Gaming Target - PlayStation 2: Hunter: The Reckoning Wayward

Written by John Scalzo on February 28, 2003

First Impressions: Smash TV? With monsters? Life is good.

I don't know a whole lot about the White Wolf pen and paper RPG that Hunter: The Reckoning is based on. In truth I don't know anything about it. But what I do know is that the original Hunter: The Reckoning for the Xbox was a fine monster battler in the tradition of Gauntlet. And now developer High Voltage Software is bringing a sequel to the PlayStation 2 in the form of Hunter: The Reckoning Wayward.

Wayward picks up two years after the original Hunter: The Reckoning ended. A shadowy messenger travels to the hunters and tells them that evil forces still dwell in the town of Ashcroft. So the hunters saddle up and attempt to rid the world of demons once again. The story is simple, and what more do you want from a game like this?

Gameplay wise Wayward plays much like it's predecessor. The two stick controls of Smash TV return with the left stick controlling your movement and the right stick controlling which direction you attack in. Horde after horde of monsters, demons, and ghosts will attack you and you have to fight them back. It's pure Gauntlet/Smash TV action and fans of the genre should know what to expect.

High Voltage has also put the call out to fans for feedback with ways in how to fix some of the problems in the first game. Much like our own Ryan Smotherman wrote in his review, they said the camera needed to be fixed. And High Voltage appears to have come through. No longer does the camera get stuck behind objects anymore, now when any object gets in front of the camera it goes transparent. It's by no means a new idea, but a welcome one, as a good camera system is key to any action game.

Another fan complaint that High Voltage has planned to remedy is that the original Hunter was too linear. With Wayward the game is entirely based around the hub level, Hunter Headquarters, which takes the guise of a messy apartment. Much like Maximo, players are now given the choice of which order they want to tackle levels in. And High Voltage has said that by playing levels in a different order will affect the game in a different way. Each level has also been given a set of objectives (some required, some optional, and some hidden) that makes Wayward a much deeper game than the original Hunter.

This hub level also serves the additional purpose of being the hub of just about every in game feature that Wayward offers. The trophy room houses all the trophies you win throughout the game by completing special level objectives. The entertainment center is where you can view any of the unlockable extras you've earned. Finally, the computer keeps track of any hints or tricks you've acquired in your travels.

As with any sequel the numbers have been increased. There are now five hunters to choose from instead of four. Each hunter now has the ability to perform four edge special moves instead of the three in the first game. Wayward has more weapons at the hunters' disposal, including the fiery death of a flare gun. And at least three new monsters in addition to countless new bosses will be making appearances in the game. The only number that has gone down is the number of players. Bowing once again to Sony short sightedness, Wayward will only support two player simultaneous play as opposed to the four player found in the original.

From a few early screens Wayward looks like it could compete with the Xbox original on the graphics front. But it really is too early to tell in that regard.