Hello everyone.
I just want to share my thoughts of the Predator: Hunting Grounds demo and the things I enjoyed about the game.
A little background first. I have played most if not all the Aliens and Predator games and many others. I have also watched the the films countless times. That being said of course I am a fan but also hope the game is improved so that we can continue enjoying it for many years.
The PositivesMusic and SoundMy hats off to the developers of Predator Hunting Grounds for absolutely nailing the music. It is great. In fact it may be one of the best things about the demo. It cannot be understated. It modernizes the Predator theme without compromising the original motifs. A lot of time developers pay tribute to a musical movie theme but ultimately end up creating something that feels too unfamiliar. This game however has the best Predator game music I have heard. It makes it feel like you are in the movie. Helicopter drop sequence anyone? Let's hope they have Long Tall Sally somewhere in the full game. Predator sounds are equally nicely recreated.
Sidenote: It would be even nicer if they displayed gamertag when they show everyone sitting in the chopper before the drop at the start of the match. Would make it feel like every player is a character in their own movie.
The EnvironmentI believe the developers did a great job on creating a lot of density in the jungle. There are lots of trees and foliage. I do not mind if they reused some of the same assets to create the density because it feels like you are in the middle of a jungle. I like also how the terrain is uneven giving the space some verticality. Also love how you can break tree branches with firepower like the film. I can totally see the developers releasing some Predator 2 city map down the line. Meat freezer anyone?
The WeaponsAgain, hats off to the developers. They included some bad@%* guns for the fireteam as it should be.
AA-12, 50cal, minigun, grenade launcher, MP5, etc. I have to point out the fireteam in the 1987 movie were packing major heat, and it is nice the game here lets their weapons be equally cool. The Predator should be toast when caught against a fully loaded fireteam which is why he picks them off one by one hit and run. I think the demo did a good job of that. 1v4 is hard. 1v3 is still hard but not as hard. 1v2 is ok with combi-stick. 1v1 is a predator trophy in the making.
Also they put in most of the Predator main arsenal which is nice. I have to say the plasma caster felt a little weak. Maybe if the charging time is reduced it may balance better. Every game the most viable option always seemed to be combi-stick because ttk was faster against a pro team. Also, opponents spamming spot and the cloak being useless while moving made it difficult! Also the big red lasers give your position away too fast. In the movie the Predator trained his lasers without being spotted. Despite this I still managed to win as Predator with some effort. The only thing I want different in the main game is make the cloak more effective or remove the ability to spot while cloak active.
Sidenote: If one day there is DLC with the suits from the fireteam in Predator 2 and a meat fridge level, I hope they add Predator EM vision to see them. And don't forget the UV lights.
CustomizationI like the customization in this. It feels nice to change your appearance and create a fireteam with unique loadout or Predator type. I still do not know how I feel about the bow. I wonder why the bow is a Predator weapon and not fireteam? Only Dutch used the bow in the film. I would have replaced the bow with his wrist projectile from Predator 2.That being said, I enjoy how you can customize the hats, face paint, and other throwbacks to the films.
Well, that is all I can think of for the moment. I enjoyed the demo and I think the developers paid attention to the films which is good and needed. The framerate needs to be fixed for smoother gameplay. Some of my teamates complained about that the most. It was a fun demo however. Hopefully Illfonic can put in the extra work to iron out the game's problems before release. Especially the time to find matches because for an online ONLY game this is most important.
Thanks for reading. Feel free to share your thoughts.