever been Elbow-Deep inside a deer taking the guts out? Can't do that in the game. It doesn't teach you how to hunt safely or ethically.


I am slightly against hunting games if you couldnt tell. They aren't ever accurate. :nope:

[Cybermat47]

Hunting? I don't need this game. I do this in real life. It's much more fun in real life.

It is also glamorized by games. Have you ever been Elbow-Deep inside a deer taking the guts out? Can't do that in the game. It doesn't teach you how to hunt safely or ethically.


I am slightly against hunting games if you couldnt tell. They aren't ever accurate. :nope:

I've got a hunting game that doesn't even try to be realistic. Probably because you hunt dinosaurs :D

[Skybird]

Hunting? I don't need this game. I do this in real life. It's much more fun in real life.

It is also glamorized by games. Have you ever been Elbow-Deep inside a deer taking the guts out? Can't do that in the game. It doesn't teach you how to hunt safely or ethically.


I am slightly against hunting games if you couldnt tell. They aren't ever accurate. :nope:

Preserve that attitude and recall it next time you embark on one of your flight sims. You then can save time by immediately switching off your computer instead of wasting your time with not smelling the kerosin, not doing the radio comms and not feeling the Gs and not doing accurate paper work before and after the flight. ;) What worth is a flight sim without fresh filled vomit bags? Doesn't deserve to be called a sim then. ;)

It's all about running head movies.

[Spike88]

Preserve that attitude and recall it next time you embark on one of your flight sims. You then can save time by immediately switching off your computer instead of wasting your time with not smelling the kerosin, not doing the radio comms and not feeling the Gs and not doing accurate paper work before and after the flight. ;) What worth is a flight sim without fresh filled vomit bags? Doesn't deserve to be called a sim then. ;)

It's all about running head movies.

I have to disagree with you on that, anyone can hunt, but not everyone can fly a plane, especially larger Commercial airliners.

But yes, he shouldn't be calling you out on your sim.


Edit: Correction, mostly anyone can hunt(the crippled can't), but there are more people who can hunt than who can fly a plane.

[Oberon]

I'm against hunting as a whole, with the exception of the rules that 'if you kill it, you eat it' and 'don't overhunt the area' however I have to disagree a little bit with you there Spike.

You accurately state that not anyone can fly a big commercial airliner, that's true...but in the same way that if you went out on your own with a gun and tried to hunt down a Leopard, I would have you sign your last will and testament before you left.

Sure, there are easy shortcuts in hunting, having the pheasants too fat that the poor sods can barely fly, using a shotgun, having a tracker lead you to the target, but there are also easy aircraft to fly, well easier than a commercial airliner.

Sure, The Hunter can't replicate having your arms up to your elbows in deer guts, or spending two hours plucking and gutting a pheasant, but FSX can't accurately replicate the paperwork, enginework, G forces and other nuances that a real flight can...although to be fair with some of the addons out there it comes damn close.

Now...we just have to work on giving the deer weapons to shoot back with... :O::haha:

[Red October1984]

Preserve that attitude and recall it next time you embark on one of your flight sims. You then can save time by immediately switching off your computer instead of wasting your time with not smelling the kerosin, not doing the radio comms and not feeling the Gs and not doing accurate paper work before and after the flight. ;) What worth is a flight sim without fresh filled vomit bags? Doesn't deserve to be called a sim then. ;)

It's all about running head movies.

I guess whatever floats your boat. I am just vividly saying that hunting "sims" aren't realistic. Flight sims and subsims aren't realistic either. I'm saying that there can't be a sim that is like real life. They try to get close, but this is one of the few "sims" that I get to live out during hunting season. I'm just calling out the things they left out (realistic blood, animal behavior, wind, tracking, field dressing) that make up the hunting experience.

And you can't replicate that feeling you get after the first shot.


I am not meaning to call you out on your sim. I am simply voicing my opinion.

[RickC Sniper]

Edit: Correction, mostly anyone can hunt(the crippled can't), but there are more people who can hunt than who can fly a plane.

Hmmmm

Electric trigger operated by a sip on the straw\tube. Quadriplegic shooting prairie dogs.
Crippled?
Yes.
Deadly?
Yes!!!!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v46/RickC/Picture009.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v46/RickC/Picture011_zpscc1a99df.jpg

Yeah, yeah, not walking around in the woods stalking, but then........they are 400-500 yard shots!!


The sim is for days when you cannot get out there and do it. The most avid flight sim player I know happens to be an A-10 combat pilot.

[Spike88]

-snip-

Yes, but most people don't hunt Leopard in real life or in hunting simulations.

The Hunter is about hunting deer, not anything that has a chance of fighting back.

My point was more about the fact that it's a whole lot easier to go out and hunt than it is to fly a plane. Even if you're just saying a basic 2 seat-er plane.

First getting a plane is a lot more expensive than getting a gun or a bow. Second the licenses required to hunt is just a small fee(you don't even need one if you're hunting locally, at least in my state), while a pilots licenses is like a drivers license where you need to pass actual tests.

Anyways, the point is that if you wanted to hunt, you could go out and do it easier than you could go out and fly a plane, which is why Plane simulators are kind of a different story compared to Hunting simulators.

Most people who are interested in hunting would be more interested in going out and doing the real thing than playing a simulator. While most people who are interested in flying a plane end up playing simulators because they don't have the means to do it in real life(plus I'm fairly certain more pilots spend time in simulators for leisure than hunters do). This holds true for most other sims too, it's easier to go hunting on your own than it is to work on a farm, drive a semi-truck, drive a bus, drive a train, etc. Most of these have some sort of qualification or limitation that keeps the average Joe from doing so in real life, so simulators let them experience it.

Either way, if someone finds interest in a particular simulator, you shouldn't knock them for it. Even if some of the simulators out there are a bit... niche. We're all on a forum dedicated to submarine simulators for Christ's sake. :O:

Edit:
-snip
Yes, but he can't do so without the help of another person. Although to be fair most quadriplegics can't play computer games either. But where there is a will there is a way.

Technically someone who is missing their legs can sit up in tree platform and wait for a target to come by, but it's rarer for people to have the dedication to do so.

[RickC Sniper]

Edit:

Yes, but he can't do so without the help of another person. Although to be fair most quadriplegics can't play computer games either. But where there is a will there is a way.



Pfffftttt

I'm the quad in the pictures and I sure as hell play computer games. Once loaded and set up, I shoot that rifle on my own.

Most hunters need help hauling the Elk or Moose meat out of the woods so I might argue that they aren't alone either.

[Spike88]

Pfffftttt

I'm the quad in the pictures and I sure as hell play computer games. Once loaded and set up, I shoot that rifle on my own.

Most hunters need help hauling the Elk or Moose meat out of the woods so I might argue that they aren't alone either.

I admire you for what you are capable of doing, but my point is that most handicapped don't, or wont. I should not have used the word can't.

If you're hunting boar, duck, quail, deer the average hunter could hunt by themselves. It's still a lot easier for someone to hunt in real life than it is for someone to fly a plane.

Edit: I personally can't fly a plane(at least I don't think I can) as according to MEPS I have no depth perception(I haven't looked more into it).

I also don't mean any offense, so I hope none is taken.

[RickC Sniper]

I also don't mean any offense, so I hope none is taken.

I'm too old and thick skinned to let things bother me so no offense taken, but you really have a poor perception of the desire of the disabled to get out and DO. The ones who haven't the desire to live life to the nth degree usually waste away, so if you see someone who has survived for a length of time, you would probably be very surprised at the amount of things they've found they CAN do.

Rant
This thread was about a hunting sim. At a website dedicated to subsims I'm really surprised at the negativity about it. No sim is a pure sim. It does what it does as well as it can.
OFFRANT

[Red October1984]

There is a degree of complexity to hunting though. You can't just get a gun, camo, tree stand and go shoot a deer.

You gotta watch the wind, terrain, eating habits, trails, what kind of food is in the area, how the animal avoids predators and how it can detect you. Take normal Whitetail Southern Missouri deer that i'm used to. My hunting ground is a small mountain. If you don't get your wind correct, they'll smell you and you won't see anything all day. If i get my wind wrong, I lay in the rocks at the creek where they cross every night to get to the fields. I bagged this year's deer that way. You gotta watch all the time. They'll walk up out of nowhere.

There is a bit of a learning curve and it looks a lot better on paper than it does in the woods. Ive hunted deer, squirrels, and various birds for years. It is a wonderful sport and i think everyone should get a chance to try it out. Hunting is a great part of America if done correctly. In a game, you don't have to worry about the farmhouse where a man lives with his wife and two kids. This farmhouse happens to be over the horizon or behind the deer somewhere. You have to watch so you don't hit anybody or anything. In a game, there aren't usually other hunters. I had to pass up a deer last year because I saw the bright orange hunter's vest in the area behind the deer. A game won't allow you to shoot other hunters/people. (I have tried in several games just to see if i could.) I have played my fair share of hunting games. I have also shot, tagged, gutted, and eaten several animals of my own. Now, if i was rich, I'd sure as hell jump at the chance to go fly a P-40 over Guadalcanal. I'd jump at the chance to fly in a B-17 over Europe. The fact is, that stuff cost's a whole lotta money that i don't have. So, I settle for a semi-realistic simulator.

If hunting is unavailable to you, by all means play a sim of it. Sailing the waters in a German U-boat is unavailable to us, so we settle for a "close but not quite" representation. If you can't farm, and all you wanna do is farm, by all means, buy the sim.

Simply my opinion. I think computers live for simulation games. I can't get enough of them. I do have some complaints here and there...but overall...I am glad that every once in a while, I can just slap on headphones and pretend to fly a bombing mission over Europe. :up:

[Spike88]

I'm too old and thick skinned to let things bother me so no offense taken, but you really have a poor perception of the desire of the disabled to get out and DO.


That's partially because I have a step-grandfather(I don't know if that's how you'd put the term) who constantly goes on about how he's 100% disabled by the government so he can't do this or can't do that, from the fact that most of our homeless around my area are missing limbs, and from the one or two dealings I've had with handicapped customers at a previous job. This doesn't make my perception right, but It's what I see the most.

However, one of my strongest memories on the matter is from about 3-4 years back. I was leaving a home depot when a man hops out of his white pick up truck, grabs his crutch and goes on with his business in home depot despite missing a leg. That scene has stuck with me since then. I've always admired that man.

As for your rant, the only person being negative about The Hunter is Red October. I've personally looked at it ages ago and thought about getting it(I think I came to the conclusion my computer wasn't up to snuff at the time).

My whole point thus far isn't against Hunting Simulators, I just didn't like the analogy between a hunting simulator and a flying simulator.

[Takeda Shingen]

Hmmmm

Electric trigger operated by a sip on the straw\tube. Quadriplegic shooting prairie dogs.
Crippled?
Yes.
Deadly?
Yes!!!!

<photos>

Yeah, yeah, not walking around in the woods stalking, but then........they are 400-500 yard shots!!


The sim is for days when you cannot get out there and do it. The most avid flight sim player I know happens to be an A-10 combat pilot.

Great photos, my friend. Is the young man behind you one of your's?

[RickC Sniper]

Like you, I also do not care much for highscores in The Hunter. I have simulated a day's roaming by having 3 sessions: From 07 to 11, from 11 to 15, and from 15 to 19. I use to set up a tent now at the end of a session - and starting right there again in the next. That way, I can wander for example from the very North to the very South of - what was the name: Whitesomething Island. Could be done in one session only when running in a straight line. But then you do not see any animals. The forests there are very nice, plenty of underwoods.

But of course I need to adapt to the activity time tables of the species sooner or later. A bear I probably will not get the way I play now, not without setting up a bait some days earlier. those beasts so far have only shown me their backs on two occasions, in another reserve, running, and from great distance. But I got one coyote, from a blind stand, luring.

I think the blind stands, especially the one on the ground and the tripod, are too effective. The callers are too effective, too.

A self-imposed rule I obey is that I do not shoot it if it ain't give me a score, that rules out all female deer already, and female turkeys. But they stay around, and I must avoid making them panicking, else they flee and make the trophy-carrier leaving Dodge, too.

But the best part is to just wander around, looking, staying hidden. It's like a mini-holiday.

Question, by your experience, what do you prefer, the Deer Grunt Caller or the Deer Bleat Caller? I think I so far missed their difference, if there is any. Should attract Blacktail, Whitetail and Mule Deer, but is there a difference between both callers?

Scents I have not used so far.

I hope they are going to implement night time, too.

Scents work just like callers but their effect lasts longer. I do not use them but if you bowhunt it can be effective to move 30 meters laterally (to keep the wind favorable) then waiting. The animal goes to where you put scent down giving you a broadsides shot. It also helps somewhat keeping those pesky does from making a beeline strait to you and ruining your chance at the buck.

Grunt and bleat caller have the same exact effectiveness for all deer. You have no need for both.

Bear at Redfeather Falls can be taken fairly easily without bait, which is overpriced. The other bear map (Settler's Creek) is much more dense in vegetation so much more difficult. Walk high ground along rivers or the marsh areas to the West and North of RFF where you can see long distances.

Shooting does and elk cows has but one purpose for me. They level up your rifles\bows which make them much steadier, and stay steady for a bit longer.

The animals do not really have activity like game trails or bedding areas but they do tend to spawn in some areas more than others. There are maps at the community forum which diagram the more probable areas they spawn. Or just look at another hunter's hunt listing his kills and click on each animal.....then on the bottom right there is a map button which shows a map and exactly where he killed it. Do this enough and you can see patterns.

Good hunting. :up:

[RickC Sniper]

Great photos, my friend. Is the young man behind you one of your's?

Yes, my older son, Eric. Would you believe 40 years old now? :oops:

[Skybird]

I am not meaning to call you out on your sim. I am simply voicing my opinion.
@ You, and others,

I have not taken Octobers comment as "calling" at all, nothing personal there, rest assured.

I just think that the criticism you listed is valid for just EVERY simulation on PC. Tactical sims. Racing sims. Flight sims. Or games like Skyrim, Oblvion and the like, too. What you said could be argument to refuse all simulations on PC.

So, everybody: don't make an issue of this, it isn't. As I said: simulating something on PC is all about running head movies. You find the head movie's theme and object interesting and absorbing, or you don't. Some people even buy fishing simulations, garbage collector simulations, and farming simulations. Don'T you never try to hook me on one of these - no chance! :D

And as I also said: the most compelling of The Hunter is: its visual beauty. :yeah: That's what stunned me immediately.

[Skybird]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v46/RickC/Picture009.jpg

You are in urgent need to link that setup with a tablet with the Leopard's virtual gunner's seat from SBP! :D :yeah:


The sim is for days when you cannot get out there and do it.
That. Or somethign that you will never try in real life at all. Like flying an airliner. Much of the virtual possibilities of modern internet is for that, too. For example Google's museum project (kind of streetview inside some of the world'S most famous galleries).

---

I admit that concerning reality I share Oberon's attitude: hunting only if you eat it yourself and avoid overhunting. I would enjoy the hunt itself - but I would use a camera rifle only. The moment I have ensured that the prey got defeated and the hunting process was successful, the deal is done for me. I do need neither the kill nor the trophy on the wall. And the picture only to silence those who do not believe that I got there. But in principle I do not even need the photo. I have killed just once in my life, a straying dog near our camp in the desert which looked sick, and my concern was that it would bite while we are sleeping, giving us some disease (in that part of the world sick dogs are a concern for sure). Did feel neither triumph nor pity, but did what I think needed to be done. Killing a prey is not what I am about, I'd do it only if needing to eat. For me, it'S the hunt itself - exclusively.

[Red October1984]

I admit that concerning reality I share Oberon's attitude: hunting only if you eat it yourself and avoid overhunting. I would enjoy the hunt itself - but I would use a camera rifle only. The moment I have ensured that the prey got defeated and the hunting process was successful, the deal is done for me. I do need neither the kill nor the trophy on the wall. And the picture only to silence those who do not believe that I got there. But in principle I do not even need the photo. I have killed just once in my life, a straying dog near our camp in the desert which looked sick, and my concern was that it would bite while we are sleeping, giving us some disease (in that part of the world sick dogs are a concern for sure). Did feel neither triumph nor pity, but did what I think needed to be done. Killing a prey is not what I am about, I'd do it only if needing to eat. For me, it'S the hunt itself - exclusively.


I would expect a European to think like that. No offense, but hunting is also an American tradition (it's how we control our animal population) and I think there will always be good hunters here in the MidWest. You guys in Europe have had enough war and plague in Europe. I couldn't expect that all of you are armed and shoot animals in your free time.

[Skybird]

There is a degree of complexity to hunting though. You can't just get a gun, camo, tree stand and go shoot a deer.

You gotta watch the wind, terrain, eating habits, trails, what kind of food is in the area, how the animal avoids predators and how it can detect you.

These variables are represented in the sim. They all have a perceivable effect, which can be big or small depending on your behaviour. One could argue whether or not they are correctly matching the real things. I say: they don't. They made it all easier a bit, to not threaten their own customer basis. While the herds of species forming them are of realistic size and composition, they have too many such herds in the given piece of land, I think. But they had to make that concenssion to the gaming market, I assume, most players would not be satisfied like me by just walking around and never see any animal at all.

The species' behavior at different times of the day also is individually tialored and changes. Some species form groups, some even mixed ones, others don'T and stroll as nomands. Others do both. Some species prefer dense woods over the day, and seek open meadows and water only ad dusk and dawn. Some are easy to approach and are not suspecting, others are almost impossible to sneak on wiothout using aids like blinds, lures, and baits. Some species even can turn against you: feral hogs, wild boars, mooses.

Depending on how well you aimed and hit, the animals drops dead in place, or flees, wounded, and you have to trail it. If the wound is severe, it gets only some hundred meters, crisscrossing maybe. If the wound is not so severe - well, two days ago I was spending on hour ingame-time (gametime runs and double speed) to find my first elk I shot. It was almost one and a half kilometer away, still living, but tired, it just stood while I approached. Lesson of the day: for arrows, an elk definitely is too big a prey. :D

I do not shoot at female deer. That turns the game into a subsim, almost. Avoiding the escorts and not avoiding them while going for the heavy target that might be around. So there you are, sneaking and hiding, being aware of the wind, listening to footsteps and watching out to avoid being detected by the females, which then would flee, alarm the whole group and the antler getting away, too.

I am probbaly sooner or later wil not use scent blockers, special cloathing and blin dsatands, to just make it all more difficult, in parts it is like you say: the functionality you ask for is there, but it is tailored to be too easy, to adress the demands of the game market. But it is like with a lfightsim: you gte what you put into a sim. Plan your flights semiprofessionally, fly realsic routines even if tghe sim doe snot demand them, and the game that FSX by default is suddenly turns into a simulation, and when using a high quality aircraft addon, it turns in to a simnulation with stunning system depth that leaves you clueless at first. Same with many sims, same with The Hunter. The way you approach it definings the experience you get from it.

And do not underestimate the tremendous beauty and sound envrionment that you get! It beats everything I have seen in this rehgard, easily, hands down. On White island, there are forest with so dense underwoods that you are wondering that a PC still can handle that enormnous volume of graphical detail. The chnage of light, mist and fog, sunset and dawning - stunning, simply stunning.

I was in the "German" reserve, trying to go for some red deer. I laid in wait on a hill, looking down on some fields separated with some ditches and bush/treelines. When sun had set, some roes came out from the nearby forest indeed, all females, somewhere a male was calling. I realised that I was too far away, my shooting skill is still low, so breathing still have my sights moving a lot. I started to crawl down, the wind was constantly changing on that day, which had me needing to check it several times, and crisscrossing a bit. While it got darker and darker, I got more and more exposed in the open , crawling from bush to bush, since little embakement lines, maybe 1-2 meters high, blocked vision between the fields, but when climbing on them, would expose my silhouette against the empty sky. I just heared the deer tranmpling around, roaming, and I had no clue what was going on around, and where the boss might be. I finally jumped the time window, and ended up being all alone. But when then cray<wling on a little hill, I saw in my bionos some round, dark spots starting to emerge against the darkness of the forestline on the other side, 200 meters or so away. Wild boars, a while groups, using the protection of almost darkness to check the fields for eatable stuff. I got the buckshot out of the shotgun, and stuffed slugs in. I waited, observed. It was a big family. And finally I got a shot, a good one at around 40 meters. the rest of the group went on stampede, racing as dark, round shadows over the fields and back to the forest. The one I aimed at dropped dead where it was hit.

