Hunt the Night Review

2023 has been a really good year for indie games, but sadly due to the rapid pace of all the great AAA games that we’ve been getting alot of them have been going under the radar. One game that’s under the radar right now is Hunt the Night. It’s a 2D fantasy action adventure game that feels like a mix of Hades, the Witcher, and Dark Souls. So why do I think this game is under the radar? 

Let’s dive into it. 

Hunt the Night was released on April 13th, 2023. It is available right now for PC, but it’s coming soon to all consoles. I was provided a review code. 

Narrative:

You play as Vesper, a member of a group known as The Stalkers. The Stalkers are the last line of defense against horrid creatures that have almost wiped out all mankind. Vesper has to use her special abilities and her Stalker weapons to fight and become humanity’s hero. 

The narrative of the game is solid. Some aspects of the story may feel cliché, but the game’s lore is intriguing enough to make you want to look for notes lying around. 

Gameplay:

The combat in Hunt the Night is tight, fluid, and demanding. The game recommends that you use a controller with this game which is a good idea with the game’s fun twin-stick shooter and melee elements. If your looking for a game with challenging combat then look no further. This is a game that you have to get good at or you won’t make much progress. 

Despite the game’s difficulty, the combat is extremely engaging. You can strike using various melee weapons, shoot using your guns or bows, and also attack with magic abilities. The spells regenerate over a period of time, and your ammo regenerates when you attack your enemy. Speaking of enemies this game has a solid variety of foes for you to dispatch. Some enemies can turn invisible, others have range attacks, and others have hard-hitting melee attacks. Just when I thought I figured out all the enemies that the game had to offer new ones were introduced in the next area. 

The boss fights in the game are phenomenal. Their move sets are well thought out and executed and you have to learn their attack patterns to prevail. The boss encounters are varied in a way that no boss fight feels the same. The game also opens up the map a bit after you beat the first main boss. The map is fun to see and explore. 

Additional Pros: 

The pixel art style is gorgeous and well-detailed. The pixel art displays tons of creations and locations each with the game’s gothic and spooky aesthetic. The water looks amazing, the enemies look appropriately grotesque, and the colors pop on the screen. Its impressive that there isn’t an ugly area in the game. 

The soundtrack is amazing. It accents everything going on in the game perfectly. For example, there’s some slow suspenseful music when you’re exploring in-between fights. Then on the contrary there’s some fast ominous music that plays where you are at a creepy parts and when you fighting the antagonists. 

Flaws/Cons:

This game is very reminiscent of a Souls game in the sense that If you die you go back to the last save point which is fine normally, but that includes the boss fights as well. I wish you could just reload the boss fights instantly instead of having to trek back to the boss area and endure the cutscene again. 

An aspect that might turn some gamers off of the game is its lack of a difficulty slider. 

Another flaw is that there’s no map in this game. It’s easy to lose your sense of direction and tricky to figure out where to go next. This is a game that has some Metroidvania aspect to it, for example, you have to backtrack to previous locations to advance further. The problem is that most of the time you don’t know where you are supposed to go. While that adds a mystery element to the game it is also time consuming and frustrating.  

Overall/Should You play: Hunt the Night:

If you are looking for a challenging action-adventure game with some gothic vibes then you should check out Hunt the Night. It does have its flaws like its lack of a map, however, it’s positives far outweigh its negatives. It has the addicting challenge of Dark Souls, the movement of Hades, and the combat options of the Witcher. This is a game that many are sleeping on. Don’t make the same mistake.