Hunted: The Demon's Forge has some pretty big dungeon crawler shoes to fill; it's a difficult genre to stand out from the pack. In a genre that's full of sameness, though, don't count Hunted: The Demon's Forge as just another brawler. Bethesda has teamed up with inXile; for those who don't know, Brian Fargo, the CEO, worked on not only Wasteland and the original Bard's Tale games, but he also was executive producer on the first Fallout game. The Bethesda and inXile match up should prove to be solid, but what are they really doing to make Hunter: The Demon's Forge a play-worthy game? Read on to find out! Hunted begins with a man named Caddoc being lured by a mysterious, seductive woman named Seraphine, voiced by Lucy Lawless. Seraphine urges Caddoc to touch the Death Stone, which would give him ultimate power. Naturally, like the story of Adam and Eve, the temptation is too great for Caddoc, and he touches the stone. Immediately, he sees an unnerving, violent vision of a battle with one blood-loving dragon. He then wakes up from his vicious dream.
Dream or not, the Death Stone and its implications play a large role in the story. In due time, Caddoc's dream will become a reality, and he'll have to make a decision, which you'll find out when the game hits stores. Story aside, Hunted: The Demon's Forge focuses on two characters, there's Caddoc, the brute yet sober warrior, and E'lara, the feisty, determined elf-archer. There's constant banter and an interesting dynamic between the two which should be further explored as the game progresses. Fans of TV shows like Bones and Castle can only attest to how intriguing the tension between two witty characters of the opposite sex can drive a narrative, especially considering there must be some reason Caddoc and E'lara choose to adventure together, and we're betting it's more than just the loot. The characters' differences also extend beyond the story; they also play a significant role in the gameplay. Controlling either Caddoc or E'lara leads to a completely disparate experience for the player. Caddoc excels as you'd expect a medieval warrior to: with his melee weapons. E'lara, on the other hand, is for the more patient player, who would rather attack from a distance. Both characters have the ability to use both types of attacks, but they each skew in one direction.
There's also a heavy emphasis on teamwork with their magic abilities: each character has magical buffs that can help the opposite character's problem area. Characters can also upgrade and unlock their moves and skills throughout the game by collecting crystals. The game's combat focuses greatly on enemies' vulnerabilities; certain attacks and spells will exploit their weaknesses. This combat happens in a third person perspective and features a cover system, not dissimilar from Uncharted or Gears of War. The puzzles in the title do place a great emphasis on teamwork. For instance, Caddoc can move large boulders around to solve puzzles while E'lara can fire arrows to light faraway candles. Throughout the game, you'll come across deathstones; these stones provide clues to unlock new missions and challenges. These are entirely optional; however, there are some great bonuses and awards that are unlocked by completing them. Hunted: The Demon's Forge, despite its fantastical setting, has a solid foundation in reality. E'lara will run out of arrows, and you will have to resupply them. Similarly, Caddoc's shields will break and you will be forced to replace them. Thankfully, when you kill enemies, you can then search their bodies for equipment. Interesting enough, equipment allows you a way to customize your characters, since all equipment comes with its own set of attributes, such as attack speed. So, if there are particular attributes that fit your play-style more, you can look for equipment to complement it.
Another noteworthy feature is reviving teammates, you don't have to go over to their body to manually revive them, instead you can throw a potion across the field to your downed teammate to breathe life into them again. However, you only have a window of time to revive your fallen ally. There is a red arrow on the screen that indicates where your teammate has fallen, so it's important to look for that. There's a large focus on the co-op experience in Hunted: The Demon's Forge. This should be no surprise, as the game is focused around two characters with disparate strengths and weaknesses - it only further solidifies the two player approach. Players can play solo, with an AI companion, or with the requisite co-op, both online and off. One great thing about Hunted: The Demon's Forge is that if you decide you want to switch to a different character, you can do so at checkpoints. Also, the game encourages exploration, and doesn't require you to stay tied to your partner the entire journey. Should you ever get lost, all you have to do is click in the left stick, and a blue light will pop up to guide you to your destination.
For those of you, who think the game is done after the campaign, it's not so in Hunted. The game has a mode where you can create your own dungeons on a 5x5 grid from the ground up. There are a slew of decisions between design and theme, how many stages, what item drops there are, enemy types, character customization, and how many enemies will accompany each stage. This mode is sure to get your creative juices flowing along with adding new challenges and fresh levels for you to dungeon crawl your heart out in. Hunted: The Demon's Forge has a lot of promise; whether or not it will live up to dungeon crawler greatness is still up in the air. The game is certainly attempting to present a novel experience in an often formulaic genre. There's a wealth of detail that inXile put forth in the fantasy setting of the game, to make it stand out. We'll see whether or not it succeeds on its release date of May 31st.