I play this game carefully, and in a sneaking fashion. I took very long to get there^. And there were surprising twists in the action. And visual beauty all around me, and a great sound environment.

So just nobody should compare this to any other hunting game he happens to know. Ten years ago, I played Deer Hunter 2003, which before Hunter came out as considered the best there is, for years. But it does not compare, it just does not compare. It was simplistic, with smaller places, visually hopelessly inferior. It does not compare.

the Hunter also seems to have a very active and vivid community. The game'S design links every game session automatically to the online leaderboard system and statistics board. Become good enough (will take you much time, promised, for the number's way is a long one), and you will become a known name automatically. Since the game is to be started online exclusively, you cannot avoid being included in this system.

Another detail: stuff you leave in the wilderness, will stay there if you end a session. All equipement like tents and stands, will stay. Sometimes, like any good sim should and must do, things have a abstracted function. Tents for example allow you to not start a new session in one ressort at one of the two lodges only, but at the place where oyu have left your tent last time. Camoping equiment are taking less place in your Rucksack, but allow you to add additional time to your session nwhen yoiu git "tired" (after 10 km or 4 ingame hours), or use one of the twop or three camping sites in the reserves to start from ther next time. And then there are bear barrels. You leave them in a place that looks promising,l and you have to fill them with bait. The bait gets consummed over time, and it will take the animals around several days of real time (!) to realsie the presence of it, to memorize it, and to develope a pattern of frequently chekcing the barrel. You have to check it yourself, too, for the bait gets consummed and can run empty - then you have to fill in new one. Maybe you have also left a high stand or a blind stand close by. So you left a barrel, and four days real time later you start another session, make your way to the place, climb in your stand you left, and hope the place you have choosen for the trap was a good one. Nice, eh?

In Deer Hunter 2003, I recall they even had camera traps.

The five reserves in the game can have a maximum size on either axis of around 6 km. Some are islands.

The game can be tried for free. You have to log an account, and download it (~900 MB). You then have access to one or two reserves, you have one basic rifle and ammo, and the licence to hunt whitetail exclusively. You can already exchange real money for virtual money to buy additional equipment. But for getting access to all reserves, you either by licences for single species in single reserves for 1 day or up to one week, or you buy a membership for up to 1 year. Then you have full access. After that membership ended, you are back to basic visitor mode. But if you buy another emmbership time, you then still have all your bought equipment back, you do not need to buy it again (except items that get consumed: scent sprays, certain special arrows - default ammunition is unlimited and free), but ten shots will take one slot in your rucksack.) Stands and tents and such stay where they are when you left.

I admit the business model of theirs seem to make this an expensive game. But you get quality delivered, really, and you must admit that the constant small cash flow allows them to stay in business and continue ongoing developement, which they do since several years how. There seems to be a constant stream of patches and updates and tweaks and upgrades. Well, people pay 100 dollars these days for SBP, and every 12-18 mouth another 25 for the new upgrade. Compared to that, The Hunter needs several years to reach to that level.

Full access license for all and everything costed me 20 dollars for 6 months. The DVD I got is a Germany-exclusive deal which gave me an equipement costing roughly 20 dollars again (I have not precisely calculated it) - and I do not mean the free equipment you get by default. This is an almost complete package of things, plus half a dozen weapons additional to the default rifle. Needing to buy that in game would cost you an additional 20 dollars or more. So everybody thinking to buy himself into the game: order the DVD via German Amazon. It's a very nice deal within their system.

12 months membership costs I think 45 dollars.

I admit this and the online thing has kept me away for long years. Big mistake of mine. They are also not the only ones doing this model either. iRacing for example plays by comparable rules - and is considered to be the best racing simulation out there, by many.

P.S. the most exotic weapon they have must not be the simple recurve bow, but the civil war style front muzzle loader. Big punch, short reach, miserable precision, one shot only but a long reloading procedure, and plenty of smoke hindering your sight for seconds. :D

[Red October1984]

Does the difficulty change over time? In real hunting season, the deer adapt to hunting season. They get smarter. You gotta outsmart the deer. Like what I do when I lay in the rocks (not comfortable at all) by the creek waiting for them to cross. I use my tree stand until about two in the afternoon and then, I go lay in the rock until about 5:30 when it gets too dark to see. It's a lot like being a sniper for a day.

Fun fact. I woke up and ate breakfast. Now, I look out my back window and there are 2 Does standing in my backyard not 30 feet from where I'm standing in my house. This is normal for me. I'd post a pic but I can't get a picture now because they walked on back into the woods. And it's a bit dark for my iPhone camera.

[Skybird]

Scents work just like callers but their effect lasts longer. I do not use them but if you bowhunt it can be effective to move 30 meters laterally (to keep the wind favorable) then waiting. The animal goes to where you put scent down giving you a broadsides shot. It also helps somewhat keeping those pesky does from making a beeline strait to you and ruining your chance at the buck.

Ah, the does-after-scent thing I need to remember.


Grunt and bleat caller have the same exact effectiveness for all deer. You have no need for both.
Thought so, but was not certain.


Bear at Redfeather Falls can be taken fairly easily without bait, which is overpriced. The other bear map (Settler's Creek) is much more dense in vegetation so much more difficult. Walk high ground along rivers or the marsh areas to the West and North of RFF where you can see long distances.
Will check. Saw only one or two bears so far, and they all were already running away from me. Pretty much alarmed they looked to me, like coyotes.


Shooting does and elk cows has but one purpose for me. They level up your rifles\bows which make them much steadier, and stay steady for a bit longer.
I did not think of that. Yes, the gunnery skill statistics. Okay, from now on I massacre everything that moves.

The animals do not really have activity like game trails or bedding areas but they do tend to spawn in some areas more than others.

Well, I could swear so far that deer and wild boars tend to avoid open places at day and hide in thicker forests over midday, and go for meadows and fields at dusk and dawn. I also have not seen pheasants and turkey close to darkness, but only over the day. I also realised that some deer species - and I also read that - form different herds - some more mixed, others separate females from males, and other species tend to stay more alone and roam as nomads. The level of nervousness and alertness (which can also be pobserved in the binoculars, their body language) also is described to be different between species.


There are maps at the community forum which diagram the more probable areas they spawn.

Thank you, I already had them. BTW, thy are not complete, in same places I spotted species that were not marked. But okay. I prefer to find that out myself anyway. I printed the maps just to have the orientation reference. I pays off to spend several sessions in a row in one and the same reserve, I would say.

Thanks for the input!

[Skybird]

Does the difficulty change over time? In real hunting season, the deer adapt to hunting season. They get smarter.
I strongly assume not in the way you mean. But I read in their Wiki (the German one, which is far more complete and professionally done than the English one) or one forum post that there is one difference: antlers tend to become more and more cautious the higher their score is, meaning they tend to not follow or respond to lure calls, and get alarmed by repeated lure calls more easily than bucks with low score. That, so they write, should reflect that the higher score antlers (bigger scalp...) became older only by having become more experienced.

Also, the difference between scents and calls that Riock just explained. Calls lure them to your calling position if they hear it, scents call them to the scent's position, once the animal got inside the range of it. You can win distance to that place meanwhile.

The German Wiki, explaining all and every detail, statistic item, skill system, gadget, equipment, weapon, species, traces, droppings :D - everything.

http://de.thehunterwiki.com/index.php?title=Hauptseite

Traces have been simplified, they had to, because it is unrealistic in a sim on a screen that you bend down and move that grass aside to find some footprints there, it cannot be done like that in a sim. That's why they are assisted by visual clues that are skill and range dependent. Footprints an reveal species, and behaviour mode (roaming, fleeing, wounded)

I also recommend to use Google picture search for screenshots. The game looks best early in the morning and late in the evening, when shadows are falling or are still there. The landscape from hills can be watched at estimated distances of up to 4 or 5 kilometers (with trees still being displayed), however, animals appear only at around 200 or 250 meters, which in forests, underwood, high grass and in hilly terrain is absolutely okay. Only the open, flat marsh-country has them appearing a bit to sudden at that distance - if the air is clear and no mist around.

Note that there have been many upgrades, dozes, apparently. I noted that older screenshots do not represent the density of visual details (grass, underwood) possible in newer game versions. I run my game at maximum settings with 2x AA and 2x AF. (i5 2500, 8 GB, GTX 460 SE 1 GB). the screenshot function (a digital camera in your rucksack) currently is somewhat broken and allows only 640 resolution pics. It's on their fix-list. It was fully functional some time ago, I read. That'S why I post no screenies myself, Due to the online-nature of the gamescreen (runs from and in your browser), screengrabbers do not work for me so far, they always only snap up the gamestart screen.

I'm out of here for the remaining afternoon.

[CCIP]

I guess whatever floats your boat. I am just vividly saying that hunting "sims" aren't realistic. Flight sims and subsims aren't realistic either. I'm saying that there can't be a sim that is like real life.

Just wanted to make a nitpick here - you shouldn't confuse "real" and "realistic". Those are two different words for very good reasons. A sim can definitely be "realistic" - there many different versions of "realism" out there, all of which really boil down to how well a game convinces the player that what they are doing is plausible and applicable to the real world. Realism is not reality, it's just a really good, believable representation of it.

Just a pet peeve of mine, though usually because of the opposite reason (when people start arguing that because they play a "realistic" simulator, they really know the "real" thing) :)

[Skybird]

That business today went quicker than expected.

I would expect a European to think like that. No offense, but hunting is also an American tradition (it's how we control our animal population) and I think there will always be good hunters here in the MidWest. You guys in Europe have had enough war and plague in Europe. I couldn't expect that all of you are armed and shoot animals in your free time.

We're do a 'lil overgeneralizing here, don't we? Us "Europeans"? Let me tell you that the Swedes and Fins, also the Norwegians, are known to do a lot of hunting, too. Also the people in parts of Poland, Germany, and the Alpine forest regions anyway. It'S just that it is not a majority doing so.

And I bet money on that a majority of Americans do not leave the metropoles every weekend by the dozens of millions to go hunting either.

On the other hand, remember the big conflict there was in Britian some years ago about fox hunts being banned yes or no.

I do not care for hunting being labelled as a "tradition". And declaring a whole nation's spirit on basis of the practicing of a minorty, has its intrinsic definition problem anyway. The dolphin massacres they commit once a year in that Japanese village also is a "tradition". To hell with that latter tradition, I prefer the villagers slitting their own throats instead of massacring the sea. Killing for trophies and for fun, is despicable. Always. You could as well defend the torturing of cats and horses for fun. Or those stalkers sometimes haunting the farms over here by night and killing horses with speers or knifes or small callibre rifles. Just for fun, or their own pathologic personality's satisfaction.

The argument of controlling animal population, is a two-sided sword. Sometimes it hits the truth. Sometimes its being abused for defending hunter's interests to go out there and shoot at something. Sometimes population control is only needed because man before has messed up the balance in the ecosystem all by himself, and then wants to repair it. It can be complicated matter to argue about. It is not that simple and self-explanatory as you just made it appear by giving it one single sentence.

And the experience of my father, he is sports pistol shooter, doing the sports precision thing, don'T knbow how to call that in English. Spoirts shotters have very bad opinion of the many sunday hunters we have in Germany. Idiots that run into the forst during a hunt and shoot many empty holes into the sky and have not a clue of what it means to shoot with real precisiuon. The club my father is in - has banned hunters from membership. Too little discipline, too big mouths, to incompetent skill. Some policeman train there occasionally, too. German police hates our hunters as well. Too incompetent, too much Wild Bill Hickock wanting to shoot from the hip, literally. Hunters over here have an extremely bad reputation. Occasionally some soldiers come to his club too, to practice real pistol precision shooting - in the army, these guys say, they are not practicing that with that consequence at all. There is a distinctive difference between a trained sniper and a regular soldier. A soldier fires a LMG or MMG, a hundred rounds and does not hit anything. A sniper fires five rounds and hits five times.

As a side note anecdote: I once read how they counted Vietnamese losses in the war: the American unit leader calculated how many guns fired for how long into how wide a green wall of trees, then there was a total number of rounds spend from all that M16 and MMG fire, and that translated into so and so many "kills". This number then was reported to Washington. Bodies were not cpounted most of thew time - nor found. :woot: If reality does not please you, invent your own - preciseöly calculated. :haha:

In Bavaria, there is one village, where they practice a shooting event that I think is unique in the world. I saw a movie about that some time ago, but I forgot title and names. They shoot at targets over the lake. And they aim not at the targets but the reflections on the water. The bullets get bounced off the water' surface - and then hit the targets. I think it was called "Spiegelschießen", combined with that village's name.

[Arclight]

Us Europeans have been at this civilization thing a few thousand years longer; we have no have proper forests left to hunt in, nor wildlife to hunt. :O:

[RickC Sniper]

The argument of controlling animal population, is a two-sided sword. Sometimes it hits the truth. Sometimes its being abused for defending hunter's interests to go out there and shoot at something. Sometimes population control is only needed because man before has messed up the balance in the ecosystem all by himself, and then wants to repair it. It can be complicated matter to argue about. It is not that simple and self-explanatory as you just made it appear by giving it one single sentence.



Our wildlife is managed by the DOW (department of wildlife). My state is divided into many "zones" which are labled, or numbered. The DOW has the job of dealing with poachers and managing wildlife numbers.

Example: If zone 14 experienced a very harsh winter and many more animals than usual perished, then the DOW will issue very few hunting licenses for that zone in the autumn hunting season. Hunters must enter a lottery to draw a license. My son who hunts elk and mule deer sometimes is allowed to harvest one elk bull but no deer. The following year he may draw a license for one elk tag which can be either sex, and also a deer tag but perhaps only be allowed to take a buck. Every year, the number of licenses that are issued changes, and that number is set by the DOW. Every animal harvested must be tagged and taken to a DOW checkpoint and registered. They track what % of hunters were successful and what % were not.

Each year is different, and the DOW is very very good at knowing the animal population, and it is there job to keep the herds at a healthy number for their area of habitat. Overpopulation is more common a problem than under population.

While it is true man has messed up the eco system and animal populations are not the same as 150 years ago, what I think is true is that the animal species that are commonly hunted today are as populated as is healthy.....meaning for their health.

Who pays for all this? Hunters! The license fees paid by hunters fund the DOW.


As a side note anecdote: I once read how they counted Vietnamese losses in the war: the American unit leader calculated how many guns fired for how long into how wide a green wall of trees, then there was a total number of rounds spend from all that M16 and MMG fire, and that translated into so and so many "kills". This number then was reported to Washington. Bodies were not cpounted most of thew time - nor found. :woot: If reality does not please you, invent your own - preciseöly calculated. :haha:God, I hope this was not true.
I once read somewhere how many rounds of rifle fire was fired for each and every casualty in WWII and the number was so staggering it was difficult to believe as truth.

[RickC Sniper]

You are in urgent need to link that setup with a tablet with the Leopard's virtual gunner's seat from SBP! :D :yeah:


What a GREAT idea! But wait.....maybe not!

I once stumbled on a website designed by a private hunting reserve located somewhere in Texas. They advertised a "real hunt".....right from your desk!

They set up a rifle with motors which allowed you sitting at your computer to elevate and traverse and fire. They then charged many many thousands of dollars which allowed anyone in the world to kill a deer.
They then butchered the animal, froze the meat and sent it to the customer. Their claim was that most of their customers were from countries that outlawed guns or simply lived where hunting was something one could not do.

I am quite certain this required reserve employees "shooing" a passive, probably drugged animal in front of the rifle's field of fire, which was quite narrow.

Thankfully they were in operation only a short time.
:ping:

[Skybird]

I had something more basic on mind, Rick. Like first destroying natural habitats, by that bringing relations between predators and prey off balance, and then wondering why the ecosphere is going over the cliff. Or like introducing a foreign species into another country, continent, where it spreads like crazy since it has no niche in the ecosystem - and due to that messing up the ecosystem for all other species as well. Ask the Australians. They can sing a song of this, going back to when the British colonized the continent and thought they must rearrange nature a bit down there, both zoologically and botanically. The disastrous consequences from that can still be seen and felt until today.

Nature is a perfect self-regulator, for hundreds of thousands of years. If left to itself, it regulates its business better than man ever could. In non-static but fluctuating, dynamic balances maybe, but still.

On Australia, Jared Diamond has a great summarizing chapter of roughly 50 pages about the problems I hinted at in his highly recommendable book "Collapse" (LINK) (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collapse:_How_Societies_Choose_to_Fail_or_Succeed) . There he gives many other exmaples on societies around the globe who messed up their surrounding ecosystems by overfishing and overhunting, and by that destroyed themselves in the end.

[Skybird]

What a GREAT idea! But wait.....maybe not!

I once stumbled on a website designed by a private hunting reserve located somewhere in Texas. They advertised a "real hunt".....right from your desk!

They set up a rifle with motors which allowed you sitting at your computer to elevate and traverse and fire. They then charged many many thousands of dollars which allowed anyone in the world to kill a deer.
They then butchered the animal, froze the meat and sent it to the customer. Their claim was that most of their customers were from countries that outlawed guns or simply lived where hunting was something one could not do.

I am quite certain this required reserve employees "shooing" a passive, probably drugged animal in front of the rifle's field of fire, which was quite narrow.

Thankfully they were in operation only a short time.
:ping:
Samsung Sentry Drone? Sony Autonomous Combat Droid? Those things are real, unfortunately, though under different names.

And they all run by Chinese-made chips, like almost all Western hightech weaponry as well.

I wonder if that is clever.

Hm. I am hijacking my own thread again. :D

The Superperforator song (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pVJFmcsq3-k)(from a German comedy that was very successful over here).

[Oberon]

I couldn't agree with you more if I tried Skybird. There have been numerous disasterous attempts to 'manage' nature in this country, and around the world. From introducing Myxomatosis to rabbits in Australia, to culling falcons in the UK in order to try and help the sparrow population to grow. Man never knows the balance like nature does, it's a self-regulating machine and every time we interact with it, we break it.

In regards to hunting being a more American thing...nonsense. It's very popular around the whole of Europe and is a way of life in parts of Russia. However, Skybird is again right in that for most people in the UK it involves copious amounts of alcohol from hip flasks, a shotgun and a very docile bird...which they usually miss because they're so drunk. That is not hunting, there is very little skill involved in it, and it's primarily for rich merchant bankers to get together and get drunk whilst maintaining their air of richness since it's primarily a 'sport' that rich and upper class people do, whilst the lower classes go and act as 'beaters' (disturbing the game birds so they fly up into the sights of the shotguns). Proper hunting, the likes of which this game simulates, is a relatively rare thing and has declined over the years as tougher laws on what can be shot have come in, because of overhunting.

I too have heard about the hunting website nonsense, and am glad that the site in question has shut down, however, sadly, I am sure that there are others.

[Red October1984]

I guess you guys just don't understand the people of Southeast Missouri. Deer season is treated as an annual holiday.


I'll let you guys have your thread back. :salute:

[Skybird]

@ Oberon,

off topic, but I don'T know if you still patrol the flightsim forum. The long awaited extended version of the Airbus 320 by Aerosoft that you once asked me about (years ago), has been released two days ago. Five manuals. So far download only, boxed version follows by the end of January. First feedback in their forum I read yesterday was very positive. But customer demand has brought down their servers.

[AVGWarhawk]

I downloaded this sim last night. Played a few tutorials. Kind of fun and relaxing.

[Oberon]

@ Oberon,

off topic, but I don'T know if you still patrol the flightsim forum. The long awaited extended version of the Airbus 320 by Aerosoft that you once asked me about (years ago), has been released two days ago. Five manuals. So far download only, boxed version follows by the end of January. First feedback in their forum I read yesterday was very positive. But customer demand has brought down their servers.

Oooh, thanks for the heads up, I'll have to take a look at that. :salute:

[Nippelspanner]

Another (virtual) hunter here. This game is a pearl, just a little expensive for my taste (the ingame currency for example).
One has to invest a nice sum to enjoy everything the game has to offer - but still, its everyones choice how much to spend on it...
I just reactivated my membership for 3 month and went to explore Hirschfelden and its new prey a little more. And I was very lucky as well.
My new favorite weapon is definately the Recurve Bow with illuminated arrows. They help a ton to track and find wounded animals - and look fancy.


https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-JVM4KzMOuV0/UNMwXPqAwEI/AAAAAAAABYI/GfO9P1SmH4E/s1152/IllArrow.jpg

[CCIP]

Tried it out, it's a very nice game! As someone who has 0 interest or experience in real-life hunting, it's certainly making for some interesting new things to learn. It's both relaxing but also gives you those nice moments of tension and stealth. It certainly plays well as a game.

