Is 'Call of the Wild' going to be less realistic?

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wombatvvv
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Is 'Call of the Wild' going to be less realistic?

Post by wombatvvv »

I've been watching a lot of YouTube videos on Call of the Wild. I did notice in one of them, HooCairs commented that it was very difficult. But in a lot of the other videos, I've heard guys say it's too easy ... that the animals don't spook easily, and even when they do, they only run a short distance. A lot of the videos I have been seeing seem to be more or a "run and gun" kind of arcade-shoot 'em up than a hunting simulation, where guys are clearing entire packs of Bison in a couple of minutes. I really hope the end product is not like that.

Mind you, they could make the rabbit hunting a bit easier. A 10 year old can hunt rabbits. You don't need to be an navy SEAL sniper.

But I have no idea. I haven't played it, and I know it's still only in BETA. I was just wondering if there's been any official word on the direction the developers intend to go with this?

For one, personally, I'd be disappointed to see it go in that direction. I believe the real strength of theHunter is that it is realistic. Well ... not really. But you know what I mean. It's as realistic as it's got on a computer game so far. I want to see them push that envelope. That's the appeal of the game for my 2c.

BTW, I did notice there was a "realism debate" thread that's been locked. I hope I haven't done anything against forum rules by posting this, or started a discussion that's been "done to death".
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Re: Is 'Call of the Wild' going to be less realistic?

Post by HooCairs »

The beginning was pretty steep because there was
- an incredible gun wobble that needed a perk to unlock (this seems to be removed)
- not a fluent tracking of animals
- tracks hard to see
- no calling location from the animals on the Huntermate
- animals running indefinitely even when shot from close
- a lame hunter :D

After a while it seemed easier. You can see me for example crouch up to a red deer which would have seen me in Classic. After doing all the videos my conclusion would be for this game to be about the same difficulty as Classic.
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Re: Is 'Call of the Wild' going to be less realistic?

Post by wombatvvv »

Thanks HooCairs!

I'm happy with "the same" difficulty personally. :) I think they strike a good balance at the moment, although personally I have always leaned towards "realism" when it comes to games, there's no need to have to clean out your guns and collect your casings, or virtually skin and butcher your kills, or any of that sort of stuff.

It would be cool if you had to zero your scopes though. A simulation in the sense that all the little knobs and dials can be manipulated as per real life, a-la Microsoft Flight Simulator.

On that note, some animals could actually be easier to hunt, like rabbits, and it would also be more realistic. Difficulty does not always equal realism.
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Re: Is 'Call of the Wild' going to be less realistic?

Post by Tanngnjostr »

Moved to CotW subforum.
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Re: Is 'Call of the Wild' going to be less realistic?

Post by wombatvvv »

Tanngnjostr wrote:Moved to CotW subforum.
Sorry - thanks! Still a newbie here.
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Re: Is 'Call of the Wild' going to be less realistic?

Post by PicSoul »

wombatvvv wrote:Thanks HooCairs!

I'm happy with "the same" difficulty personally. :) I think they strike a good balance at the moment, although personally I have always leaned towards "realism" when it comes to games, there's no need to have to clean out your guns and collect your casings, or virtually skin and butcher your kills, or any of that sort of stuff.

It would be cool if you had to zero your scopes though. A simulation in the sense that all the little knobs and dials can be manipulated as per real life, a-la Microsoft Flight Simulator.

On that note, some animals could actually be easier to hunt, like rabbits, and it would also be more realistic. Difficulty does not always equal realism.
In the beta there was a perk/skill I can't remember which one, that would allow you to set your zero to 75/150/300. I only used it on one gun so the ranges might be different on other guns but it was awesome to have. It wasn't knob turning realism but you hit the "f" key to change it. I loved it!
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Re: Is 'Call of the Wild' going to be less realistic?

Post by Hawkeye »

IMO, there are many areas where CotW is MORE realistic than Classic. Some examples are:

* Vegetation is impacted by animals & the player character, making actual visual trails through fields & tall vegetation in the forest

* Sound makes a much bigger difference because a) everything you do impacts that sound your character makes, step on a pile of sticks and it's louder than walking through a field, for example and b) because the sounds in the environment can cover those sounds, so move when the wind picks up and your sound is covered a bit

* Much like your sound, your visibility changes depending on your stance and where you are in the environment. Standing up in a field makes you much more visible than crouching in the thick brush.

* You have much more realistic bullet drop combined with a much longer draw distance with which to use it. I shot at a pig with the 243 at about 380m and really had to aim high for the drop.

* Animals have real needs, and you can use those needs (feeding & rest) to set up strategic ambushes. Watching a herd of fallow deer come out in the fields to feed right at dark is pretty amazing.

* Your heart rate matters. You can't just sprint around & stop and expect to make a good shot...you must wait for your breath to come back down so that your gun stops wobbling.

* Full day/night cycle and dynamic weather. You can really feel a storm when it blows through, can practically see the wind kicking up, and the day/night cycle adds a whole new night hunting possibility.

These are the things that come to mind off the top of my head. I think that there will be some animal interactions that we weren't able to see during testing, along with a lot of other content. When you combine all of this added realism to a modern UI and put some icons on the screen instead of on the Huntermate, then give every animal in draw distance a "warning call", you have many calling it an "arcadey" game. Every animal giving a warning call is the only thing that allowed some to "run & gun" this beta test. I'm not convinced that is an intended feature & I don't believe it will be there on release. Without that "bug/feature", this is a far more challenging game. I was within range of several nice fallow deer that I couldn't get close enough to shoot. I could hear them, but couldn't get close enough to shoot without spooking them...then after spooking, I couldn't get close enough after tracking.

