Publisher: Hands-On Mobile
Developer: MachineWorks Northwest
Category: Sports
Release Dates
Electronic - 03/19/2009
3D Hunting Trophy Whitetail Championship 2009 Review
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OK, well I didn't know what to expect from a
hunting game on my ipod touch. Having played many hunting games on the PC
and console systems over the years I have come to expect pretty much
anything. Like any genre, there are some real stinkers out there and then
there are the really good ones. The one constant in all hunting games though
is the time frame it takes to actually scope something in and take it down.
Some hunting games take this very serious and you can roam the wilderness
for hours before actually seeing anything. For those of you gamers who don't
particularly care for that sort of hunting accuracy, then you are in luck.
So the game has you selecting what part of the
country you want to hunt in and initially only a lever action rifle is
available. As you go on successful hunts and begin bagging prey,
additional hunting options become available. Scoped rifles, hunting bows and
other goodies make for some additional gameplay, as does the ability to use
calls to lure in the big one and other hunting supplies.
"I think I dropped a contact."
Lets be honest here, the game is more arcade
then hunting sim. The action comes fast and often and the real purpose is to
shoot lots and lots of animals. The controls are pretty simple if clumsy in
places. Zooming in and popping off shots at what is clearly the dumbest
selection of animals... ever is quite easy. Miss and the critter will
scamper away all of 20 yards. Now as a hunter myself, if you miss an elk
from 150 yards, you are going to have to walk a long way before you catch up
to that animal, if ever. Yes, the A.I. is waaayyyy on the low side but
again, this isn't a game you buy for the strategy and cunning involved. You
get it to shoot, shoot, shoot some more and then finish it off with some
more shooting.
Controls for actually moving in the game are
pretty basic, you go forward look around and strafe well enough, but the on
screen touch controls can make getting a good shot somewhat difficult. The
game lacks a certain smoothness that is required of any title that involves
shooting things. Speed can be somewhat of a hamper as well as you may wish
that your character could move around a bit more quickly. Shooting and
zooming in on animals is pretty easy, but I found you need to adjust for
wind and distance. Still, sometimes you are insanely close to an animal and
will miss it completely. The game can cause some frustrating moments.
OK, so the graphics are kind of blocky and
fairly remedial. I have seen what the ipod is capable of and this is far
below its maximum threshold. Creatures run at an odd gait and move
mechanically. The use of color schemes on the wildlife itself is pretty
disappointing when you really look at it. They tried to color the animals
right, but it looks more like a paint by numbers then the smooth transition
that fur might have. Things just don't look right, the environments are
better, but only just. Not a lot of shading and blending going on to help
terrain meld together. This of course is all because the developers tried to
make a living breathing environment with constant animals running and flying
around and sacrificed a good deal of true detail.
"Is that a bear or something out of a John Carpenter movie?"
The sound in the game is a bit better though.
The sounds of the outdoors are prominently featured and the crack of a rifle
sounds pretty decent. I got into the theme music in the load out screen and
felt that the game was going to be a quick paced shooter and I was pretty
much spot on.
The game does take a cue from other hunting
games where some of the more dangerous animals in the wild can make you
their dinner. Grizzly and black bears are featured prominently as the ones
to take a swipe at you. But you can kill them somewhat easily if you see
them coming. I was hoping to run into some cougars and mountain lions, but
never found any.
| Review Scoring Details for 3D Hunting Trophy Whitetail Championship |
Gameplay: 6.0
Kinda clumsily made, but you do shoot often and
that's what counts.
Graphics: 5.6
Better then some, not as good as it could be.
Sound: 6.4
Surprisingly brisk and clean sounding. Good use
of sound effects.
Difficulty: Easy
Concept: 6.0
Its a hunting game that thinks is an arcade
game, on the iPod, clever.
Overall: 5.8
This one kept me entertained for a little while,
then I honestly got bored of it. Hunting games can be fun, and this one is
not lacking in the action, but there isn't that clever X factor to make it a
winner.