Not sure if I'm ready to go all-in and pay money for it yet, but I'll play more with the mule deer and see if it sticks with me.

[RickC Sniper]

My new favorite weapon is definately the Recurve Bow with illuminated arrows. They help a ton to track and find wounded animals - and look fancy.


You think the game is pricey yet you use the Lumenok (or Luminox) arrows?

I'm confused.
Standard arrows are just as lethal and free. Once you shoot a Lumenok it is gone and you must buy more. And they are expensive!


Edit: I love that picture you posted.

[Nippelspanner]

Yes I think it is and yes I do spent money on those fancy arrows. The first does not eradicate the latter, does it? I think it is simply called "weakness" and "addiction". I cant help it :nope:

And for smaller EM$ sums, I usually "earn" some by watching commercials and stuff. You can sum up a neat sum quickly.

[RickC Sniper]

Hey, as long as you are having fun, which is the whole point of playing a game.

Salute!

[Skybird]

You think the game is pricey yet you use the Lumenok (or Luminox) arrows?

I'm confused.
Standard arrows are just as lethal and free. Once you shoot a Lumenok it is gone and you must buy more. And they are expensive!


Edit: I love that picture you posted.
They are great for practicing with the bow at the archery range. You can see the ballistic flightpath, and where they hit on the distant targets. Choose dark day of time for best effect. The LED arrows are not spend when being on a range, like with all other ammo, too, that does not get spend there.

Just be sure you do not repeat my mistake - and step off the platform without npoting it. I fired and lost five arrows by doing that. What a difference that half a meter made... :/\\!!

[Skybird]

Tried it out, it's a very nice game! As someone who has 0 interest or experience in real-life hunting, it's certainly making for some interesting new things to learn. It's both relaxing but also gives you those nice moments of tension and stealth. It certainly plays well as a game.

Not sure if I'm ready to go all-in and pay money for it yet, but I'll play more with the mule deer and see if it sticks with me.

On Hirschfelden map, the red and roe deer can warn the others by calling, a nice addon effect to the default behaviour of the other deer species. Some species I also find very difficult to hunt: I tried on blackbears today for the third time - and still got none, just saw two who showed me their backs from a distance, running. I placed a bear barrel now. Coyotes also are extremely shy and when you just became aware of their presence, they already are on their urgent pulling out.

As a free player you cannot try all these details, unfortunately. You rifles is only suited to kill mule dear at a distance, it is the weakest rifle in the game. Other species you cannot hunt anyway.

The rifles differ not only in power, but also in speed of reloading, and whether you loose your deer out of sight during reloading, or not (must take dopwn the rifle or not). There is a muzzle loader that takes over 20 seconds to reload, and after the shot you cannot see a thing for seconds due to the smoke LINK (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fAJvECD33gc) . They also have all a different sound. The .44 Colt and the Anschütz 7x51 (DVD only so far), sound very nice. The "Winchester" is nice because it has both punch and you must not put it down to reload, which additionally goes very fast.

[Skybird]

Yes I think it is and yes I do spent money on those fancy arrows. The first does not eradicate the latter, does it? I think it is simply called "weakness" and "addiction". I cant help it :nope:

And for smaller EM$ sums, I usually "earn" some by watching commercials and stuff. You can sum up a neat sum quickly.

I admit despite having gotten lots of stuff for free from the 2013 DVD, I invested the DVD price again for viortual credits and spend them. I now have payed the price of an ordinary PC new release game in Germany (around 40 Euros they cost most of the time). It was worth it, absolutely.

There business model and the need to start the game from online launcher in a browser, prevented me until this week to test The Hunter. I admit that while I do not like the onlöine need, I accepüt their business model. It gives them the finacial freedom to contiunue with developement. A new bow will be released early next year, and a new rserve is beiong prepared, too. Plus constant upgrades and patches, since three years. Since 2010, their list of updates names 24 versions. Not bad, I would say. It seems their model is functioning.

[Nippelspanner]

...the Anschütz 8x51 (DVD only so far), sound very nice.

Fixed :O:

I would really like to have this rifle, but I have to wait until its digital release. I also bought the Muzzleloader and like it very much.

[RickC Sniper]

They are great for practicing with the bow at the archery range. You can see the ballistic flightpath, and where they hit on the distant targets. Choose dark day of time for best effect. The LED arrows are not spend when being on a range, like with all other ammo, too, that does not get spend there.

Just be sure you do not repeat my mistake - and step off the platform without npoting it. I fired and lost five arrows by doing that. What a difference that half a meter made... :/\\!!

Agreed. I bought a small amount of them for only this purpose as well.
I am a terrible marksman with this particular bow. :oops:

[Skybird]

Fixed :O:

Pedant! :)

[Skybird]

@ Oberon,

going off topic again: I have added some links to the Airbus posting in the flightsim section. List of features, interview with Aerosoft, and some videos.

It sure looks nice!

[Nippelspanner]

/joiningtheOTparty
NOTHING tops PMDG and LevelD! :O:

[Skybird]

[offtopic on]
The 767 was great in FS 2002 and 2004, and extremely reliable. I loved it. But it now shoes its age in virtual cockpit graphics: 2D switches and buttons, and the like. It'S not on the premier frontline of technology anymore, I think.
[offtopic off]
:D

That reminds me of that I wanted to try to shoot at one of those airliners passing over the reserves in The Hunter occasionally. :D Will try with the .300 Bolt Action, it has the biggest punch. How does a bullet cal 7.62 fly with 5000 joule? Maybe I can make a picture of the pilot's... antler... afterwards when I was successful.

New videos by Pratze available, btw.

[CCIP]

[offtopic on]
The 767 was great in FS 2002 and 2004, and extremely reliable. I loved it. But it now shoes its age in virtual cockpit graphics: 2D switches and buttons, and the like. It'S not on the premier frontline of technology anymore, I think.
[offtopic off]
:D

That reminds me of that I wanted to try to shoot at one of those airliners passing over the reserves in The Hunter occasionally. :D Will try with the .300 Bolt Action, it has the biggest punch. How does a bullet cal 7.62 fly with 5000 joule? Maybe I can make a picture of the pilot's... antler... afterwards when I was successful.

New videos by Pratze available, btw.

They should do it as a special event for April 1st :haha:

[Skybird]

In case any hunter had the same problem like me and so far is unable to make screenshots with any of the mentioned tips and workarounds, I now found a solution that works at least for my system. Fraps did not work for me. FSscreen did not work for me. Greenshot did not work for me. Windows PrintScreen key and saving the notepad content did noit work anyway.

But MSI Afterburner did - and my nVidia board even is no MSI board. :yeah: Crystalclear, lasersharp full-size screenshots at gameplay resolution.

I think I will now run photosafaris and let the poor animals live - at least more often. :D

[Skybird]

Found this video by chance when searching youtube for material on the new compound bow included in The Hunter, the Parker Python.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hw5HJaS6GOs

Nice bow, btw, overpriced, but more silent than the Snakebite or the crossbow, and I hit easier with it. Complaints that it is too low powered, I cannot understand. This evening I scored two mooses with one shot each, heart shots one from front, one from the side, at 15-20 meters. Maybe people are trying to shoot from too huge distances?!

Anyhow, while shooting in the game is abstracted, bow shooting in the game has even less to do with real archery than rifle shooting in the bgame has to do with reality. To me, however, the game is not so much about shooting anyway. I sneak, enjoy and relax instead. :)

[Skybird]

Found a new love in the game, the new Anschütz hunting rifle 1780 in callibre 9,3x62.

First, it's about the sound. The 8x57IS already sounded nice, this one sounds as nice, but different. Can't say which is better. But when it comes to best rifle sounds, in The Hunter these two rifles are the two candidates to chose from.

Second, this one delivers the heaviest punch of all rifles in the game. The famous African-tales-callibre it is: slower travelling but heavier bullet than the .300 or Winchester 306 Drops mooses and wild boars with one strike - the .300 gave me bigger troubles often. This callibre has special permission in Africa to be used for the big five no other round of that size is allowed for them, all others have to be even bigger (says Wikipedia).

It is assumed this gun relates to a new big species they include in the upcoming new reserve, which features a Scandinavian-style late-autumn-early-winter forest with mild snow layers and snowflakes instea dof rain. Could be a brown bear. Could be a caribou, I think these two are the most likely candidates.

With this rifle I think all others have become somewhat obsolete. A drop in precision over longer shooting ranges I cannot confirm, at least not at the distances I shoot at - and I avoid shooting beyond lets say 400 ft.

P.S. Nevertheless, precise aiming reminds important. So shoot with discipline, even this rifle is no self-runner!

[Skybird]

The Hunter now has LINK (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9p2e_7z_jiA&list=UU7Db6xglIXxkqvi05ECDZTw&index=1)

[Arclight]

What, now? That took a while. Remember this being planned back at launch, 4 years ago now.

[Skybird]

I have switched habit from starting SP sessions for myself to starting a MP session instead with only me as a player. But it remains unlocked, and subsim members are invited to join me if they happen to note my name (same like on subsim) on the MP session list.

Due to the matter the game simulates, it still remains to be a SP thing pretty much, imo. There are plenty of people who indeed play with just one or two good buddies that they know and who lock it there. Maximum joins number is 8.

[Skybird]

What, now? That took a while. Remember this being planned back at launch, 4 years ago now.
As I understand, many things have chnaged since 4 years ago. Many chnages and improvements under the hood, new resxerves, weapons, equipoment, functionality changed/replaced/abandoned.

I still play it with the same enthusiasm like I exploded with 6 months ago, when I started. :yeah: To me it is more a walk-in-the-woods simulator than a hunting simulator.

Current version with new MP is a bit rough about some edges (some bugs), but I assume it gets fixed.

[SgtPotato]

It seems that you guys never tried to hunt while playing Red Dead Redemption. Try to hunt a cougar and you'll get pounced by a swarm of cougars, then a pack of wolves join in. :o

Of course, I might starting off-topic. :O:

[Arclight]

As I understand, many things have chnaged since 4 years ago. Many chnages and improvements under the hood, new resxerves, weapons, equipoment, functionality changed/replaced/abandoned.

I still play it with the same enthusiasm like I exploded with 6 months ago, when I started. :yeah: To me it is more a walk-in-the-woods simulator than a hunting simulator.

Current version with new MP is a bit rough about some edges (some bugs), but I assume it gets fixed.

I'd be a bit bummed getting back into it now, having lost my fancy warden status. Was a nice run though, think I stuck with it 2-3 years.

[Skybird]

Ehem, afaik you regain all status and items you bought when you reactivate membership. At least they advertise it this way. If subscription ends, you are back to guest status. Subscribe for another period of time or for some of the license, and all stuff you got locked when becoming guest again, is unlocked again.

As guest you can only hunt mule deer with the .270. However, you now have access in MP to all reserves nevertheless, in MP and being guest in somebody else's session. So you can shoot only mule on Loggers Point, but you can walk with friends in any other reserve as well.

[Arclight]

I had a special status for supporting them from before launch. You lose this "founder" status if membership lapses for a time. Yes, I'd still have all my gear and such, just not that. One perk of it was getting to try new content for free for... 3 months I think it was.

[Nippelspanner]

Hunting fever struck again and my wallet suffered a clean Kammerschuss :oops:
When I first heard of the implementation of MP, I was highly skeptic.
Where is the fun?

Boy was I wrong. Played many many hours with a buddy of mine already and we can't get enough.

I was also wrong about the .308 Anschütz being weak and useless, it turned into my new favorite rifle in no time. It got ripped apart in the forums for being too weak, yet I already dropped strong red deer at ~200m on the spot. Also fat Schwarzwild is no problem if you shoot waidmännisch enough :D
http://i.imgur.com/O2ugzhB.jpg (http://i.imgur.com/O2ugzhB.jpg)
(That one nearly brought me into the Top 100)

On top of that the rifle is very precise and the looks are much more appealing to me than the 8x53 Anschütz,
the "glowing orange" autumn skin it has is just too much for me as an aesthetic person, yikes.
I hate this game for abusing my addiction...:yeah:

[Skybird]

Why is that boar grinning? Did you tell it you want to photograph it? :D

Anyhow, welcome to the reserve. I still enjoy this game twice or three times per week, and it still is great fun, and so much visual beauty.

I do not use the Anschütz .308, but the Anschütz 8x57IS and Anschütz 9.3x62. Additionally the .223, the crossbow and the Python. I focus on these to drive up their point scoring. With the 9.3 I'm finished: 250 kills. It's no rifle, but a cannon. :D

If you ever want to buy the .308, save your money on the scope. The rifle is nice for small stuff, but the scope for it, 12x, is crap. You can use the Anschütz scope 3x/6x/9x for it anyway, it is better.

[Nippelspanner]

Hehe,
I did buy the 3-9x scope, it is exactly what I wanted it to be - a simple crosshair. I dislike the fancy scopes, especially the ugly 12x with those tactical mil dots. What the hell do we need that for in a game where animals have a max render distance of 220m-260m?
But well, we also don't ned the new .44 custom they copy&pasted to press even more money out of all of us... meh.

I got bored by scopes anyways and started to use this rifle (.308) without a scope for days. It is great. You have to get close, you have to wait for the perfect shot. I dropped ~30 animals now and all but 3 of them have been instant kills due to a Kammerschuss.
That's hunting!

The fat Keiler got away with a body shot - while I shot him in his head!
I think it just couldn't penetrate it's Dickschädel! :)

If you like the German style the game introduced, check the Blaser Bockflinte. I am no shotgun fan at all but this is such a great rifle! I use the .308 with the Bockflinte in combination now because with this setup I can hunt it all. For Fox and Pheasant I use the Bockflinte, for the rest the .308.

Now I just wish they would re work the sound atmosphere of Hirschfelden, it seems a little odd to hear the grasshoppers from 5am to 19pm straight... And they are so loud! :doh:

[Skybird]

I have used arrows in recent weeks a lot, but made it a principle to shoot at ranges of 20m maximum, closer preferred. Dickschädel beasts I use the crossbow for. Lighter animals I prefer to go after with the Python, its the most silent one. I plan to start with the Vorderlader, after I met some point scoring goals with the mentioned weapons.

[Aktungbby]

No mongol bows are available in the strong version?:Kaleun_Salivating:

[Nippelspanner]

I have used arrows in recent weeks a lot, but made it a principle to shoot at ranges of 20m maximum, closer preferred. Dickschädel beasts I use the crossbow for. Lighter animals I prefer to go after with the Python, its the most silent one. I plan to start with the Vorderlader, after I met some point scoring goals with the mentioned weapons.

I absolutely love the recurve bow, it is so much fun! And I could not agree more, I won't shoot ofer 20m anymore myself, spend too much time with Nachsuche and often seen the arrow not penetrating the lungs even on medium game (which is completely unrealistic btw, the bows in tH are a joke, power-wise!).

You will have fun with the Vorderlader as well, I am certain. I haven't used it much so far but I do love it. I got a Fox at ~70m a few days ago with it. Risky shot due to the guns "precision" but hey... got him! :D

Together with the trapper clothes, it must feel like hunting 150 years ago, haha.

[Aktungbby]

God bless! "trapper clothes"! I still make 'em to go with my blackpowder rifles , also made by me and I knapp my own obsidian knife points and attach stag handles to 'em for that 'buckskinner' motif but now that I see I can go virtual hey... I'm ' GAME':up: 'Possible bags and gun barrel sheaths included. The percussion caps are German, the mos' reliable... natch!

[Skybird]

I absolutely love the recurve bow, it is so much fun! And I could not agree more, I won't shoot ofer 20m anymore myself, spend too much time with Nachsuche and often seen the arrow not penetrating the lungs even on medium game (which is completely unrealistic btw, the bows in tH are a joke, power-wise!).
Yes, but I understand that this sim also is a game and the various bows must be made having differences that nevertheless are balanced to each other. There is no point in having one bow that is the most precise, strongest and most silent because then there is no need to chose any of the others. The crossbow for strength and long distance (you can lie down on the ground with it), the Python for silence.

[Nippelspanner]

Yes, but I understand that this sim also is a game and the various bows must be made having differences that nevertheless are balanced to each other. There is no point in having one bow that is the most precise, strongest and most silent because then there is no need to chose any of the others. The crossbow for strength and long distance (you can lie down on the ground with it), the Python for silence.

I know, yet I really don't appreciate this marketing and balancing strategy. We had the compound and the recurve bow. The next logical (and wanted) step would have been a strong longbow. Why?

You got the compound bow for "easy" shooting. It is strong, you can anchor it a long time (in RL as well), it is very stable due to light and modern design and the aiming dots will help the most imbecile shooter to hit something not too far away.

Then we got the recurve bow.
A weapon for enthusiasts and traditional bow hunters or those who want to learn it, who wants a challenge of getting even closer to place a good shot. I fell in love on first sight.
This one should be a tad stronger to compensate for the heavier shaking, less anchoring and lack of aiming assistance.

Then we should have had the Longbow, not another compound. Why?
The Longbow would have been the strongest, lets say a 110lbs monster. You could not anchor it and would have to shoot even more instinctive as with the recurve. Pull and release, no anchoring, maximum a second or so.
To compensate the even more difficult shooting it would have been the strongest, dropping big game easily.

What did they do? Bring us another compound. And why?
Money/Licence reasons. How I hate that...
I want them to have money, it's not that. But the recent money-pressing strategy just makes me mad...

If they at least would get a deal with Mauser so we would see the Mauser M03/M12/M98 series... gah. :shifty:

[Skybird]

The one thing about the Python is stealth. The other bows are noisemakers, compared to it. The Python can shoot several arrows without close animals spooking.

The Snakebite is the one bow too much in the collection, I think, but I got it anyway with the DVD edition last year. I later bought the Python for looks only. The silence argument I learned later about.

I agree that with clothes and premium items and the many rifles now they are aiming at people's wallets only. But then, nobody is forced to buy. While I have more firearms than I use, most of them I have due to the DVD edition including them last year. Don't know how it is with the 2014 edition which is out since 4 weeks or so.

I do not plan to buy any new weapons as long as it is no Tomahawk or throwing speer. :D

[Nippelspanner]

A Tomahawk? Mhhh...
Red coat = Red deer? (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bnCJhhTPlXQ) :D

Regarding the silent Parker bow. The problem is, it is only silent if you hit both lungs, the heart, the brain or the neck bones/spine. Due to the lack of power you won't hit both lungs on most game and the heart is kinda misplaced for some animals and I still struggle to be 100% sure where it is depending on the species, which freaks me off. The roe deers heart for example is, according to the hunter mate, completely misplaced. I wanted to do some tests and aim for the exact position where it is in RL, but I havn't done it yet. Even with virtual animals "testing" feels kinda wrong to me. :haha:

Anyways, if you hit it and the animal runs - they all run. A problem currently being discussed in the official forums.

It is a great bow non the less and still on my "maybe" list. Right now its just no priority for me.

[Skybird]

Get closer. 20m is the MAXIMUM.

With arrows,I always go for heart shots, frontal preferred. On Loggers Point I have gotten full packs of Muledeer - good hiding, staying hidden, luring them VERY close, and dropping them instantly with heart shots. Nothing beats the Python when used this way. If they are too close, the other bows spook animals as well. The Python does not. The 40 and 60 meter pins for it are a bad joke, however. It can reach that far, yes, but you spoil your silence advantage, and always have a long search.

Problem with Logger's Point is the open range. I hide in trees and bushes (and I mean full concealment by foliage, even when interrupting LOS), or just behind hilltops, luring animals blindly, one by one, to pass over it, then go for neck shots at <10m. In this context I also avoid shooting at moving animals, if possible.

Maybe they should make ropes a new weapon, to strangle deer. :D

[Nippelspanner]

I don't like to shoot from the front for various reasons, but I know it works well.

If I catch it on sale I probably buy it, it sure looks great, a quite important aspect for me (see 8x53mm rant :)).