One thing to keep in mind too, is that during testing, callers & scent lures were both inactive. So, you have to understand that when you read reviews or watch videos. Ask yourself, how would this situation play out differently if that hunter had a call or a scent lure available...because we will. So, in trying to envision this game upon release, I hope the "warning calls" are far less frequent, giving a lot more mystery as to whether there is an animal within range, and I'll have the appropriate calls & scent lures on me to bring those in that I can't stalk within range. Lastly, I hope for a hotkey that removes the icons from the screen (feeding, resting areas, lore areas). They only show up when you're close, but sometimes you just don't want anything there. Would like to toggle it off & on.

Hopefully, that gives a bit of insight. I do think there are many new ways that they've added realism, but let the Beta devolve into run & gun by allowing every animal within range to tell you exactly where it is with a warning call.
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Re: Is 'Call of the Wild' going to be less realistic?

Post by wombatvvv »

Hawkeye wrote:IMO, there are many areas where CotW is MORE realistic than Classic. Some examples are:

* Vegetation is impacted by animals & the player character, making actual visual trails through fields & tall vegetation in the forest

* Sound makes a much bigger difference because a) everything you do impacts that sound your character makes, step on a pile of sticks and it's louder than walking through a field, for example and b) because the sounds in the environment can cover those sounds, so move when the wind picks up and your sound is covered a bit

* Much like your sound, your visibility changes depending on your stance and where you are in the environment. Standing up in a field makes you much more visible than crouching in the thick brush.

* You have much more realistic bullet drop combined with a much longer draw distance with which to use it. I shot at a pig with the 243 at about 380m and really had to aim high for the drop.

* Animals have real needs, and you can use those needs (feeding & rest) to set up strategic ambushes. Watching a herd of fallow deer come out in the fields to feed right at dark is pretty amazing.

* Your heart rate matters. You can't just sprint around & stop and expect to make a good shot...you must wait for your breath to come back down so that your gun stops wobbling.

* Full day/night cycle and dynamic weather. You can really feel a storm when it blows through, can practically see the wind kicking up, and the day/night cycle adds a whole new night hunting possibility.

These are the things that come to mind off the top of my head. I think that there will be some animal interactions that we weren't able to see during testing, along with a lot of other content. When you combine all of this added realism to a modern UI and put some icons on the screen instead of on the Huntermate, then give every animal in draw distance a "warning call", you have many calling it an "arcadey" game. Every animal giving a warning call is the only thing that allowed some to "run & gun" this beta test. I'm not convinced that is an intended feature & I don't believe it will be there on release. Without that "bug/feature", this is a far more challenging game. I was within range of several nice fallow deer that I couldn't get close enough to shoot. I could hear them, but couldn't get close enough to shoot without spooking them...then after spooking, I couldn't get close enough after tracking.

One thing to keep in mind too, is that during testing, callers & scent lures were both inactive. So, you have to understand that when you read reviews or watch videos. Ask yourself, how would this situation play out differently if that hunter had a call or a scent lure available...because we will. So, in trying to envision this game upon release, I hope the "warning calls" are far less frequent, giving a lot more mystery as to whether there is an animal within range, and I'll have the appropriate calls & scent lures on me to bring those in that I can't stalk within range. Lastly, I hope for a hotkey that removes the icons from the screen (feeding, resting areas, lore areas). They only show up when you're close, but sometimes you just don't want anything there. Would like to toggle it off & on.

Hopefully, that gives a bit of insight. I do think there are many new ways that they've added realism, but let the Beta devolve into run & gun by allowing every animal within range to tell you exactly where it is with a warning call.
Thanks Hawkeye ...very informative post! Without having tried the beta, I agree with all of your sentiments. Sounds great!

Regarding:

" your visibility changes depending on your stance and where you are in the environment. Standing up in a field makes you much more visible than crouching in the thick brush."

... doesn't this already make a difference? Have I been crouching in thick coverage for no reason??
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Re: Is 'Call of the Wild' going to be less realistic?

Post by Hawkeye »

wombatvvv wrote: Thanks Hawkeye ...very informative post! Without having tried the beta, I agree with all of your sentiments. Sounds great!

Regarding:

" your visibility changes depending on your stance and where you are in the environment. Standing up in a field makes you much more visible than crouching in the thick brush."

... doesn't this already make a difference? Have I been crouching in thick coverage for no reason??
Unfortunately, no it doesn't matter. Your stance (prone, crouching, standing) matters, but where you stand doesn't make a difference. Crouching in the middle of a field is just the same as crouching behind a tree, or rock, or bush. That is, of course, unless you're using field vs forest camo.
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Re: Is 'Call of the Wild' going to be less realistic?

Post by wombatvvv »

Hawkeye wrote:
wombatvvv wrote: Thanks Hawkeye ...very informative post! Without having tried the beta, I agree with all of your sentiments. Sounds great!

Regarding:

" your visibility changes depending on your stance and where you are in the environment. Standing up in a field makes you much more visible than crouching in the thick brush."

... doesn't this already make a difference? Have I been crouching in thick coverage for no reason??
Unfortunately, no it doesn't matter. Your stance (prone, crouching, standing) matters, but where you stand doesn't make a difference. Crouching in the middle of a field is just the same as crouching behind a tree, or rock, or bush. That is, of course, unless you're using field vs forest camo.
I'm so disappointed to hear it! I've been hiding behind trees, rocks and in grass all this time for nothing!!!? Are you sure?? :P
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