Hunt: Showdown 1896 is a masterclass in tension, atmosphere, and sound design, delivering one of the most immersive and nerve-wracking multiplayer experiences available
I was always intrigued by the world of Hunt: Showdown but never took the plunge. That changed when I got offered a review key for the new version of the game, Hunt: Showdown 1896, which also brought a lot of upgrades to the current console generation. With updated visuals, a new map, and refined gameplay, Hunt: Showdown 1896 marks an excellent entry point for new players while delivering enhancements veterans will appreciate.
The moment I landed in the grim wilderness of Louisiana, I understood why this game cultivates such a devoted fanbase. Hunt nails the tense, threatening atmosphere of its late 19th-century American South setting. Sparse towns and dilapidated shacks are surrounded by dense forests and swampland, leaving little room to see enemies creeping close. An eerie stillness is broken only by the howls of monsters or the crack of distant gunfire, keeping you constantly on edge.
Whether playing solo or with a team, the core loop maintains this stress. Using your Dark Sight ability to scan for clues pointing to a boss monster’s den, then sneaking or fighting your way inside to “banish” it, only to extract while other teams try to ambush you, provides non-stop thrills. Finding clues often means skulking through tall grass or creeping through abandoned buildings, hardly daring to breathe as you listen for enemies. The tense buildup, a staple of great extraction shooters, happens in every game, no matter what you do. Successfully banishing a boss and escaping with your reward feels immensely satisfying due to how tense the buildup is. Even if you don’t engage in a firefight against enemy players, fight and banish a boss, or even fire a shot, your nerves will be on edge no matter what. The relief you’ll experience when you see that “You live to die another day” message after a successful extract is unlike anything you’ve ever experienced while playing a video game.
The new Colorado map, Mammon’s Gulch, expands Hunt‘s environments while retaining its oppressive mood. Twisted mining shafts and half-collapsed structures provide plenty of places to lay traps or stake out pursuers. Towering mountains and dusty plains mean danger could come from any direction, keeping you constantly rotating your view. Terrain that seems empty might hide enemies, and you’ll soon learn to approach even the most idyllic settings cautiously.
Controlling your Hunters using the DualSense is intuitive and feels great, with adaptive triggers adding weight to gunshots and subtle haptics accentuating sensations like reloading or healing. While mouse/keyboard is still better for precision, the controller handles well and never feels limiting. Swapping weapons, aiming down sights, and sprinting all respond smoothly. Dark Sight’s strategic scanning is simple to pull off, and sound design helps you pinpoint noises even with stereo TV speakers. The options menu also provides plenty of control tweaks.
One element that continuously impressed me in Hunt: Showdown 1896 was its astonishingly well-implemented audio design. Even after over 15 hours played thus far, I feel as though the game’s incredible audio cues continue revealing new layers of strategic depth. Perhaps the most impressive showcase is how easily noises like reloading or crunching gravel carry across the map. The binaural 3D audio makes discerning even the faintest left/right pans incredibly intuitive. You can basically hear a needle dropping in a distant building, and that’s absolutely mind-blowing.
Small touches like birds abruptly scattering from trees perfectly mimic real-world noise propagation. Animal bleats and creature growls don’t just sound threatening—their locality is uncannily reproduced. If you hear those sounds, go behind the nearest cover, crouch, and aim, as an enemy hunter is definitely near. Distant gunshots echo believably off environments, full of nuanced details to judge their course. Even dead silence carries weight, forcing you to nervously scan for the barest audio trigger. Quietly looting a body as crows caw nearby made my heart pound.
It’s more than evident that immense care has gone into honing Hunt‘s audio to mirror reality. Every creak, thud, and footstep feels purposefully positioned, weaving an invisible web of cues that continually reward awareness. My hat is off to Crytek’s audio team for truly pushing immersive 3D sound design to new frontiers.
Being a new player, I was pleased to see that there’s matchmaking, so I could join Duos and Trios with ease. Since the game has been out for a while, there are a lot of Hunt players out there, and most of them know what they are doing. I found that the best strategy is to just follow the level 100 guys, stay behind them, and be as helpful as possible while they collect clues, set up traps, and banish the bosses. When you start the game, it’s a true baptism by fire. Make one mistake, and death awaits. But the more you play, the more you will slowly start to get a basic feel for the flow of clues, monsters, and when to strike or evade. This will take time—a lot of it, as even after about 16 hours put into it, I still feel like I’ve just scratched the surface.
In Hunt: Showdown 1896, you have two main modes to choose from, each offering distinct experiences: Bounty Hunt and Soul Survivor. Knowing how each plays out and understanding death’s consequences is crucial. Bounty Hunt mode is the competitive multiplayer extraction mode, tasking solo players or teams of 1-3 to uncover clues pointing to boss monsters across the map. Successfully banishing a boss allows you to pick up the bounty, but by doing so, other teams can track you by sound and vision and try to steal the reward. It’s an epic cat-and-mouse dance, putting survival instincts and gunplay to the test.
If your Hunter dies, they’re gone for good. However, you earn Hunt Dollars for kills, clues discovered, and bounty extractions to spend on reinforced Hunters with buffed health, equipment, and random beneficial Traits. If you do poorly and all your Hunters die, what then? Well, you can either hire new Hunters for money, or you can play the other mode, Soul Survivor.
Soul Survivor switches to a battle royale formula, dropping solo players onto the map with random loadouts. Here, dying means a trip back to the menu screen. You do not lose anything, and you can play this mode as much as you want. However, if you win the battle royale, you get to keep the Hunter along with all of the gear and use them in Bounty Hunt. Although the risk of permadeath for your Hunters is there, don’t play this game too safely. Sure, spend a couple of matches ratting it out, but once in a while, just full send it. Who knows, you might overwhelm not only the bosses, but also the other enemy hunters. Games are meant to be fun, and honestly, even though Hunt: Showdown 1896 is tense as fuck, it’s some of the most fun I’ve had in the last couple of years playing games.
Hunt’s brilliant presentation, from its soundtrack that mimics the ambient wilderness to the detailed world-building glimpsed in collectible lore, creates palpable stakes and a world that feels lived in, even though most of the things that roam in it are dead. Graphically, the game looks gorgeous running on the PS5 at a stable 60fps, with excellent textures, lighting effects, draw distances, and more. While the user interface is kinda hard to understand at first and took some adjusting to, it sensibly communicates all vital information.
Hunt: Showdown 1896 is a masterclass in tension, atmosphere, and sound design, delivering one of the most immersive and nerve-wracking multiplayer experiences available. Whether you’re stalking monsters or being hunted by rival players, every moment is packed with heart-pounding suspense. With stunning visuals, responsive controls, and a beautifully crafted world, this version of Hunt is a must-play for both newcomers and seasoned veterans alike. If you’re looking for a game that will have you on the edge of your seat from start to finish, Hunt: Showdown 1896 won’t disappoint. I strongly recommend this game. Thanks for reading!
The game was reviewed on a PS5 via a promo copy provided by the developers. Hunt: Showdown 1896 is available on PlayStation, Xbox and PC.