[Skybird]

The next reserve has been revealed: it will be in the style of the swamps and marshlands of Louisiana. It's in the final stage. One new species as well, so far unnamed. I bet it has wings, feathers and makes a squawking sound. :)

[Red October1984]

Maybe they should make ropes a new weapon, to strangle deer. :D

You know....Missouri has an Alternate Method season this year.... :hmmm:

[Aktungbby]

BOLOS! :yeah:

[Nippelspanner]

The next reserve has been revealed: it will be in the style of the swamps and marshlands of Louisiana. It's in the final stage. One new species as well, so far unnamed. I bet it has wings, feathers and makes a squawking sound. :)

Meh... People where yacking for waterfowls quite a while now and this new reserve just has to bring them. I am not interested in both, but so far Hirschfelden and Hemeldal keep me happy. And I just love Rehe.

Edit: And more bad news for me. They finally released the longbow. The weapon I waited so long for, I love longbows... and what did they do? They made it even WEAKER than the recurve bow.
Wth...

I start to hate these developers... really. -.-

[Skybird]

It's worthwhile to keep in mind that the major concern for them is to make the weapons with different specs ingame, so that you do not have one single weapon with all advantages (penetration, precision, stealth). I can live with that, since I understand that it is part of their business model that dictates it, if they want to continue development. I personally see no point it getting the longbow. Nor is anyone forced to buy any newly released weapon. ;) I do not plan to buy any new weapon at all. All needs in that regard are already fulfilled, and more than that.

Best investments beyond your armory are tents, certain consumables, and some of the functionality clothes. Binoculars with laser range finder, if you are an arrow-user.

Beyond that it is eyecandy.

One can spend a little fortune on this game, it is the most expensive game I ever used. But beyond a certain point one can also avoid that - and just spend on renewing the membership once or twice a year.

The good news is, different to so many other games with payware content, beyond relatively little stuff all additional stuff is not mandatory for you to get if you want to keep your chances for successful gameplay. you can perfectly go on without that new stuff. They try to bait you, yes, with eye candy. But they do not overstep the red line to making buying it mandatory, directly or in directly.

[Nippelspanner]

It's worthwhile to keep in mind that the major concern for them is to make the weapons with different specs ingame, so that you do not have one single weapon with all advantages (penetration, precision, stealth). I can live with that, since I understand that it is part of their business model that dictates it, if they want to continue development. I personally see no point it getting the longbow. Nor is anyone forced to buy any newly released weapon. ;) I do not plan to buy any new weapon at all. All needs in that regard are already fulfilled, and more than that.

Best investments beyond your armory are tents, certain consumables, and some of the functionality clothes. Binoculars with laser range finder, if you are an arrow-user.

Beyond that it is eyecandy.

One can spend a little fortune on this game, it is the most expensive game I ever used. But beyond a certain point one can also avoid that - and just spend on renewing the membership once or twice a year.

The good news is, different to so many other games with payware content, beyond relatively little stuff all additional stuff is not mandatory for you to get if you want to keep your chances for successful gameplay. you can perfectly go on without that new stuff. They try to bait you, yes, with eye candy. But they do not overstep the red line to making buying it mandatory, directly or in directly.

I know all that. It's just... finally they make the longbow...and than it is not what it should be and also so in between the others that there is no need for it.

It should have been the strongest bow. This would have been a logical step...but no, lets fork it up again.:nope:

Time for a Döner to compensate my bad mood :D

[Skybird]

"Strongest bow"? You mean as an overall assessment? Maybe. Maybe not.

Physically, a compound bow is superior in range, precision and power brought onto the arrow=penetration power. The arrow also flies more stable. A Longbow on the other hand should be more silent, and allow a faster shot frequency.

Compound Bows are the most superior arrow-weapon ever designed, leaving both crossbows and the mystically transfigurated English Longbow behind.

In fact the penetration power of even just a medium quality compound bow and a good arrow of the medium prize segment is absolutely fearsome. I have seen it driving its head through 15 cm of hard oak at 15 meters, and sticking out on the other side several centimeters. One needs to see that oneself in order to believe it, its absolutely fearsome. Many small arms ammunitions would not be capable to achieve that. See it once with your own eyes - you never handle your bow the same way as before, but now with much more respect and caution.

[Nippelspanner]

"Strongest bow"? You mean as an overall assessment? Maybe. Maybe not.
No, lbs wise, like strongest from strength :O:

Physically, a compound bow is superior in range, precision and power brought onto the arrow=penetration power. The arrow also flies more stable. A Longbow on the other hand should be more silent, and allow a faster shot frequency.
That doesn't depend on the bow-form, like longbow, recurve or compound, that depends on how those bows are made and what for...


Anyways, the compounds are rather weak in the game. Too weak for the lbs shown in their stats. But I mentioned that before. A 100lbs longbow would still be much more powerful. I would also not underestimate its precision as well. While it lacks stabilizers and has no aiming assistance, a good shooter will hit what he wants at 50m+. And what do we shoot at in theHunter? ~10m? Its a joke...

A distant friend of mine was the 2012 European champion in Feldbogenschießen, he also introduced me into archery and teach me a few things. Sure, he is one of the best, yet he shoots "primitive" self made bows and it is astonishing what he is able to hit and at what distances... And every descent bow will have no problem at all penetrating even bigger game like elk and moose.
I find this very disappointing in the game... again, "balancing" strikes...:-?

[Skybird]

I also did archery in a log forgotten past.

Longbows allow higher shooting frequency, I give them that.

But a compound bow brings the arrow to higher acceleration speeds, the arrows fly faster than with any Longbow. Next, the arrow travels more in a line, less in a ballistic curve. Therefore, it is more precise, and shortens the path to target: again, more energy saved. The arrow gets not accelerated with maximum speed from all beginning on, like with a longbow, but as long as the string still touches the arrow the acceleration constantly climbs until maximum when the arrow leaves the contact to the string. This leads to less distortions of the arrow while in midair, it moves less, becomes stiff again sooner, and therefore looses less energy to in-flight-vibration and deformation when impacting in/on target, it also gives it not only a more linear flightpath, but less own-movement - generally it looses less energy than an arrow shot with a longbow.

Not to mention that fully pulled, you can hold the string with just one third, even one tenth of the power that indeed is loaded. You start to pull with let'S say 70 pounds, but you hold it finally with just 7 pounds (if you canj afford such a boiw, most have 70% reduction or so). A huge advantage, also helping your precision. Handling and aiming is easier, much easier.

Less curvy flight, more stable flying, less arrow distortion, higher flight speed= less energy loss, greater precision, greater reach, greater penetration power at same pulling power.

The longbow, however, should be more powerful than the Recurve. The Recurve should be the weakest of them all.

For real hunting I would pick the compound: best precision. You do not want the animal suffer needlessly from badly aimed shots at too long distances.

[Skybird]

New species spotted. I will soon hunt ducks in Louisiana's swamps. :D

[Red October1984]

New species spotted. I will soon hunt ducks in Louisiana's swamps. :D

I was going to go hunt them today for real....

But I can't leave. I'm kinda sad.

Post some screenshots of the duck hunting in the game please. :woot:

EDIT: Game probably didn't model it...but don't look at the ducks when you're calling them in. They'll see your eyes. :O:

[Skybird]

Post some screenshots of the duck hunting in the game please. :woot:

New reserve is not yet released, but they are in the final stage. A christmas present? Or 2014? No word is given so far. The reserve is named as Rougarou Bayou. :D

Click the images here:

http://news.thehunter.com/status-update-64/

[Red October1984]

New reserve is not yet released, but they are in the final stage. A christmas present? Or 2014? No word is given so far. The reserve is named as Rougarou Bayou. :D

Rougarou Bayou...

:rotfl2:

Look out for Sasquatch when you're duck hunting. :03:

[Nippelspanner]

Nah, Bigfoot is only on Whitetail Island...

[Red October1984]

Nah, Bigfoot is only on Whitetail Island...

Wiki lists the Rougarou as more of a werewolf....but I always had it explained as the Cajun Sasquatch.

Sasquatch-Wolf-Creature will get you if you aren't careful. :)

[Aktungbby]

je parle rougarou mon modified ami? :timeout:

[Skybird]

The new reserve has been released. It comes together with new items for mallard hunting, and a re-activation of TrackIR (which went MIA with the introduction of MP).

Haven't tried it so far, but will this evening or tomorrow.

Time to get out the pump action! :arrgh!:

Bang- tschack-tschack - Bang- tschack-tschack - Bang- tschack-tschack - Bang - tschack-tschack - Bang- tschack-tschack - Bang - tschack-tschack - tschack-tschack - tschack-tschack - tschack-tschack - "Sh!t..."

[Skybird]

Two movies, showcasing the new stuff.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yDpGtvMGVSM (MP, the massacre starts at 2:40 :D)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Skc925SY0Y (SP)

[GlobalExplorer]

They just released a 8x57 K98k (http://www.thehunter.com/#store/item/277) that would be befitting to a U-boat man

http://static.thehunter.com/static/img/items/1024/rifle_8x57_k98k.png

[Nippelspanner]

...and I want it so much... yet I don't wish to support these devs any longer, alas not until they fix YEARS OLD bugs and address some long existing problems.

theHunter turned into a moneymakingmachine, nothing else. I have the feeling all the passion they once had is long gone and all that counts now are Dollars.

If they fix some bugs, minor or major, I might come back. Until then, nope. Not even for the K98, a weapon I hoped for back in 2010 when I started playing this game.

[Skybird]

Since late summer last year I had immense technical problems with their server as well, their updates froze and ended in taking hours and hours to download even a mere 10 MB update, with several attempts needed to even get that one done. First reacting polite, then patient and silent, next very cool and finally openly angry a month ago, that did nothing than earning me public attacks even when just stating the obvious. They did release quite some eye candy (for money) and new items (for money), but did not honour for over half a year the payments made in form of mandatory fees, and that finally really pissed me, and others.

With their latest server move, updates still come extremely slow and unreliably, but at last they do not freeze anymore. So I play it again, after all, it is a very good game indeed, but I do not invest anymore additional, money into except the mandatory yearly fee. Which at least is not as expensive as for example the hilarious pricing model of TES Online (which will never see me joining it).

I would tolerate the money-making additional offerings, after all you are free to pass on them, but that they failed to repair fundamental basics for so long time is what has left me in anger about them.

So, my relation with them has cooled very much. I do not give it up completely, the setting and ghraphcis and gameplay is just too good. 15 Euros per half a year, is okay.

The inventory bug sporadically still shows up. They have not solved it by that server movement. And the map takes longer now to load.

Advice of the day: if you are interested in the gameplay, go for it it, but buy only the essential kit so that you can hunt all species - not more: sufficient wepains to legally hunt all species, one camo set, some basic lures, binocular - in principle that's it. The new two flying species I would even pass on, the needed equipment is a money sink, really: up to 23 items, weapon and clothes not counted! Very bad joke. :down:

[Skybird]

It seems the era of technical pitfalls and letdowns indeed has come to an end. Since last summer, not few players suffered from malfunctioning servers, resulting in game sessions disrupted by non-accessible inventories or freezing maps, as well as updates and patches freezing while being downloaded, or being downloaded at crawling speeds that made them a project of hours.

It took them almost half a year to start addressing these issues, and then another quarter of a year to resolve the issues. At the same time they nevertheless had the time to release plenty of payware items, reserves, and new species, which quite some people took queer. I had some initially polite and patient, but then increasingly angry arguments with their forums.

However, with their move to new servers, things slowly improved, and in the past couple of weeks I saw the major issues I attacked them for, going away one by one. Download of opatches still is a bit slow, but not that bad anbymore as if it would keep yopu away or stop you from playing, and mostly they are running at acceptable speeds now.

So since a few weeks I have started to find my enjoyment with this beautiful virtual world again. I can again with a good conscience recommend the game to people potentially being interested in its concept. The visual beauty, the gameplay, and the general mood and atmosphere never were in doubt anyway.

However, new players should act with hesitation and patience when deciding which equipmentg to buy, Expansive World carry The Hunter to Steam, the concepot serves for a mother comapony as a new busines smodel, and The Hunter itself has been beefed up with plenty of visual acessoires since release of multiplayer that have no gameplay value and only are cosmetic for multiplayer groups, and some new game concepts lioke hiunting geese and mallards have been turned into additioonal money generators, needing and/or offering quite a lot of additonal stuff for increasing the chances for successful hunting. Its not as bad as with mass online shooters, but a policy chnage has been done and the rersults from that are showing - if you think you really need all the gimmicks they offer, this now is an even more expensive game.

To do them fairness, you can do all reserves and wanted weapons and species with quite rudimentary expenses, and at this level you can not complain for sure, the game qulaity is ver yhigh, and the price for the deal "all reserves, all species, all needed ethical weapons" is okay. But they really try hard now to lure you into a thinking pattern where you spend several times as much money. So my advise: be restrictive with your buyings, be hesitent, and do not buy new gadgets as long as game experience has not proven you that youj have use for it.

And there is plenty of gadgets now, new weapons, aiming devices, clothing...

The "dry year" is over, it seems, it works reliably again now, and the game is as good again as it was before last summer, with several new species (18 in total now) and 7 reserves, and for those interested: multiplayer, it even is better than ever now. A new reserve is in the making.
After one rough year, the hunter is out there again! :yeah:

[Nippelspanner]

I played it a lot the last month, a close friend sponsored me a 3months membership cause we enjoy hunting together. I earned like 10000em$ all by doing offers - with fake data and emails/trash email accounts of course - since I do not want to support it directly at the moment in protest of their way to suck every cent out of the members.

The severe technical difficulties of the past weeks didn't change my opinion and I haven't played in like a week or more. So I hope you are right and the very most of the issues are indeed gone. Things I experienced and that drove me nuts:

- Long loading times for inventory and map. Sometimes even black screens that will end the session for you. Great.
- Perfect shots on the Kammer being registered as "intestine hits". JFK's magic bullet would be jealous!
- Disconnects of players for no reason.

Think there was more but I don't remember.
Anyways, I hope you're right... I may hunt tonight and check it out. Did you hunt wabbits already?

Dem' so cutie cute!:rotfl2:

[Skybird]

I can only repeat - the issues with inventory and map that have appeared last summer and for me lasted until their server change early spring, have not shown up since 4-5 weeks or so. The bugs apparently having plagued the mallard hunt, have gone for me, too. Technically, things work well for me, like in the beginning when I came to the game. The new launcher that now allows independent launching from any brwoser activity, also may have helped. It was released just days ago and works fine.

I accept them to want earning money - in the end I often said that good stuff MUST cost good money - and so I accept them tailoring some aspects in the game to that purpose, their business model is such that ongoing development needs ongoing funding, I just warn against swallowing each and any bait they offer you to waste money on, especially for pure cosmetic stuff only paying off - visually - in MP. They are more expensive than Steel Beasts, but less expensive than many of the popular mass online games, Skyrim online and so forth.

On MP I do not comment, since I do not play MP. I am SP exclusively, and as a SP player I am now happy again. I had several good sessions in the past three weeks that reminded me of why I once fell in love with this game originally. Its unique.

That new air gun works fun, btw.

[Skybird]

Yesterday, the game was released on Steam.

It is a phased release, with Germany, France and I think Britain going first. Other countries will follow. They do it, I assume, to not overwhelm their servers.

Yesterday also some people reported the old issue with server connectivity again, probably linked to the Steam release. People were unable to download updates, and play. Or the download took 20 min - 3 hours. Or ended in the need to reinstall the complete game (downloading it first, taking all day).

I have not been affected by this, however. I was affected from summer last year until spring this year - for three quarters of a year.

If people are affected by it, try to run the new launcher as administrator. It is said to solve issues for many people.

Steam forums are already full with comments from people demanding to be given all content and all stuff for FREE. :dead: As much as I question the latest sales policies they have implemented, I am at war with this attitude to demand stuff for free as well. Both are extremes.

I hope the technical issues some people got plagued by, will pass and will not spread again. But until today, I say again: technically all works well for me currently.

[Nippelspanner]

Steam forums are already full with comments from people demanding to be given all content and all stuff for FREE. :dead: As much as I question the latest sales policies they have implemented, I am at war with this attitude to demand stuff for free as well. Both are extremes.
I totally expected this, haven't checked yet myself but that sure sounds like the generic STEAM crowd being ridiculous again...:har:

[Skybird]

I started to kind of liking the new scoring system, which motivates you to buy new weapons, yes - but also it forces you to consider your callibre more according to the prey. If you fire too huge callibres at too tiny animals, they will not run away anymore, yes :D - but the score will suffer from the trophy getting ruined. You want to kill with the smallest callibre to not ruin the trophy, but also you do not want to always search the dead animal for minutes and minutes. Hm... Think I need that Blaser R8. :D

Before, there was no reason NOT to always pick the biggest Ballermann you owned. Now, you need to choose. I actually have started to use the smaller callibre rifles that I got for free with my German DVD special edition in 2012 ("2013"), and which I never had used. Now I do.

Some of their settings for ethical hunting however are counter-intuitive to the above. Why they thiunk they mjust make such a decisive difference between Coyotes and Foxes, I cannot understand. The weapon matching the one should also match the other, they are not that different in size, aren't they. But okay, it is a game.

The air gun is a nice toy, too. If being shot at longer distances (~ 100m), it does not spook animals, like bows, misses also do not autoimatically spook the target animal necessarily. Also, the scope at 70-120m already needs to get used to the way how to use the markings for different ranges, the ballistics are much more obvious than with the normal rifles. Going after rabbits with it, is a new game. Those little stinkers are party-poopers when it comes to spotting them in the high grass. :D I swear I heard them laughing about me.

[Skybird]

Due to health issues locking me at the table and in my home the past week, I came back into full swing with The Hunter, and am happy to report that technically it works as reliably for me like it once was. And with reliability, fun and fascination returned, too.

A nice introduction video for people not knowing anything about the game, which answers possibly most if not all questions a potentially interested newcomer could have, also explaining what the business model is like, and what limits there are in free to play". I personally would not say it is free to play, but that it has a demo mode which is free, but very limited in available content and what you can hunt. If you are not sure whether you could like The Hunter or not, this video is for you.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xdGZ5oV9jq0


http://www11.pic-upload.de/09.06.14/fs5bcy5uiwqk.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23488665/thehunter_2014_06_04_23_52_00_819.jpg.html)

[les green01]

i play it last year and it was ok i have the level action 30-06 and the 50 cal cap and ball going download the game again my name on there is Green38 if you want to add me as a friend

[Skybird]

If you ever see me running an MP session (same name there) and you feel like it, feel free to join. If password-protected, passwort will be "subsim".

Just don't be a jogging vandal. :)

[Lionclaw]

A nice introduction video for people not knowing anything about the game, which answers possibly most if not all questions a potentially interested newcomer could have, also explaining what the business model is like, and what limits there are in free to play". I personally would not say it is free to play, but that it has a demo mode which is free, but very limited in available content and what you can hunt. If you are not sure whether you could like The Hunter or not, this video is for you.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xdGZ5oV9jq0

Thanks for the YT link. :up:

My name that I use here was apparently taken already, my name on The Hunter is "Vargyl". :)

Downloaded it and tried it out. It's quite relaxing and fun! :sunny:

And nice scenery, this caught my eye at Logger's Point reserve.

http://i.imgur.com/qQup0Eh.jpg

[Skybird]

Check the Wiki.

http://www.thehunterwiki.com/index.php?title=Main_Page

You can switch language in the upper left corner box. I strongly recommend to use the German version if one can understand it, because the German Wiki is far more detailed and complete than the English one, which is missing a lot of the details given in the German one.

Anyone deciding to invest into a membership and buying some stuff, I recommend to give the many buying options very good consideration and research, especially weapons. You can spend a fortune, but you do not need all that stuff at all - but you can easily buy several weapons that suit the same purpose, leaving you still with animals for which you have no ethical weapon (hits will not be scored). Clever choice equips you with shooting options for every opportunity without buying most weapons. You can also ask here (me). The Hunter can be an expenbsive game. But you can also fully play it with full access to all and everything for quite a fair amount of money, mif you make clever choice for few equipment pieces. With the arrival of MP last year, they also boosted the sales of clothing and weapons that serve no other purpose than to impress the other players watching your alter ego in the game. But that is not needed at all.

If you can get a copy (new, sealed!!! It is the game account which cannot be sold/bought second hand!!!)) of the old German DVD edition "2013" (not 2014!), go for it - it was a treasure chest of additional weapons and content, and probably the best deal they ever offered on the game. The DVD versions, which are exclusive items for the German market, are compared in the German Wikipedia.

I also would think twice before buying the game via Steam. It seems that the updates so far coming via Steam require a re-download of ALL the game code, while versions installed via buying on their website only require download of the actual patch code. Yesterday update saw a size difference of 44 MB (their shop) to 700+ MB (Steam). You do not gain or lose any features when choosing the one or the other buying option - both versions are identical in content, they say. You can even associate your shop version with your existing Steam account, i think - but why would I want to do that... No, I still do not like Steam.

P.S. And I start most hunts at 0600. 0500 is too early for many species (but some are most active then). The German wiki gives activity patterns and timetables for most species.

[Lionclaw]

If you can get a copy (new, sealed!!! It is the game account which cannot be sold/bought second hand!!!)) of the old German DVD edition "2013" (not 2014!), go for it - it was a treasure chest of additional weapons and content, and probably the best deal they ever offered on the game. The DVD versions, which are exclusive items for the German market, are compared in the German Wikipedia.

I also would think twice before buying the game via Steam. It seems that the updates so far coming via Steam require a re-download of ALL the game code, while versions installed via buying on their website only require download of the actual patch code. Yesterday update saw a size difference of 44 MB (their shop) to 700+ MB (Steam). You do not gain or lose any features when choosing the one or the other buying option - both versions are identical in content, they say. You can even associate your shop version with your existing Steam account, i think - but why would I want to do that... No, I still do not like Steam.

P.S. And I start most hunts at 0600. 0500 is too early for many species (but some are most active then). The German wiki gives activity patterns and timetables for most species.


If I've made an account already, can I buy the DVD version and would it still work with the account? :)

If I remember correctly, GameStop in town might have a copy in stock, not sure though.

I bought Rise of Flight when it was on sale on Steam, and it wouldn't work with my account I had already. >.<


EDIT: It seems there's a 2013 version available for download on some game stores online. :D

[Skybird]

I'd be surprised if you get the second-last DVD (the 2013 edition was released in 2012) still in shops, and outside Germany. However, as far as I recall, you need nothing to install from it, since you already have it installed (polus updates and new reserves), and I think back then they said that the code in the box unlocks additional equipment that you then have no longer to buy separately, it also adds 6 months of membership. But one needed to enter the code at a different site.

Best advise would be to check in their forum for "DVD 2013 Deutsche Wälder". I do not recall the details precisely anymore.

The latest DVD special edition is "2014", it also adds some stuff to the membership of 6 months, and a Blaser rifle, but the content list is much more limited than it was with the 2013 edition.

Today we're hunting T-Rex. :D
http://www11.pic-upload.de/12.06.14/72mrz4yk4vk.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23518680/thehunter_2014_06_04_15_16_18_751.jpg.html)

[Lionclaw]

Cool, thanks. :)

GameStop didn't have 2014 version in stock, not sure which one they had before though.

I'd prefer a download version though, so it's between the 2013 version or one of the "Starter Bundles" on The Hunter site. :hmmm:

I downloaded the launcher from their site, didn't feel like using Steam.

[Skybird]

This table from the English Wiki lists which callibres are ethical for hunting which species. "Ethical" in the game's context mean that hits and kills will be scored, not ignored. Mostly it reflects considerations from reality, but some decisions got made to benefit game balancing and also sales interest. As I said, one can get along with very few different weapons, if one chooses wisely. The weapons also may have different characteristics in deer-stop-power :D, precison over range (ballistics), scope designs, and sounds.

For some reaosn I don'T know I cannot paste and copy the wiki's page title to link it. So I took screenshots.

http://www11.pic-upload.de/12.06.14/8gjsmcnrrpw2.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23521701/Unbenannt.jpg.html)

http://www11.pic-upload.de/12.06.14/5jsn71esxxke.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23521795/Rifles.jpg.html)

http://www11.pic-upload.de/12.06.14/4lgjt98n8fct.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23521799/2.jpg.html)

http://www11.pic-upload.de/12.06.14/vkvj9tjabyg3.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23521802/bows.jpg.html)

One can cover the whole range of species with 2-3 rifles and 1 shotgun, to have a bow or pistol already is a bonus game. If you play with the .50 from the civil war :), you can even do all job with just one rifle. If you count slug and buckshot ammo, you do not even need a rifle, but just a shotgun.

A bow is handy due to its silence, the pistols imo are not really needed. Bows vary in power and noise level. The Python is the most silent weapon in the game, crossbow and Snakebite are the most powerful bow weapons, the crossbow is the easiest to handle and allows to shoot while lying flat on the ground.

As a shotgun, nothing beats the 6-shot pump action.

Rifles, you need a small callibre for small game, a memium for most other naimals, and a huieg c allibre for the real big animals out there. The scoring system depends on the state the trophy is in - and when you shoot a little deer with a 9.3x62, the trophy suffers more than if you used a .223. Since the points awarded also reflect how long the animals survived after the hit, you need some dropping power nevertheless. Ypou can score good for state of the trophy, but ruining it when the prey escaped and still lived (and suffered) for 3 minutes.

Is the .243 the only weapon you got so far, as a guest?

[Skybird]

I am not certain, Liponclaw, but I think if you are already a guest, you can, if you want, just head to the ingame shop and buy a memberhsip there. The game already is installed on your HD, no?! Buying a memeberhsuip will unlock full content for the time you chose, 3, 6 or 12 months. After that, it will gpo back to guest status. However, all items you bought and your statistics will be frozen. If you pause, and then later register another subscription period, all your content you bought before, will be unlocked again, you do not need to buy it again.

Be aware of that hunting mallards and geese, needs you to spend quite some money to increase the chance that you can lure the animals down to you. Both species are money traps to be hunted. Plenty of equipment needs to be bought to increase, item per item, the chance that you can lure the animals. It's quite an unfriendly design with these two species.

Rabbits can be hunt with shotguns and birdshot, but using the air rifle means a real challenging gameplay - I like it. Beyond 35m, ballistics and wind really make themselves felt. And those little cuties in high grass and being quite nervous, are very unthankful targets.

[Lord_magerius]

Been playing this for quite a while but finally took the plunge last night and bought the wayfarer membership and 2000EMS. Having great fun using the .308 Anschütz 1780, great rifle for pretty much anything. Anything it can't take down, I've got the trusty pump action and the .357 revolver for.

Just finished a hunt 10 minutes ago and managed to nail this beasty :D
https://photo.thehunter.com/d1/65/d1655b4e4d53f1c2826fee6ba3340bde80a001d1.jpg


If anyone wants to hunt with me my game name is Monkster87, just send me a friends request on there and we'll go hunting sometime.

[Lionclaw]

Is the .243 the only weapon you got so far, as a guest?


Yeah, the .243 bolt action rifle.


I am not certain, Liponclaw, but I think if you are already a guest, you can, if you want, just head to the ingame shop and buy a memberhsip there. The game already is installed on your HD, no?! Buying a memeberhsuip will unlock full content for the time you chose, 3, 6 or 12 months. After that, it will gpo back to guest status. However, all items you bought and your statistics will be frozen. If you pause, and then later register another subscription period, all your content you bought before, will be unlocked again, you do not need to buy it again.

Be aware of that hunting mallards and geese, needs you to spend quite some money to increase the chance that you can lure the animals down to you. Both species are money traps to be hunted. Plenty of equipment needs to be bought to increase, item per item, the chance that you can lure the animals. It's quite an unfriendly design with these two species.

Rabbits can be hunt with shotguns and birdshot, but using the air rifle means a real challenging gameplay - I like it. Beyond 35m, ballistics and wind really make themselves felt. And those little cuties in high grass and being quite nervous, are very unthankful targets.

Yeah, installed it a few days ago. Maybe it's not enough time but, it seems like an interesting game. More of a relaxing type of game.

I've played it a few hours now. I have yet to spot a male Mule Deer, only females so far.

I'm not sure I'll hunt water birds. :hmmm:

Cool, good to know so I don't repurchase stuff again. :)

I think I'll get the Pathfinder bundle, more of a middle ground between the two other ones.

It has a .44 Magnum revolver. :D

I know what you're thinking. Did he fire 5 shots or 6? Infact, due to the excitement I lost track myself. Do you feel lucky? Well do ya, punk?!

Paraphrased from Dirty Harry movies.

[Skybird]

The Anschütz 9.3x62 (a beefed up .308, if I'm not mistaken), is no rifle, but a cannon. :D

It is the most superior meat-dropper over medium range, but at long range it loses precision and needs compensation due to the ballistics, so for the long range, the .300 probably is slightly better. At very close range, a shotgun with slug is the most brutal punishment there is, probably.

I have played the 9.3 until 250 hits, getting all scoring points for it. The Anschütz 8x57IS also is a favourite of mine which I now use for moose and bear now, its firing sound could be mistaken for a tank cannon. :)

The Blaser R8 6.5x55 is a very good choice to buy , too. It has a very fast reloading sequence, and if handled well it drops all deer except elk, moose and bears without affecting the score as much as the bigger callibre form the Anschütz rifle would do.

For a basic weapons outfit, I would recommend people to make a choice between the two mentioned Anschütz rifles and the .300, one of these will make a solid "heavy rifle"; then go for the Blaser R8 6.5x55 for an most-purpose "medium rifle", and then the Varmint .223 as a "light rifle" for small game. As a shotgun, the pump action is the best, imo. And I would go for the Python bow, so that you can snapshot nearby prey without alarming all your vicinity of your presence (however, most prey will run away, but it is a good choice for taking out turkey, roe deer, foxes and the like). In principle, more weapons you do not need. Any other weapons you buy, is for taste or curiosity.

On lures, any sprayed stuff - well, I play without it since I came to the game. But you need a caller for any species available, I use them all.

Blinds: not really needed, if you play sneaky. Also, I have an issue with the towers and tent blinds, that is that yoiu cannot shoot from a stabilized posiiton when being within them, you cannot crouch. You need to shoot while standing, and thus: unstabilised. Very stupid. They are being told SINCE YEARS, and they do not listen.

I would buy one camping tent at least. If oyu have it with you, always, you can "camp" at the end of the session, and later return and continue from your camping site. I have simulated whole virtual weekend expeditions that way, and enjoyed.

Finally, clothing. POlent yof their latest clothing is comsetic only, to pose in mutliplayer, but there also is functional clothing. Basically, there are two types, the one is reducing visibility, the other is reducing scent and noise. The first is good against birds, foxes, coyotes, bears when you are in thwe woods, it is less effective in the open. The other set is more effective against the deer species. Usually there are sets for summer green reserves, autumn (Hirschfelden), winter (Hemmeldahl), and now rougarou bayou has its own visual set as well. However, these clothes make it easier and increase chances to avoid detection, and you can get closer before animals spook, but it is not essential to wear these clothes if you adapt your playing style and be more cautious when wearing ordinary clothes only. As I said, clothing saw a boost in varierty with the implementation of MP, and that is where their commercial interest aims at.

I would get the bonoculars with integrated laser range finders, especially when you use the air rifle or a bow weapon. The Python bow since lately has a LRF aiming scope available, too. For the shotgun, there is a 2x red dot scope, but it is not really needed. The rfiles - I would get scopes for them. Avoid the 12x scope that is available for the .223, it is too tunnel-viewed. The Anschütz come with good 3-9x42 scopes, you need just one scope to buy, since it fits both rifles listed above. The rifles come in silver and black, so come the scopes, but you can mix the colours, if you want.

Scent eliminator spray is a consumable. It helps if you plan to get real close. But I have now come to play more and more without it.

A medikit allows you to continue the session if a hog or moose or bear mauls you up. Camping kit can b used to teleport to the camping sites or lodges, to continue from there. Since you made somethign wrong when an animals rolls over you, and you can adapt by playing more cautiously, none of these two items is essential.

Use those shooting ranges, especially the one on the east of Redfeather Falls and when you plan to use bow weapons.

Ducks and geese I would leave to snapshot the occasional animal you may tumble over when sneaking around. Specialising in hunting them imo is too much money for too little gameplay. You would need two callers (far and close range), a groundblind and at least 12 dummies to have reasonable chances to lure any flight of birds down to you. And that costs money.

Run only for some seconds after you fired a rifle, or in heavy rain. Usually, you should walk or crouch.

Only objects you cannot walk through hides you from the nauimals'S eyes, vegetation you can walk you will hinder your own eyesight, but will not hide you from the animal. Stay behind trees, therefore, lay down in grass. Be aware of wind direction, especially if you do not wear scent-reducing clothing and use no scent elimintor spray.

My preferred times to start a hunt, are 0600 and 1500. I do not play in the time between 1000 and 1500.


"I told him he should respect the right of way, but did he listen...? Nooo..."
http://www11.pic-upload.de/12.06.14/4693qn4h9xpg.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23523154/2014-06-07-1746---Hirschfelden---Rothirsch--42.1-.jpg.html)

[Skybird]

Yeah, the .243 bolt action rifle.




Yeah, installed it a few days ago. Maybe it's not enough time but, it seems like an interesting game. More of a relaxing type of game.

I've played it a few hours now. I have yet to spot a male Mule Deer, only females so far.

I'm not sure I'll hunt water birds. :hmmm:

Cool, good to know so I don't repurchase stuff again. :)

I think I'll get the Pathfinder bundle, more of a middle ground between the two other ones.

It has a .44 Magnum revolver. :D

I know what you're thinking. Did he fire 5 shots or 6? Infact, due to the excitement I lost track myself. Do you feel lucky? Well do ya, punk?!

Paraphrased from Dirty Harry movies.
With the .243, you are in no urgent need to go after the .223 I recommended. But you NEED one or two heavier rifles or at least a shotgun.

With the Pathfinder you can get along if you use slugs and buckshot, else you still need a reasonable rifle. The disadvantage of slugs is they do not reach that far and are not as precise. The clothing in the Pathfinder is nothing special, but it gives you a tent. And you still have no callers except for turkeys. If you want to use the bow, you may want a LRF.

BTW, maximum rendering range for animals in the game is around 230 meters, beyond that they are still there and get calculated, but they will not be visible.

Mule deer sometimes is called "ghost deer", and not for no reason, also, Logger's Point is not the most easiest reserve to play. I like it, but Whiteheart Island for example is easier. Try your luck in the early morning hours, and be silent, it is very good advise to behave like a submarine surfacing at night in fog within hostile waters. Most species have two activities at least: resting, and walking to eating grounds, and back. I am not certain whether I would call some observations of mine their effort to go to water to drink, too, or if that were just random meetings. The timetable for these activities vary from species to species.

The real highscoring bucks are very difficult to find, and usually also cannot be lured, also, the ynever call themselves, or only rarely. Also note that higher scoring animals sometimes follow after a "spearhead" of low-scoring peasants, which can make it tricky to go after the good scores. Its these scenarios where I could think about using lure spray. But then I usually find that I have not taken it with me.

P.S. An essential equipment to buy is a backpack. It doubles the space for items you can carry. To increase the number of ready-slots, also is comfortable, though not essential.

[Lionclaw]

I now have:

.243 Rifle (standard)
.357 Revolver
.44 Revolver
12 GA Pump Action Shotgun
Compound Bow "Snakebite"


I've been looking at the heavier rifles, a bit difficult to choose. :D

K98k, German WW2 rifle. :hmmm:

The Anschütz 1780 has wider selection of scopes though. :)

Then there's the .300 or the .30-06. :hmmm:

[Skybird]

Go by callibre. The WWII Carbine and the Anschütz 8x52IS are the same.

The carbine offers a 4x scope, the Anschütz a zoom scope with 3x, 6x, 9x. Very handy for quickly switching between precise aiming and getting situational overview.

I would pick either the Carbine, or the Anschütz 9.3 (the bigger one of the Anschütz rifles) with scopes. Possibly the Anschütz - a bigger difference to the Blaser 6.5, if you ever get it later. Yes, that sounds right to me: a Blaser 6.5, and an Anschütz 9.3. With your .243 and pump gun, you then have a very nice combo - the right tool for every opportunity. The rifles with scopes (long shots), but the shotgun does not need one. Scopes always limit situational awareness.

Consider to get callers. Really, they are important. Not the sprays, but the callers. Also, consider that backpack.

[Lord_magerius]

I've got a game up on Loggers Point for anyone interested.

Search for Monkster87's Game password will be Subsim

[Skybird]

But... They are playing football now! Halftime. :-)

[Lord_magerius]

Just some screenshots from my point of view whilst hunting with Lionclaw and Skybird.

Edit: For some reason the game looked really bad for me tonight, it had somehow defaulted to no AA, no anisotropic and scenery density was set at low, weird bug maybe.

A half decent Whitey
https://photo.thehunter.com/29/16/2916633c452f394aa587965647eb12700d1d4308.jpg

Moooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooose
https://photo.thehunter.com/39/5c/395c71033dc46f507c8ebfe05d26ec757b0c3099.jpg

Pretty decent blacktail deer
https://photo.thehunter.com/cc/b5/ccb5c14c334432a163a348e0d096aec44ccd930f.jpg

My first Roosevelt elk buck
https://photo.thehunter.com/4c/99/4c9951894f0a912bd3b4a77fae00158df10fc060.jpg

[Skybird]

The photo on the mountain that I told you guys of, went amiss somehow, unfortunately.

I had five shots - five kills, a clean rifle statistics. I was satisfied. I made just one trophy shot and in a hurry, and it was not even a good one:

http://www11.pic-upload.de/13.06.14/8tl9k2hlsn.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23526585/2014-06-13-0050---Redfeather-Falls---Roosevelt-Wapiti--20.8-.jpg.html)

[Skybird]

I will announce my hunts in the forum from now on.

Subsimmers are welcome to join. :shucks:

Password will always be "Subsim" or "subsim". I usually start at 06:00 gametime, and will not run beyond 10:00 ingame time, at the latest.

[Skybird]

I could take you two out for a mallard or goose hunt. I know you do not have the according stuff, but I have, you only need ethical weapons: birdshot, arrows, or .357 magnum (which is really odd, but that is what the game is like...). I have still set up according ambush sites in Hirschfelden and Rougarou Bayou.

A coordinated effort. I call them in, you two pick them down. The blinds can hold three people.

http://www11.pic-upload.de/13.06.14/fm5jnrhv6ov.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23527068/2013-11-03-0029---Hemmeldal---Braunb----r--39.9-.jpg.html)

[Skybird]

Lionclaw, since you said last night you are still undecided on which rifle to choose, I just wrote this in their forums:

Ignoring shotguns and slugs: and basing both on my own experiences and the German Wiki, with which I agree in its assessments of the Anschütz rifles.

The brute power of the 9.3 is without rival within ranges of around 100-150 meters. It's the rifle that I brought to full kill score as the first rifle in my statistics. It's a Panzerfaust. It also is damn accurate within that range. In excess of that range however its ballistics make themselves felt, and the bullets drop more than with the .300 or 30-06. If you can compensate for that, you still have a cannon in your hands. At maximum rendering distance of 230m, aim maybe the width of one hand higher.

The .300 is more precise over longer ranges, that's why the scopes for it are zeroed in for not 100 but 150 meter. It delivers a good punch, and adding the precision, in capable hands it is as lethal as the 9.3

But you have to differ between penetration power and the body damage in general. The .300 has a good, maybe better penetration power than the 9.3, but is not en par with the body damage done by a 9.3. The 9.3 does more damage, if it penetrates shoulder bones, for example. If you aim in such a way that you avoid needing to penetrate bones, the 9.3 still is the superior weapon. The .300 is the safer weapon to penetrate, and easier to handle, due to better precision.

If you do not call long range shots, but like to close in, do like I do and prefer the 9.3. If oyu prefer the long range shots, maybe the .300 is better choice.

The 30-06 is a very good allrounder. Slightly stronger than the 8x57IS, no interfering ballistics at 200m, and it can easily hold its ground with the .300 and 9.3.

All these callibres are lethal, if you handle them according to their small differences and adapt to them. I would not choose a rifle because of them, but because of the scopes, the sounds the rifle makes, and the looks. Serious. And the sounds of the Anschütz rifles are - well, they leave the .300 and 30-06 in the dust, imo. The .300 is slow in reloading, you hardly get off a second shot. The Anschütz rifles I often use for two shots, on some occasions even three (though they do not reload as fast as the Blaser R8 6.5). The Winchester also reloads quite fast. The .300 has a very good scope: fine crosshairs with a red dot, fits any light condition.

Do not count out the Anschütz 8x57IS. Its more precise than the 9.3, and a VERY good allrounder. Not maximum penetration and body damage, but very good values in both, and that combined with the precision and fast reloading and nice sound and scope makes it a very good rifle in game.

I come to love with the Blaser 6.5 since the last weeks. For its kind of game, it now is my favourite weapon: Blacktail, Whitetail, Mule, Coyotes, even hogs. The key to it is understanding its strength: precision, fast travelling bullets, and the resulting high penetration power. It doe snot do as much damage than the callibres mentioned above. But also, it doe snot ruin your trophy score that way. For the prey mentioned, it is maybe the most superior rifle in the game. It has a good scope, characteristic sound, and reloads extremely fast. Damn good rifle! For elk, moose and bears you need a bigger one, however, not because you could not kill with 6.5, but because the ethical argument ingame (no score, that is :D)

[Lionclaw]

Thanks Skybird. :) Bought a .300 though, the sights I have is compatible with it, saved some money that way. With the Pathfinder bundle I received a 3-9x40 rifle scope.

I bought some ammo, noticed later that I had been given three boxes of it. :damn:

I bought the B&C Clothing bundle, scent eliminator and a range finder.

May need to get more em$ to get some callers or something. :hmmm:

[Skybird]

No bad choice, the .300. Will make no more jokes on you when meeting you in the forest now, for pulling your leg you now have too big a Boom on your back. It will teach you aiming discipline, since you most often will not be able to reload in time for a second shot - that longer reloading time is its only - relative - weakness.

Reloading the .50 would take even longer however. :D

The B&C clothing is good scent protection when hunting all kind of deer, both in summer and autumn reserves, but it gives no visual benefits when hunting animals that are more eye-focussed. For the time beeing, stay with the B&C.

Yes, callers. Bleat caller is top on the list, since it serves for luring several species. The others in the order you want to hunt them. Note that the four callers for mallards and geese do not help you that much at all if you do not also use according blinds, and plastic dummies which raise the probability that the cvallers will be effective - I would stay away from mallard and goose stuff as long as I need other equipment.

A Rucksack! :yep:

---

I have just done another expedition, this time Hemmeldal.

It was a beautiful early morning.
http://www11.pic-upload.de/13.06.14/7su5o8r7vdt.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23531214/thehunter_2014_06_13_12_09_05_351.jpg.html)


I scored seven of seven, amongst them this fox...
http://www11.pic-upload.de/13.06.14/fc2x7e25f7.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23531228/2014-06-13-1225---Hemmeldal---Rotfuchs--72.5-.jpg.html)


... and this brown bear.
http://www11.pic-upload.de/13.06.14/y9q533eohecj.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23531239/2014-06-13-1256---Hemmeldal---Braunb----r--75.4-.jpg.html)


"What's this supposed to mean - Germany 0 Portugal 1...!?!?!"
http://www11.pic-upload.de/13.06.14/8upseevevhc3.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23531247/thehunter_2014_06_13_13_45_44_042.jpg.html)

[Lionclaw]

"What's this supposed to mean - Germany 0 Portugal 1...!?!?!"

That expression fits perfectly. :haha:



The B&C clothing is good scent protection when hunting all kind of deer, both in summer and autumn reserves, but it gives no visual benefits when hunting animals that are more eye-focussed. For the time beeing, stay with the B&C.

Roger that! :salute:


Yes, callers. Bleat caller is top on the list, since it serves for luring several species. The others in the order you want to hunt them. Note that the four callers for mallards and geese do not help you that much at all if you do not also use according blinds, and plastic dummies which raise the probability that the cvallers will be effective - I would stay away from mallard and goose stuff as long as I need other equipment.

I saw the water bird thingies, and yeah, they cost a bit. :-?

I have a Deer "Bleat" caller, part of the guest equipment.

It attracts both female and male, so the grunt call may not be needed I guess? :hmmm:

There are the moose, elk etc. callers, might come in handy.

What about scent lures? Mmm, piss. :O: :dead:

[Skybird]

I have a Deer "Bleat" caller, part of the guest equipment.

It attracts both female and male, so the grunt call may not be needed I guess? :hmmm:

No, it sounds different, but in effect both are not any different.


There are the moose, elk etc. callers, might come in handy. The next important items on your list, I'd say, and next comes a Rucksack.

What about scent lures? Mmm, piss. :O: :dead:I personally never use them. You could use them to attract your prey into a position that should not be your own. But for me, callers just do the job. Maybe it also is habit. I think most players do not use lures much.

You probably have noted already that your rifle is less stabilised when standing, and better stabilised when kneeling, and best when laying flat on the ground. Also, hold your breath when shooting, it helps. And shoot from shortest possible distance. It does more damage that way, and reduces the risk of having a time consuming after-search.

I hate searching.

[Nippelspanner]

I experimented with lures quite a bit in the last weeks and they work fine for me during feeding times of the animals. I tried them on Roe deer and was OK with the results.

Scents last longer than callers (20 ingame minutes, 10 real time minutes) and also have higher chances attracting animals in range (same range as the audible caller, IIRC. Also, after shooting a deer I also noticed the others were not running as far away as usual AND some of them returned to the spot as well.

So if you feel lazy and not like stalking around, that passive way of hunting can be a welcome change - and profitable...

http://i.gyazo.com/f844f01af61c711e65f208832bc98d68.png

[Skybird]

^ Don't shoot drunk, you might see things doubled. ;)

I watched three halftimes today and think I got my share of football for today.

I will host a session at one of the reserves in a couple of minutes. Anyone feel free to join me, it probably will be rabbits at Logger's Point for me. Need to push my air rifle and rabbit scores a bit to squeeze out those additional 2x2 points.

Password, as usual, will be "subsim".

[Skybird]

Lionclaw,

I kept the reserve open until 1900, then, when the teleport options appeared, switched it off. Hope you had the time you needed to fin d the trophy.

There must have been a connection issue or a bug. You were completely non-physical and left a 2km trail leading right into the ocean on my map...

Anyway, two pics from that session shortly before you joined.

http://www11.pic-upload.de/14.06.14/m8rs89rbnns.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23536611/2014-06-13-2215---Logger-s-Point---Maultierhirsch--15.4-.jpg.html)

http://www11.pic-upload.de/14.06.14/61jygxc6znv7.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23536625/2014-06-13-2224---Logger-s-Point---Maultierhirsch--55.4-.jpg.html)

Thge last 15 minutes I spend with this sight, while waiting for you to find your final trophy. Relaxing it was, I don't complain!

http://www11.pic-upload.de/14.06.14/e4gk5zt25y88.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23536645/thehunter_2014_06_13_23_54_30_761.jpg.html)

[Skybird]

Next time we maybe should really teamwork better and line up in one group.

[Lionclaw]

Took this photo of a deer with the camera. I was standing up.

http://i.imgur.com/DUtLyUB.jpg

I didn't get a warning from Doc about leaving a wounded animal. :hmmm:

I got one from yesterday though, wounded a hog. :doh:


Didn't bother getting a trophy shot of that one deer, shot through both legs with the bow. And 10 minute wound time. Yay... :doh:

Although, first bow kill. Need to practice more. :hmmm:

EDIT: And here's a picture of you. :P

http://i.imgur.com/zzZ99Vm.jpg (http://imgur.com/zzZ99Vm)

You didn't show up either.. Must've been some strange bug. :D

[Skybird]

The lodge in the east of Readfeather falls has a specialised interactive bow shooting stand. Many dummies there, you get precise feedback in text about what organs you hit. However, although I have the new sight for the Python, I avoid bow shots beyond 20m, even prefer less than 15m. Just hitting, is not enough, I hate long searches afterwards. And in reality, you would not let the animal suffer that long, too.

Consider to buy one smallest amount of light arrows. Ammo you use on the shooting stands, does not get depleted, never, no matter which stand you use (just make sure you always stay on the stand, not on the range between stand and target, for example!) . It makes the arrows you shoot on targets more visible to you once they hit, you can immediately see where you hit, even at great distance, without needing binoculars. Do not use these special arrows for hunting, there they would get consumed - and must be bought new.

Most multiplayers play in teams anyway, I think. We should try that, right now we do play two or three single player session taking place on one map only, I think that's not the point of it. Mutual support in spotting, or during pheasant hunting or getting two bucks close to each other, sounds more like it. You now have a rifle, a shotgun and a bow. You are equipped for any hunt now - while my hunter mate gives much more tracking info already (in some categories I am level 10), and I have LRF info for bow and air rifle hunting. You could also benefit from those of my my callers that you still do not have.

Hunting turkey by bow in Whiteheart island, what you think? I have a ground blind left, it works great for turkeys, foxes, coyotes.

[les green01]

i hit a nice mule buck in the neck with the 30-06 but lost it i dont like how wobbly they have the weapons if you was that wobbly in real life you shouldnt have a gun in your hand ill probbly upgrade wed or thur when i get pay

[darius359au]

i hit a nice mule buck in the neck with the 30-06 but lost it i dont like how wobbly they have the weapons if you was that wobbly in real life you shouldnt have a gun in your hand ill probbly upgrade wed or thur when i get pay

You get better as you hunt more with the same weapon ,the wobble gets less - Im lvl 7 with the Anschutz .308 and have hardly wobble now and zero when holding my breath!

[Lionclaw]

The lodge in the east of Readfeather falls has a specialised interactive bow shooting stand. Many dummies there, you get precise feedback in text about what organs you hit. However, although I have the new sight for the Python, I avoid bow shots beyond 20m, even prefer less than 15m. Just hitting, is not enough, I hate long searches afterwards. And in reality, you would not let the animal suffer that long, too.

Consider to buy one smallest amount of light arrows. Ammo you use on the shooting stands, does not get depleted, never, no matter which stand you use (just make sure you always stay on the stand, not on the range between stand and target, for example!) . It makes the arrows you shoot on targets more visible to you once they hit, you can immediately see where you hit, even at great distance, without needing binoculars. Do not use these special arrows for hunting, there they would get consumed - and must be bought new.


Cool stuff. Tried that range at Redfeather, comes in handy learning some of the animals. :salute:

Most multiplayers play in teams anyway, I think. We should try that, right now we do play two or three single player session taking place on one map only, I think that's not the point of it. Mutual support in spotting, or during pheasant hunting or getting two bucks close to each other, sounds more like it. You now have a rifle, a shotgun and a bow. You are equipped for any hunt now - while my hunter mate gives much more tracking info already (in some categories I am level 10), and I have LRF info for bow and air rifle hunting. You could also benefit from those of my my callers that you still do not have.


Yeah, hunting in teams. Sorry about that, got sidetracked yesterday. :oops:

Although the weird bug yesterday would've made it difficult though. :hmmm:


Hunting turkey by bow in Whiteheart island, what you think? I have a ground blind left, it works great for turkeys, foxes, coyotes.

Sure thing. :)

[Skybird]

Sweden and Germany = same time zone, yes, GMT+1? I will begin sessions at full hours in the evening, what hour exactly depends on football. Today 2400 plays England versus Italy, that is a safe bet for when I will not play. Nothing beats the sight of England sinking :D (Skybird running away and for his life...)

Maybe Mylord will join as well. Or Nippelspanner, for a change. Feel invited, Nip. :salute:


Cool stuff. Tried that range at Redfeather, comes in handy learning some of the animals.
You may have noted how easily arrows turn from lung shots into body shots when hitting beyond maybe 20m. I prefer 10-15m, therefore. You can hit at 50m, yes, but you will never do sufficient damage. I did some archery in real life, long time ago, in game the bows in no way represent the brute power they have in real life.

A good compound bow has more penetration than most pistol callibres. It's brutal. Piercing 10cm of hard oak at 12m and the arrow sticking out 20cm and more, is possible - I've seen it. Or watch this guy, he is a German expert on compund bows, quite well-known over here. Penetrating 2.5 mm of aluminium - no surprise - but then another 15cm into a massive wooden cube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SzeR7rMnOx8

So, in game the bows are a joke. The arrows should easily penetrate any deer by their full length.

In reality, I think hunters would prefer very short ranges as well, to reduce the chance of letting the animal suffer when misaiming. When I hear somebody saying he shot a roe at 30 m, I raise an eyebrow already. Possible? Absolutely yes. A sign of competence? Not really.

But bows in the game really deal well with turkey, coyotes and - when aimed well - roe deer. They drop them in place. Just never shoot beyond 20m. The closer, the better.

P.S. If you wonder about the so-called camping equipment. It is a consumable. It allows you to teleport not just to lodges, but to the one or two camping sites that some of the maps offer, so adding a couple of additional starting points to enter a game. Its cheaper then using tents and place them, but it is a consumable. Not essential.

The medikits may be a good idea to carry when hunting elks, moose, bears and hogs and approaching them very close. These animals could plow you under and let grass grow over your last known position. :D If not getting surprised by bears and not carelessly dealing with elks and moose, you almost never will need them. They allow you to continue the session in place instead of getting teleported to the next lodge after the animal attacked. They are consumables, too. Not essential

The wind indicator is not often needed. It sprays a puffy white cloud that travels with the wind. Some maps have no falling leafs as wind indicators, that's why. Not often used and so, not essential.

The scent eliminator spray is a good idea if you ever buy clothing that focusses not on scent elimination like your B&C, but clothing redcuing your visibility. Usually these clothings offer no or only minor scent reduction. If you wear fancy clothing with no functionality at all, the spray also is a good idea.

Callers are most important for you to focus on.

[Skybird]

i hit a nice mule buck in the neck with the 30-06 but lost it i dont like how wobbly they have the weapons if you was that wobbly in real life you shouldnt have a gun in your hand ill probbly upgrade wed or thur when i get pay

Kneel, better lay on the ground. If in high grass, find a small elevation and bare place.

There are two scoring system in the game. The one bases on trophy values, and thus bases on the individual kill. Female deer therefore never counts in this.

But your skill levels for tracking and shooting, are pure quantitative counters. Every hit, even if not harvested, counts, no matter what you hit, even unethical hits. Your skill level with a given weapon gets raised every couple of hits you scored. Every new skill level will need much more hits, however, so the progress becomes harder the more progress there has been. From level 3 on, any aiming with weapons should become easier. Not much, but slightly more with every level.

Samje for tracking, use the hutnber mate and log those tracks. With every skill level per species, you can see tracks farther away, and get more info on the animal leaving them.

Same is true for eyesighting, may it be eyeball, rifle scope or binoculars - spotting until the animals glow up with white lines means the spotting event got registered, and counts. The better your spotting level, the mor einfo you will get from spotting animals.

Additional info levels are unlocked every second skill level.

I play since decembre 2012, and yesterday have unlocked 1000 harvests. With the Anschütz 9.3x62, I scored 250 kills. For most species, I have tracking skills after this long time in the range of level 7-11, spotting usually below that, and the Anschütz rifle has a skill level of mid-6., most other weapons I frequently use are at level 4, I think.

The scale reaches until 20. For most players anything beyond 15 or so is unrealistic. You would need to play excessively and over very long time to make it that far.

That may give people an idea of how much time it needs to improve. The early levels get unlocked easily, but from level 4 on things slow down really.

You as well are invited to join any session I/subsim players hold.

Darius, too. ;)

[Skybird]

In half an hour, at the next full hour, 1900GMT/2000LOC, I will start a session at Whiteheart Island.

Ingame starting time will be 0700, arrows preferred, the game is called turkeys and coyotes. At the latest the game will end in time for the England-Italy match, 2300GMT.

If you have one, don't forget to bring your bow, or .223, .44, .357, birdshot. But arrows are preferred, its sneaky this time. Deer only as targets of opportunity this time.

Enter at the private tent I have set up on the northern part of the main island, at the Indian stones.

[les green01]

got a nice 11 point mule today 190.233 boone and cockett using the 8x57 1780 neck shot had the doe scent out had that buck answer my call didnt get another answer from him about 10 mins later had another buck answer the call had the hunter mate up instead of the rifle just spot the buck with my side vision running across the field just manage to get the scope onto his neck ill have to figure out where the game screenshots are located.

[Skybird]

Join us, les green, it seems we are on the way to become an established subsim gang in The Hunter. Join one of our matches, or launch your own MP session, it is simple, just make it known that you are online from that and that time on!

Two harvests from today, before I was joined by Lionclaw.

http://www11.pic-upload.de/14.06.14/rvd76anuovr.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23549351/2014-06-14-1645---Whitehart-Island---Truthahn--20.7-.jpg.html)

http://www11.pic-upload.de/14.06.14/2rogx66zdbq.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23549359/2014-06-14-1652---Whitehart-Island---Schwarzwedelhirsch--0.0-.jpg.html)

[Skybird]

It's been a hard day's end.

http://www11.pic-upload.de/14.06.14/v6eu74khgzqf.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23549396/thehunter_2014_06_13_23_32_31_286.jpg.html)

[les green01]

wing another big mule buck 12 pointer hunted for it a hour couldnt find it but it is nap time so i can get up to go for work lol

[Skybird]

Shall we have a late session this night, after BRA-MEX ? That should be over at around 21:45 GMT. Target time would then be 2200 GMT / 2300 LOC.

[Skybird]

I'm launching an open, unprotected session in a couple of minutes. If all slots are blocked, wait. So many guest players, most drop out after some short time again.

[Skybird]

Etiquette Guide, I just posted it.

http://steamcommunity.com/app/253710/discussions/0/540744934365625266/

[Skybird]

So what's it with the Subsim Hunter Gang? I have been there each day this week and playing an insane amount of hours, but only strangers joining. Haven't you guys just spent money on it a bit?

Think I currently am a bit manic about The Hunter.

Found two more former subsimmers there, though.

[Nippelspanner]

I'm too deep into Wargame:RD, Payday 2 and some other games atm, my hunting fever is over for the moment... I sure know it will be back though.
If I see a game of yours, I sure drop in!

[Skybird]

Im still in a manic phase regarding The Hunter - went a little mad today, and spent a little real money on some purely cosmetic stuff, feeling foolish and enjoying it: got myself a new outfit and discovered how great it is to be a narcissist. :D

http://www11.pic-upload.de/20.06.14/ewjkqx1x2555.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23619570/20140620_142845_avatar.jpg.html)

[Lionclaw]

Hehe, nice. :up:

Spent a bit more and got a autumn and winter jacket, for the two reserves that are not summer. Seemed to go okay on Hirschfeld with the B&C outfit though. Might not hurt to have actual autumn clothes. :hmmm:

Got most callers now. Should be enough for now I think.

[Skybird]

The "B&C" is primarily meant to help against deer, no matter the zone. It lowers scent, sighting and noise effects.

The "3D Sneaky" is visual camouflage against eye-scanning species: foxes, turkey, but it does help not in becoming more silent or supressing scent, also, you need to be in the woods - on the open fields of Loggers Point it helps little again. That is why Hirschfelden has two such combos, one is for hunting in the forest, the othert for roaming on the open field.

The blazing orange looks great, too, but is one of the clothing items with no functionality.

Too much of that is money milking. I admit, I spent on several such kits, but that is because I know that it is money milking, and I am a little bit crazy about this game. Since I know both, I do not complain for being ripped off. It was my free choice to allow it. :)

I use to dress up now like I feel that day without caring for the effects, I use scent supressor spray. Only when I go for bow hunting I wear much 3D Sneaky clothing, because bows I prefer to shoot at as shortest distances possible, to increase their - imo too weak - penetration. So, when I want to get really real close :) I use it, else I wear what I like.

The English Wiki has a table comparing the clothing and the strength of its effects.

Some outfits look real cool if combined with non-functional parts.

The greater the engagement distance, the less important the clothes are, I would say. Just the sharp eyes of rabbits, pheasants, turkeys, coyotes and foxes should not be underestimated.

I will play a session shortly. So again I aj confronted with the very old question: what should I wear this evening? :haha:

[les green01]

oh i'm playing just been on single player though working on the weapons skills and tracking and all,I renew my subscription and bought em and bought stuff.I did pick up the trapper outfit,a tent and a rangefinder.did get a nice mule buck with the compound bow the other day.got my hunter score up to 69

[Skybird]

Nothing wrong in trying MP, matches by members with more than zero experience mostly will see you being left to yourself, if you want that, it is very different to matches with guests who still know nothing about etiquette.

Try it, and see in what company you end up. Or start an MP session yourself, it is extremely easy. But maybe you do not want to accept guest players then. They mean work. I know it, since I have hosted several guest matches in past two weeks. When I want to play and am searching some decent company with occasionally friendly and polite chatter, I make it a members match only, limit it to four (else it gets crowded). But I frequently run open guest matches at Loggers Point as well, and now know what to expect from that. Over the first two hours ingame, testers will get sorted out and some people will remain that stay a bit longer and actually will listen to what I give them in hints and advice. I had some very nice experience with some, and soke bad expoweirnce with few others. That's how it is with guests - most try it like a demo and find it is not for them. On the other hand today I met two Germans and one guy from Lithuania, older age, all sharing my black sense of humour, and the session lasted from 0500 to 1700, had many grim jokes flying forth and back, and I ended up with 23 kills. That was fun, and lasted all afternoon long!

I have set up tents in all zones now, beefing up the number of entry points. My score I boosted as well in the past ten days, by over 100 to now 360-something. So did my skill levels for the preferred armament I use. As I said earlier: I am currently a bit manic regarding this game. :)

If you ever see a hosted session by me, feel free to use any free slot.

http://www11.pic-upload.de/22.06.14/rkq29pk9lzkt.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23635117/2014-06-20-1512---Redfeather-Falls---Roosevelt-Wapiti--44.6-.jpg.html)

[les green01]

yesterday before work I call 4 mule deer all does to my stand and kept them there for 2 hours waiting for a buck to show up a buck never show up :rotfl2:I got to work tonight but off Monday and Tuesday so will have more time to play right now the bed is calling me

[Red October1984]

Did I just see this offered on Steam? :hmmm:

[CCIP]

Did I just see this offered on Steam? :hmmm:

It is on Steam, as a free-to-play feature.

Which is kind of pointless because it still interfaces via tH's website and all transactions have to be made there. I think it's just a way for them to advertise it - I suggest skipping Steam entirely and just going to the site and downloading it.

And gah, why did you guys have to start playing this just when I'm broke and can't get any items or subscriptions? :dead:

[Skybird]

It is on Steam, as a free-to-play feature.

Guys, please note what I wrote in the etiquettes guide for guest players:


Your guest status allows you to visit and watch all reserves in open MP sessions that allow guests, however, you are allowed to shoot-for-score just one species: Muledeer. And this species lives on Logger's Point only. If you want to shoot for score, there is no point for you to visit other reserves than Logger’s Point. Other species there you cannot score on. In other reserves you cannot score at all. So, guests indeed should focus on Logger’s Point.

The game so far gets delusively advertised as “free to play”. It is not really. The free content above is very limited in scope. In theory you can also shoot rabbits, but the ammo making such scores legal, you already need to pay for, so it is not really “free”. Better think of the option of free access as a guest as a DEMO version of the game. That’s what it is, and that is what the publisher should call it.
And on the business model, I wrote this:


A few words on the pricing model, since it gets plenty of fire. The Hunter is not the cheapest of games, but for an online game it also is not the most expensive. However, you can make the game an extraordinarily expensive game by buying all stuff there is – BUT THAT IS ABSOLUTELY NOT NECESSARY !! In principle, you can already get along with one shotgun and three kinds of ammunition (slug, birdshot, buckshot) – you then can hunt all species in all reserves. More realistic is to count with two rifles of smaller and big caliber, one shotgun and a bow as minimum weapons. Not all calibers are allowed for all species, that is why. You can also specialize in bow hunting – arrows can be used on all species. Just one bow is enough to get full access to all what the game has to offer. The argument by some critics in the Steam forum complaining about how much the game costs when you buy all weapons, is pointless, and underhanded.

Same is true with clothing. There is functional clothing that blocks visibility, scent and noise to varying degrees – or not, and it comes in variations for climate/season zones, and there is plenty of purely cosmetic stuff. You do not need most of that stuff, you can get along with very few things.

Some of the equipment beyond that, is essential indeed, especially a set of callers you need. But again, many things are available that you do not need at all.

The only thing where I share the criticism about the pricing model, is the hunting for waterfowl. The system stinks of trying to milk coins out of people, and honestly said, the experience of hunting geese and mallards is not the most impressive one in the game.I recommend to stay away from that as long as you do not feel real strong love for the game.

My tip would be, for testing it: invest into a 3 months membership, that gives you all reserves and species, and then see how much more credits you need to get the callers, and some basic minimum weaponry (if it does not come with the membership: I entered The Hunter in 2012 via the special German DVD edition “2013 Deutsche Wälder”, so for me things were different). When buying equipment, watch out for the “packs” section in the shop, you can save money there, for example a set of callers instead of buying them individually. Do not buy ammo, you get it for free (three boxes, 30 arrows) for any weapon at the beginning of every session.

All stuff you buy as guest or during membership is yours for lifetime. If you temporarily withdraw and have no membership after the current one ran out, and at a later time you come back to the game and log another time membership, all your former equipment you bought, will be there again. You do not need to buy your equipment twice.


The whole document "Etiquette and Basic Info for guests" can be found here:

http://forum.thehunter.com/viewtopic.php?f=140&t=55536

:)

Maybe I will soon do a second guide for newbies on what equipment to buy and what not. The game can be made a very expensive game if you buy all and everything (which is not needed at all), but also it allows competitive and fully accessible gameplay with much less spending than in other online games. In other online games, you often have to invets to preserve further gains from "free gameplay", or to avoid gettign slaughtered when refusing to pay additional fees for additional stuff that is essential to sruvive beyond a vcertainb skill level. The Hunter does not use this extremely underhanded model, one has to give this to them.

Ammunition always is free.

I would not buy it via Steam. Steam is pointless in this game, completely. And that is not just becasue I do not like Steam. Expansive Worlds maintain their own server platforms.

Best advice: buy the game via the DVD. It is the same price like the most popular license pack to be bought online, but adds you a tremedous amount of additonal equipment that you then do no need to pay separately for. I did like this in 2012, when buying the 2013-version "Deutsche Wälder". The DVD can be ordered outside Germany as well, and directly at their shop.

---> http://forum.thehunter.com/viewtopic.php?f=91&t=55460

When considering a 6 month membership, this is BY FAR the best option you have.

I do not offer my own example as a reference, because obviously I am a little mad, I love the game and have spent quite some money on it (over 200€ since 2012), even for things that are not essential and even have no real function - just for cosmetics and immersive role playing elements. But that was not needed, I did that voluntarily and I always knew what I was doing, and so I do not complain to the company over my decision to go this way. When calculating only subscription fees and the DVD starter pack (including 6 months already), the same full gameplay could have been had for around 50€ as well. - Moral of the satory: when people tell you the game is hilariously expensive if you want to play it all, do not believe them, they do not know what they are talking about or - want to give the game a bad name. And that seems to be a hobby with many people at Steam, and regarding many games there.

[Skybird]

I am doing all gameplay now via MP sessions that I host. I run sessions at Loggers Point which are free both for members AND GUESTS, while sessions on all other maps I make available only for members. I always open just 4 player slots. No more passwords.

[Skybird]

And try the mini-game in the Huntermate! :D :haha: Car Race. Nuff said. :O:

[Red October1984]

All I did was ask if this was, indeed, being offered on Steam...

A lot of the reviews were pretty poor and some claimed something about developers switching....so I did not know if it was the same...

[les green01]

red give it a try what do you have to lose if you don't like it uninstall I wouldn't bother with stream just go the company webpage next coming up pay day i'll buy a stand for sure I all ready got the blind maybe another couple of guns

[Red October1984]

red give it a try what do you have to lose if you don't like it uninstall I wouldn't bother with stream just go the company webpage next coming up pay day i'll buy a stand for sure I all ready got the blind maybe another couple of guns

I think I might have made an account one time but never downloaded the game.

I'll look at it maybe.

[Skybird]

I think I might have made an account one time but never downloaded the game.

I'll look at it maybe.

You better do, Red, else - I can see you...

:D

http://www11.pic-upload.de/23.06.14/t6hsdo1csxza.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23648142/thehunter_2014_06_23_01_01_26_136.jpg.html)

[Lionclaw]

Got this Roosevelt Elk at Whitehart Island today!

What a beast! :yeah:

I tracked it for quite a while, it escaped a few times. :arrgh!:


http://i.imgur.com/PC2EKGK.jpg?1

[Red October1984]

You better do, Red, else - I can see you...

:D

Guess i'll need some new camouflage then....

http://watchplayread.com/files/2009/07/MW4.jpg

[Skybird]

Got this Roosevelt Elk at Whitehart Island today!

What a beast! :yeah:

I tracked it for quite a while, it escaped a few times. :arrgh!:


Admit it - due to the weight of the antler that elk dropped to its front all by itself! :D

[Skybird]

Guess i'll need some new camouflage then....

http://watchplayread.com/files/2009/07/MW4.jpg
And I seem to need changing my tiny .223 for an M107.

[les green01]

that is a nice elk I notice today as I play that the mule deers are running in a herds of maybe 4 to 6 including several herds of bucks maybe im getting better at calling or my mule scent working better so far only kill one decent buck and miss another buck.

[Red October1984]

And I seem to need changing my tiny .223 for an M107.

:O: I'll check out the game tonight. Should have some time.

[Lionclaw]

Admit it - due to the weight of the antler that elk dropped to its front all by itself! :D

Yeah, I suppose so. :haha: :O:

[Skybird]

Grrr, Lion, I thought I would have overtaken you on that antler tonight, got an elk with a scoring of 321 - and when checking your profile I see that yours had 331. :arrgh!:

http://www11.pic-upload.de/25.06.14/v7x81fgbizsg.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23670531/2014-06-25-0053---Whitehart-Island---Roosevelt-Wapiti--68.5-.jpg.html)

The record on elk antlers is beyond 400, btw.

Did a 26 kills tour at Readfeather Falls, took my 8x57IS achievement score to the max (250 kills), scored achievement points on blacktail deer, and pushed HS to 384, with several scoring categories in striking range for more points: soon I will be in the 400 points ranks. :)

That was a very successful hunting tour. Just that I need to find some bigger elk... 11 points bigger, to be precise. :D

[Red October1984]

So the rain the other night kept me from getting online and attempting to play this.

Tried just now and the website isn't fully loading. Some sort of SSL Error comes up when I click on the download link and it won't let me register. :shifty:

Another day I guess...maybe tomorrow.

[Skybird]

You may want to ask for help in their forum:

http://forum.thehunter.com/

The ping report indeed lists minor incidents:

http://stats.pingdom.com/cb2n3tfswdr4

I played a long session last night (UTC+1 over here), and had no porblem at all, just three times member palyer dropping in, and very fast in the middle of the sentence dropping out again. That is normal for guests, but unusual for most members.

[Skybird]

And once again a reminder. Please, Red, before dropping into any guest session there, please read the following first. It is essential info, really.

http://forum.thehunter.com/viewtopic.php?f=140&t=55536

Also, if you give a fixed time on when you can/want to play, I could host a session for you and just for you and other subsim players, via password. Just give some time information in advance, best in UTC+0 format.

Any game session I ever password-protect, will have the password "subsim". Usually I do password-protect sessions only on specified purposes.

[les green01]

i'm video recording a Hunt right now but the free version of Bandicam only do 10 minutes videos at a time ill have to find a program to spice them all together but all ready got a 9 point blacktail with the 50 cal.Guess I should have use the bow instead I'm hoping to find a Elk

[Red October1984]

And once again a reminder. Please, Red, before dropping into any guest session there, please read the following first. It is essential info, really.

Also, if you give a fixed time on when you can/want to play, I could host a session for you and just for you and other subsim players, via password. Just give some time information in advance, best in UTC+0 format.

Any game session I ever password-protect, will have the password "subsim". Usually I do password-protect sessions only on specified purposes.

Thanks pal. :up: But first, we must see if I can run the game.

I just tested Fallout New Vegas and that runs alright so we'll see.

[Skybird]

Also got my last post on the previous page, yes? Links there!?

[Skybird]

The .22 air rifle is a new ballgame, and I love it.

http://www11.pic-upload.de/26.06.14/dj4c2kit3hd8.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23680816/2014-06-15-1746---Logger-s-Point---Waldkaninchen--60.2-.jpg.html)

Allowed for rabbits, pheasants and ducks, iron sight and scope are zeroed for 50m, a disdtance at which no correction needs to be done. The effective range is up to 100-120m max., I would say, however: no other rifle has so obvious ballistics, like this one, and beyond 50 m ou really need to know what range meets what marking in the crosshair. Also, pheasants beyond 25m and rabbits as well need headshots to drop them and avoid a long aftersearch, or escape, and that is what makes it difficult and fun. To acheive such hits safely, laying is recommended, but both species love the high grass, which brings obvious problems. Ducks can be killed per headshot at ranges up to thos 100m. And if shot from not too close range, the weapon also does not spook other nearby animals.

Rabbits and this rifle are a great addition to the game, much more entertaining, imo, than mallards and geese, also less costly. You buy the weapon, and that's it. No callers, stands and what else is needed.

The rabbits, btw, are very nicely animated. And - they cannot be called and do not call, you may hear them hushing around when you are very close, but due to their habit to also lay still and hide under a bush or in high grass, you can also step right onto them at times.

Try air rifle hunts on rabbits and pheasants! Definitely recommended!

http://www11.pic-upload.de/26.06.14/e5ar59l53wa.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23680883/2014-06-15-1808---Logger-s-Point---Waldkaninchen--17.5-.jpg.html)


http://www11.pic-upload.de/26.06.14/3kurudpqt5wc.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23680909/2014-06-15-1727---Logger-s-Point---Waldkaninchen--22.1-.jpg.html)


http://www11.pic-upload.de/26.06.14/yivlgtystp8j.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23680895/2014-06-15-2328---Logger-s-Point---Fasan--0.0-.jpg.html)

[Skybird]

soon I will be in the 400 points ranks. :)

:D Just done! :yeah: Jumped over the hurdle to HS=404 points. :woot:All drinks on me...

[les green01]

had a good hunt going this morning had 3 kills a elk and two blacktails but the net went down for several hours so went for a hunt this evening only got one blacktail skybird congrats on 404

[CCIP]

those are some monster-sized rabbits :huh:

[les green01]

the drinks is on sky how about a nice thick rabbit stew he got several of them looks like their the size of jackrabbits

[Skybird]

Due to the way the ingame camera for screenshots works, perspective gets distorted and objects in the foreground appear disproportionally bigger, also the scaling of objects on such opportunities indeed is a bit queer. In gameplay, rabbits appear in their proper size, pheasants as well.

Its just the trophy shots that that mess up scaling.

Thanks, lesgreen. I do not say how many hours it took to get there, for people would pout me into hospital if they read the hours in numbers. Playing since Dec. 2012.

But subsim's RickC is with the game since 2008, I expect him to have a much higher rating.

Buildings in the game also are oversized, btw. Just visit the farmhouses at Hirschfelden.

But in game, these mis-scalings do not matter, nor do they jump into the eye. Ifd the cottontails appear too big, imagine them to be hares, then the size matches almost pefectly. :D Also, more stew that way.

[CCIP]

I just thought you killed this guy :D

http://i.imgur.com/5O0o6oh.jpg

[les green01]

I hit a moose earlier first spot I found blood the huntermate show it was close the first spot then found two more spots of blood started following them but then founds the spots say fleeing now they are saying roaming been after this moose for a hour I have it plause see what you all think I don't know if he down by the first set I found wasn't for all the smoke from the cap and ball I could seen the direction he was headed lol

[Skybird]

Two scenarios. The animal was wounded, fled, became tire,d walked slower, spirits loosing the body, and it finally went down somewhere. Happens like thios in the game.

Or it crossed during its escape the tracks that led it to you, and you did not realise that you suddenly did not follow the tracks anymore that it left when escaping, but that you now follow tracks that the animal left before you hit it. Animals crossing their own tracks, can be really a bummer.

Spend a reasonable amount of time for searching. And when you feel like it, move on and forget it. You lose an animal, and thats it. While not getting a score, the hit nevertheless counts for your skill level raisings regarding the weapon you used.

You also get a warning by Doc not tol let animals left int he wild. A meaningless message that is, it has no further consequences in the game.

Moose are tough - You have to hit them right, or with a real slam. Possible that it still lives, and will live on.

[Skybird]

I checked your stats and saw that your tracking skill for moose still is level 1. That means your tracker's radar horizon, your viewing range, still is very short, making tracking wounded animals difficult.

You use the Anschütz 8x57IS, also at level 1 still- That rifle is good enough to drop big game animals, but at level 1 it still has lots of movement in the sight and thus a not ideally placed shot is more possible, explaining the maybe just light wounding of the moose.

Shoot everything that moves, every hit helps to boost your shooting skill with that rifle. Log every track you stumble over, to boost tracking skills as well. With skill levels come more information from the track, and greater viewing range.

[les green01]

did finaly get a moose 205 meter shot with the Anschütz 8x57IS finish her off with the 50 cal cap and ball

[Skybird]

205m is very respectable, since 233m is the limit in game (maximum rendering distance of animals). :up:

[Nippelspanner]

205m is very respectable, since 233m is the limit in game (maximum rendering distance of animals). :up:
220m on even terrain/same height. :O:

[Skybird]

Always disputed again, both number sget written time and again. Personally, I see animals drop from my screen at around 231 or 232m (LRF binocular).

[Skybird]

Got myself a new lure today - the chick magnet. Secondary function is scanner function for visually checking for Kryptonite and lingerie.

http://www11.pic-upload.de/01.07.14/ouku9kxej8s4.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23744247/2014-07-01-1447---Logger-s-Point---Maultierhirsch--68.3-.jpg.html)


Do I get the job when I send in this portrait along with my vita?

http://www11.pic-upload.de/01.07.14/37fhtf19ybsx.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23744285/thehunter_2014_06_29_20_32_54_177.jpg.html)


On the scaling properties, they are pretty much okay, if camera perspective does not distort the impression.

http://www11.pic-upload.de/01.07.14/q4i91e24n.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-23744302/2014-06-30-1412---Hirschfelden---Wildschwein--15.4-.jpg.html)

[Red October1984]

Downloading the installer and I'm going to run the installation tonight while I'm sleeping.

Tomorrow night, we shall see about playing this.

[les green01]

hope you end up liking it red tomorrow ill be back to playing it my old mouse die so I got to get another one

[Red October1984]

I'm not sure what's going on here.

I start up the launcher, click Hunt Now, start a singleplayer game, and once I pick my settings. It's supposed to launch but the game doesn't start. It just shows the "Done hunting for now?" screen.

[les green01]

I don't know red on mine it takes a little bit to go to the game and I see the done hunting screen until it does maybe two or 3 minutes.You might have to do a restart see what happens

[Red October1984]

Idk. Just fired up the launcher and the game has to patch. Only a 4mb patch...so I'll see if it works when that's done.

[Red October1984]

Well I got the game loaded and running but alas, my computer is not powerful enough.

It's FPS is too low to be playable. :shifty:

[Skybird]

Bad luck. What were your specs?

[Red October1984]

Bad luck. What were your specs?

It's my 64mb graphics card more than anything. I can run higher end things sometimes. Fallout New Vegas runs with a playable framerate...but theHunter is too choppy.

[Skybird]

Holy cow! 64 MB gfx board? You could have known in advance that it would not run reasonably, the minimum specs they give list an nVidia Geforce 8800 with 512 MB or a Radeon HD 2400 with 256 MB - and most people would say that that are no minimum specs, but a joke. The game needs more.

[Red October1984]

Holy cow! 64 MB gfx board? You could have known in advance that it would not run reasonably, the minimum specs they give list an nVidia Geforce 8800 with 512 MB or a Radeon HD 2400 with 256 MB - and most people would say that that are no minimum specs, but a joke. The game needs more.

Well the autodetect tool said i had 1760 mb of graphics memory.

It's hit and miss with my card. I tell you...I can run some things like Fallout, Dead Space, ArmA, IL-2, etc and they all require at least 512 mb usually.

It's weird. :hmmm: That's why I just gave it a shot.

[Skybird]

That vid memory is not on-card memory, but shared memory with your regular RAM, or what? I never heard of a gfx card with 1760 MB of RAM, they are 512, 1 GB, 2GB, 3GB.

[Lionclaw]

Holy cow! 64MB VRAM. :o

11 years ago I had a GeForce4 Ti4200 with 64MB VRAM.


Impressive that some newer games work. :)

No offence meant. :03:


Yeah, sometimes it seems to add up VRAM and RAM memory. Noticed it happening in 32-bit OS. Haven't thought of it with 64-bit.

[les green01]

here is a small 12 pointer I just kill this evening using the 30-30

[Red October1984]

That vid memory is not on-card memory, but shared memory with your regular RAM, or what? I never heard of a gfx card with 1760 MB of RAM, they are 512, 1 GB, 2GB, 3GB.

Yeah. Dedicated is 64mb but it says I also have 1760mb.

I can't make sense of it so I kinda just eyeball games and their system requirements. I've gotten to where I can pretty much tell if it's a yes, no or maybe. theHunter was a maybe so I tried it out. :hmmm:

[les green01]

what was the game grapics set on red maybe you can lower that down was there any background programs running what windows version are you running

[Red October1984]

Holy cow! 64MB VRAM. :o

11 years ago I had a GeForce4 Ti4200 with 64MB VRAM.

Impressive that some newer games work. :)

No offence meant. :03:

Yeah, sometimes it seems to add up VRAM and RAM memory. Noticed it happening in 32-bit OS. Haven't thought of it with 64-bit.

I don't think it added VRAM and RAM because I have 4 GB of RAM. :hmmm: But yeah. It's impressive that some things work.

what was the game grapics set on red maybe you can lower that down was there any background programs running what windows version are you running

I set it on the lowest possible setting and i'm running 7 Home Premium.

I didn't have anything going in the background other than Skype...so nothing demanding.

[les green01]

red I use to have a video card better than yours don't know if I still do with all the moving I have done if you like ill see if I still do or maybe some of the other members here has some old cards they have kept

[Red October1984]

red I use to have a video card better than yours don't know if I still do with all the moving I have done if you like ill see if I still do or maybe some of the other members here has some old cards they have kept

I have a laptop. I'm sure there's some old ones sitting around the community...but it won't do me any good.

Can't replace integrated graphics. :wah:

[Skybird]

A laptop - then those 1760MB video memory are not the gfx card for sure, but are part of the normal RAM that shares with the gfx card - and that is never the same like dedicated video RAM built onto a gfx card. Performance-wise, you cannot compare it.

[les green01]

I Just kill a 16 point whitetail with the 30-30 level action with a trophy score 160.436 weight 213 pounds

[johnpera]

This game is incredibly disappointing. Play-to-win hunting multiplayer game, enough said. Also the 'running' in the game is more like walking.

[Skybird]

Why this obsession of newbies to run in this game...? Gives them nothing but an empty landscape. :haha:

[les green01]

might be a disappointment to you but some of us like it and when you run you sound like a heard of elphants and play to win are we talking about the same game

[Skybird]

What's up with you, hunters? Lionclaw, Lord Margerius, have you already lost interest again? I see you haven't gone to the reserves since two, and three weeks! Didn'T they tell you that such behaviour could be sanctioned with disciplinary measures? :D Either you hunt or you get hunted. :cool:

Me, I took one week break, and now am back to full commitment. Have boosted my Hunter Score to 460 now. The next marks are 480, can be done with species achievements, but what still misses are scores on the most difficult to hunt species;, and 500, which can be done by much more gameplay hours.

Beyond that I think I will stop caring for further statistics, because it simply becomes too time-consuming from then on. I instead will then switch to hunting strictly for trophy, not point score.

Nice new revolver they have, the .454. By looks it reminds of that Brazilian manufacturer, Taurus. I nicknamed it "chestbuster". :D A door slammed into your face is nothing against this brute force baby. I use it only at distances where I can comfortably hit without a scope, 20m and less - and that distances means that thing hits its target like a railgun. So far evberything I hit with it - big game only - immediately dropped right in place. And they say in the forum the power already had been scaled down! :lol: BTW, the thiung sounds cool, I like the sound. That was the only reason why I got it. Initially I did not want it.

I have maximised my scoring on the three rifles I use most, and consider to buy the WWII-carbine now. On the other hand I would like to finally benefit from the skill levels I finally achieved with the other rifles. With the carbine, I would start at level 0 again. Well, maybe not buying it...

[Lord_magerius]

Just been really busy lately, we're expecting a baby in two weeks so I've been getting stuff sorted for that :O:

Should be on tonight or Thursday though.

[Skybird]

Just been really busy lately, we're expecting a baby in two weeks so I've been getting stuff sorted for that :O:


Ah. The new .454 for the daddy then, and the little junior gets a Derringer. :D

[Lionclaw]

Just completed a hunt, it was perhaps too long of a break. :O:

Seems the .300 makes mincemeat of coyotes, 0 trophy integrity. :haha:

Got some em$ left. Was wondering before the break to either spend it on a bear bait kit or boar bait kit.

[Skybird]

For two rifle solutions: the 8x57, and the .223. Covers the whole spectrum.

For three rifle solutions: the 9.3, the 6.5x55, and the .223.

Trophy integrity always should be 95-100%, if you use the right - tool...

The new revolver can easily replace the 9.3, if there is weight concerns, just that it does not have the 9.3's range. But at distances you cover without using a scope, it is a steelhammer.

I still must smile when I think of putting a scope on a revolver. I never do that.

[Lionclaw]

Only weapon I can can afford with the em$ I got is a "12 GA Single Shot Shotgun", which is pointless since I have a "12 GA pump action" one. :O:

I have:

Rifle
.243
.300

Shotgun
12 GA Pump Action

Revolver
.357
.44

Bow
Snakebite

[Skybird]

The .243 and .300 in combination with the revolvers give you a range of callibres covering all species. The main reason I do never mention weapons like the .243 or .300 or 30-06 is that they are older models and are in the game since long, partly form all beginning on, so they are old work: and their looks and sounds show that. They are not worse than the one I mentioned regarding their effectiveness, but the ones I mentioned and use simply - imo - look better and have the better sounds. They are younger addons for the game.

The bow is thought by many to be the bow with the biggest penetration power, but also it is the loudest bow of them all. I prefer as a bow weapon the Python, which is maybe the wekaest, but also the most silent of them all. I use it only for turkey, foxes, coyotes, geese, and pesky female roe deer. I hate long aftersearches. There ar people who by routine use the Python even for bears and moose, however.

The shotty is the best of them all, period. Maybe with exception of the new automatic, I don't know it, but it looks awfully hilarious.

Your equipment is somewhat minimalistic, but nevertheless: complete. ;)

I think bear an d hog baiting is overestimated. I have one kit of both, but hardly ever use it. Plus it causes running costs, and playtime obligations if you do not want to waste the effects. If money is an issue for you, i woudl not get into these things. save the credit instead - your scent suppressing spray will sooner or later run out...

[Lionclaw]

The store was a bit slow, somehow I have 2 .223 rifles now. Charged for both of them as well. 900 em$ gone instead of 450... :damn:

[Skybird]

The store was a bit slow, somehow I have 2 .223 rifles now. Charged for both of them as well. 900 em$ gone instead of 450... :damn:
contact customer service.

[Skybird]

With this baby I make it peace in the forest. :arrgh!:
http://www11.pic-upload.de/25.07.14/sx9soqbmevxk.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-24020676/thehunter_2014_07_25_12_25_34_859.jpg.html)


Is today your lucky day?
http://www11.pic-upload.de/25.07.14/eaaezmsutukr.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-24020710/thehunter_2014_07_25_12_28_16_287.jpg.html)


In WWII, on battleships they used to build huge rotating towers around these things.
http://www11.pic-upload.de/25.07.14/j7out51bg13c.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-24020729/thehunter_2014_07_25_12_28_52_667.jpg.html)


As you can easily see - no problem not standing nowhere no more.
http://www11.pic-upload.de/25.07.14/yq3v6ppr3zew.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-24020763/thehunter_2014_07_25_12_26_36_962.jpg.html)

Multiply your fun! Turn every single aftersearch into a multitude of aftersearches - when you try to track down every single piece of what is left of it!

You better never become too pesky again my deer... :shucks:

Man, do I look cool. First I freeze them with my ultra-cool sun-glasses. Next I take off the glasses and set up my hottest smile - that makes them cook up and explode! :D

[Lionclaw]

Sent a request to support. :)

[les green01]

more I use the 30-30 on deer more I love it and the 454 sounds cool when you fire it

[Skybird]

My .454 is the better half of myself! :D

[Skybird]

What hunters do when they are not shooting something?

http://www11.pic-upload.de/25.07.14/h3rpb2lv2fd1.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-24022779/thehunter_2014_07_25_15_37_20_339.jpg.html)

They hunt other cars! :D

Before the MP update, there was Breakout, too.

[Skybird]

more I use the 30-30 on deer more I love it
Almost same callibre like the Blazer R8 that I like so much, and I think both rifles are ethicla for the same species. I think inside the game the difference is just the looks then, but effect and range should be the same. The Blazer reloads extremely fast, I assume the 30-30 is not slow either? :)

The only difference is that scopes both rifles use, the Blazer has 3x/6x/9x, the 30-30 has 4x/8x.

[Skybird]

It seems a guest I hosted in MP two days ago, had it right: the new reserve coming most probably will be the French Alps.

I hoped for a more dramatic difference to the reserves we already have, I admit. But maybe I imagine it all wrong.

http://www.wog.ch/index.cfm/details/product/39822-The-Hunter-2015

[Skybird]

Mach 5...! :D

http://www11.pic-upload.de/03.08.14/mbtm1y954uf.jpg (http://www.pic-upload.de/view-24119081/Unbenannt.jpg.html)

[Nippelspanner]

Skybird,
I read in a recent Status Update about the new ballistic changes.
They mentioned that calibers that are ethical for a species have more penetration chance, so a double-lung shot for example.

Did you notice a difference?

I don't have a license at the moment, yet I am very curious about this, cause the ballistics were quite borked a while agod ("body shot" or "intestines" while the shot was perfectly on the chamber, etc...)

[Skybird]

The graphical mark of the wound on the body must not always necessarily represent the calculated impact point, so never judge that by the wound you see on the body. Especiaqlly obvious that is with arrow, which may stick at angles and parts of the body where they did not hit. The visual aspect there sometimes is somewhat "generic". What counts is the calulcation of the shot and impact point.

Since the change of the ballistics I have only fired the 9.3x62, 8x57 and the .454. The 9.3 seems to have more dropping power but also doing greater damage to trophy integrity at short and medium ranges, with maybe also greater bullet drop at high ranges (I had severla 200m shots). I also noted that I had a higher miss rate, and more wobble in the scope, which has piunished my skill level with that wepakn, dropping it from 94% to below 91% in short time (and killing my nerves successfully). I have over 300 shots with that rifle, and level 7, so one can say I am quite used to that rifle.

The .454 still is like a door slammed into the face of the animals you shoot at.

On the 8x57 I cannot say anything, i had too few shots with that one since the change, just two I think.

I had no shots with the 6.5x55 since the change.

Bows and shotgun with birdshot are unaddressed by the changes, so no changes should be noted there.

I currently hunt either blackbear or for achievement raise with the .454, and need 8 more kills, once I got those, I will examine the 6.5x55.

The higher penetration chance for buckshot is being criticised. Penetration is not what buckshot is killing with.

The damage model is being criticised as well due to the way the 3D model maybe has the inner organs slightly misplaced, or too big/too small. This could lead to the phenomenon that you complained about. Ballistics have nothing to do with that. I occassionally wonder about the result of a shot, but it is not the rule, and as long as I get the kill, I do not care too much.

[les green01]

i play it a little after the patch I couldn't tell the difference might play it some more been so busy at work working 6 days a week now for the next two months

[Nippelspanner]

The graphical mark of the wound on the body must not always necessarily represent the calculated impact point, so never judge that by the wound you see on the body.
I am fully aware of this and I don't see where I did say that I do judge the hit by the bullet wound.
I judge it by what I shoot at and that is, in the very most cases, the chamber from a good angle and distance on a stationary target.
I play tH since 2010.

I am referring to an obvious bug that reigned a while ago for many people that caused funny outcomes in the score screen, like intestines when it was a headshot (extreme example, but did happen for some people).

I had no shots with the 6.5x55 since the change.Damn, was hoping for details on this one. After buying it a while ago, it rose to one of my absolute favorites in the game.

The damage model is being criticised as well due to the way the 3D model maybe has the inner organs slightly misplaced, or too big/too small. This could lead to the phenomenon that you complained about. Ballistics have nothing to do with that. I occassionally wonder about the result of a shot, but it is not the rule, and as long as I get the kill, I do not care too much.
Yeah I'm aware about the crappy inner organ mapping and wait for a fix (I consider it broken tbh) since... ever.
Since it is a bug, I would not be too hasty and exclude the game's ballistics from the source of possible problems, that is why I asked for some post-patch experience.
Might be too early anyways, just been a few days.

Hunting fever will strike again sooner or later anyways, nothing to prevent that.
So I will see for myself.
Thanks though!

Just as a side note, you mentioned you don't care, as long as it ends in a kill.
I do, for various reasons. Firstly, I just want more sim/realism aspects than gamey stuff, so an accurate ballistics and hit detection system is one of the most important things for me to enjoy this game.
Then, I do participate in custom competitions every once in a while, with custom rules, where you can win em§ or even memberships and I would just lose it if I would place a perfect shot on a possible winning animal, only to find it to be "intestines" in the end, ruining the harvest value because the wounded time was too high...

It happened to others participating in a competition I hosted a while ago.

[Skybird]

Honestly , I think you paint it a bit too bad. The inner organ map fails me only in a few cases, and considering the limited rendering distance of the gfx engine rifle ballistics do not play that important a role and are working okay for the most. Bullet drop with revolvers should be more obvious now, they say, and I welcome that. I cannot get used to the idea of hunting with a revolver with a scope on it, if you need a scope on a revolver to reliably hit where you want, then you have the wrong weapon for the distance anyway, I would say. I never use revolver scopes (it also looks extremely unsexy).

I am more pissed by that it does not matter whether I had a rifle at skill level 3 or 7 - the wobble in the scope is the same, there is no improvement. You note a difference maybe when jumping from level 1 to 3, but beyond that I think it is pointless to focus on improving weapon skills. Bad balancing there, I would say, and to have the skill levels on a scale with 20 grades makes no sense under these circumstances.

I would consider to get a day licence and then test your reactivated equipment on a shooting range. ;)

The 6.5x55 is a great rifle. I never regretted to have bought it. And while I am at it, the air rifle is bnig fun, too, due to its very obvious ballistic curve and the characteristics of hunting rabbits. Doing rabbits with birdshot kills the fun in it.

Hm. Any psychologist might wonder about my mental state when reading that last sentence... :lol:

I never have played competitions, or tutorials. Zero interest on my side. I set my own goals. I also do not care for point scores of trophies, I only care for trophy integrity and quick dying time: like in reality I try to not le the animal suffer long. Thats why I try to get close.

I now will start to do hunting for the real highscoring bucks, since I have no immediate possibility anymore to raise my HS by achievements in the forseeable future. There are 30 more points in range, and then there will be a very long break before I can boost it again. That dampens the urge to hunt for achievement raises, and gives back the relaxation needed to just enjoy the game, no matter how much shots I fire.

[Skybird]

At the time of typing this: 6 months subscription plus equipment for 8.90 Pounds (=11.15 Euro)

http://www.mmoga.co.uk/Gamecards-CD-Keys/The-Hunter-2014.html


You will get the Key for The Hunter 2014 via eMail immediately within a few minutes.

Redeem the key in your game account which you can create here (http://www.thehunter.com/activation/) on the official game website. You can directly download the game client here (http://static.thehunter.com/static/download/launcher/theHunterLauncherSetup.exe).


Bonus contents



6 months subscription for The Hunter 2014
Weapons: 12 GA Blaser F3 Game O/U Shotgun, .243 Bolt Action Rifle, 12 GA Pump Action Shotgun, .270 Bolt Action Rifle, .44 Revolver, .357 Revolver, Compound Bow "Snakebite"
Scopes: 4x32mm Rifle Scope, 2x20mm Handgun Scope, 3-9×40 Anschütz Rifle Scope
Lures: Deer "Bleat" Call, Deer "Grunt" Call, Turkey Box Caller, Pheasant Caller, Elk "Bugle" Caller, Hog Scent Spray
Clothing: Basic Boots, Basic Pants, Basic T-Shirt, Boone & Crockett Cap, Basic Jacket
Upgrades: Backpack
Equipment: Compact Digital Camera, 8x42mm Binoculars, HunterMate Minigame, Scent Eliminator, Camping Supplies, Wind Indicator, First Aid Kit, Happy Camper Tent
License to hunt: Whitetail Deer, Mule Deer, Turkey, Roosevelt Elk, Coyote, Feral Hog, Blacktail Deer, Pheasant, Moose, Black Bear, Wild Boar, Roe Deer, Red Deer, Brown Bear, Red Fox
Access to following reservs: Whitehart Island, Logger's Point, Settler Creeks, Redfeather Falls, Hirschfelden, Hemmeldal



That's why I say the DVD box editions are the best bang for the buck for The Hunter. The 2013 edition however was best, featuring far better rifles and more B&C clothing.

The upcoming Alps reserve you can expect to get for free like usual.

[Nippelspanner]

At the time of typing this: 6 months subscription plus equipment for 8.90 Pounds (=11.15 Euro)

http://www.mmoga.co.uk/Gamecards-CD-Keys/The-Hunter-2014.html



That's why I say the DVD box editions are the best bang for the buck for The Hunter. The 2013 edition however was best, featuring far better rifles and more B&C clothing.

The upcoming Alps reserve you can expect to get for free like usual.
Oh, perfect timing! :D

[RickC Sniper]

The 9.3 and the 6.5x55 were not affected by this recent ballistics change.
http://news.thehunter.com/ballistics-tweak/

These calibers are fairly new and already were designed as they intended. Only rifles released earlier were switched over to their newer ballistics system. Personally, I cannot tell too much difference, except perhaps the .300 is now similar to the 9.3, in that short range shots on medium sized animals create massive tissue damage......but oddly, still often give 100% harvest value anyway. (odd, that)

They now say they intend to update the bows to the new system, and we can only hope that they become better than the mess that they are. I want a good lung shot to give me a high harvest value, but I do not think ballistics changes alone will do this.
I think the harvest value goes down if there is not instant death like from a heart shot, and they would have to change how harvest value is calculated to affect the bows.
(I bow hunt in game and hate how they currently work, I surely hope they fix them) Arrows should pass completely through an animal if it only hits soft tissue like the lungs out to 30 and sometimes even 40 meters, and they do nothing remotely close to this in the game. And a poor body shot on a large bear always results in a kill. It may take a long time, but if you patiently follow it, it does always die. :nope:

Skybird is correct, the awful organ hits feedback is caused by the bullets hitting the hitboxes on the animals in odd or incorrect ways due to the animal's movements and results in things getting recorded\charted out pretty badly. Oddly, this seemed much better when the game was new. (I have played this game since beta) The only thing we can hope is that they DO try to listen to the community and might fix this, but I fear it is asking a lot, and too many in the community want more new content, always more new content, instead of just halting all that and fixing the broken things and the annoying things.

I think all you can do is just enjoy the game which is still quite good, and when you make a good shot YOU know it, even if the game sometimes does not.

Username RickC in The Hunter, but I rarely hunt in multiplayer.


@Less. I like the 30.30 too but it is too powerful in the game. At first it was too weak, and they listened to the complaints and adjusted it. But now it seems almost or equally as powerful as the 6x55 and it should not be, but it is still nice to see this firearm in the game. (An American classic still owned by many)

I for awhile thought the game's issues came from the developers being non hunters but really, it should not make any difference if they do their homework and looking at and comparing real life ballistics and energy charts is simple enough to do so I do not excuse them.

[Skybird]

New rifle released: 7mm Magnum Bullpup "Raptor". Looks futuristic.

http://i.imgur.com/yBM1qsF.png
pic by Oneshot

http://i.imgur.com/lTFmG0X.jpg?1
pic by beamstas

Low capacity cost of just 3.0, leaving more room for other stuff. Firs feedback says the things shoots precise and has a very strong dropping power, also reload seems to be very fast.

[Nippelspanner]

WTF is that?
Everytime I think they won't release a more ridiculous gun...they beat me to it:doh:
To each his own I guess...

[Skybird]

Wel, I do not like the looks, too, but fact is there are some modern rifles of comparable alienating looks on the market. I prefer the classic designs, however, with wooden sgafts always. This mode which seems to be popular in Northamerica especially to have rubber and plastic shafts with coloured printing on them, is not my taste. You also do not see them often in stores and catalogues over here.

Personally, i also have no in-game need for this 7mm Magnum rifle. It's ethical for pretty much the same species like the 9.3x62, and with my combo of rifles I am absolutely happy, because I can save trophy integrity by choosing more fitting calibres for smaller animals. I'm currently hunting for gainign achievement scores for 250 kills with the pumpgun and 50 kills with the .44. Its just to sack those 20 extra HS points. After that I will go back to the really preferred weapons of mine.