Back in the halcyon days of the 7th console generation, there was a massive push for multiplayer experiences. I guess it makes sense if you think about it; co-op games had come a long way since the 8-bit days. Playing the same levels one at a time to see who can finish first was now a thing of the past, and we're all able to enjoy games that can run simultaneously with a friend who can be well across the world.
While it is always fun to reminisce, sometimes memories that remain come in the form of games that just didn't click, despite their design. Hunted: The Demon’s Forge is one such title. Developed by Inxile Studios and published by Bethesda, Hunted is a dark fantasy action title tailor-made for two players to sit through. Yet for all of the nostalgic glee you can get from the style of game it is, a myriad of problems keep arising to hold it back from being a truly great experience.
The game's narrative stars two mercenaries, the bald, bug-fearing Caddoc and the impulsive elven E’lara. Caddoc and E’lara closely fit the stereotypes of what you would expect in such a setting; one is calm and calculating, while the other is brash and quick to act. Together, they complement each other’s abilities as a 'fantasy odd couple', complete with somewhat snappy banter in between the action that sets up most of the story. After Caddoc receives a vision in his sleep, the two are swept into a series of unfortunate events that lead them to save the world from a dark and powerful force.
The narrative is more or less derivative of the type of dark fantasy clichés you would expect, all played with a deadly seriousness that honestly feels as if it is trying too hard. The two main characters at least have likable personalities, often bringing some levity to a rather grim setting; it is actually believable that these two have worked together for a long time. This does make the game's more try-hard moments more bearable.
Seraphine, a pale sorceress wearing what I can only describe as a dominatrix suit, is a major character who is kind of the poster child of the more egregious narrative choices and design. She shows up for the first time in the tutorial, claiming to be the orchestrator of Caddoc's dreams, promising power to the wayward mercenaries if they collect crystals called 'deathstones' across the game's small number of levels. To say the least, it is not compelling, and anyone with any sense of narrative know-how can pretty much see where this plot is going five minutes in.
While the narrative is flat and uninteresting, the game plays much better, for the most part. Like other action titles from the 360 era, where you tackle waves of enemies in combat. The kicker for this game is the quasi-third-person shooter mechanics. One of the more common comparisons has been to Gears of War, which is completely fair since the shooting mechanics seem to borrow from that game’s design. You hide under cover, take pot-shots with your bow or crossbow, and more or less control the ebb and flow of battle through it. If the enemies begin to close in on your positions, you can enter melee and fight them hand to hand, so the game attempts to offer the best of both worlds when combat is concerned.
Not surprisingly, Caddoc is suited for close-quarters combat while E’lara is better with the long-range attacks. Hunted attempts to bring balance between your characters through this, but Caddoc is honestly given the short stick overall. If in Single player, you do have the option to switch between the two, but for the most part E’lara is always the better option, since the shooting mechanics are basic but very smooth. The hack-and-slash gameplay is messier, as the melee controls feel a bit slippery control-wise. Several times you may find button combinations not registering enough, forcing Caddoc to just slice the air or be exposed without a shield. While he has ranged options, E'lara wholly outclasses him, leaving a lot of Caddoc's more complex controls to be rougher around the edges.
Which is a shame, as there is a lot of good strategy when two players are working together in-game. For example, E’lara can shoot frost arrows to freeze enemies in place, while Caddoc can then smash them to bits with a swing of his sword. Caddoc can also charge enemies to stun them, giving E’lara a chance for an instant kill or, at least, massive damage. These abilities are designed to cover the weaknesses of your partner and are well thought-out, adding to the cooperative experience.
The single-player game severely suffers from being tedious. The A. I partner is decent and does back you up in a fight, but overall it is a wasted experience because ultimately, Hunted is built for its co-op. Co-op also has a baffling omission; there are no drop-in or drop-out settings; you need to set up your matches in a lobby with either a friend or, in its heyday, a random stranger. For the most part, the co-op runs smoothly after that, although you need to agree on a starting point with your partner before you begin. The game only has six chapters, which are categorized by sections, so it's fairly easy to pick your starting point and just go through the entire experience at your own pace.
The co-op experience is really one of the few saving graces of the entire game, with its best feature being the inclusion of local split-screen. This is a bigger deal than people realize, as split-screen co-op was seen as anachronistic at the time. Personally, I argue it is find it a welcome option for a quiet night at home with a partner to truly appreciate its inclusion. It is a shame that few games from Generation 7 had cooperative gameplay to keep this old feature alive, so it is a treat to see that time-honored tradition in Hunted.
One final aspect for multiplayer is the inclusion of the Crucible, a map-making mode where you can craft a 25-room dungeon for your friends to explore. Unlocking enemies, arenas, and items for the Crucible is done through the main game by accumulating gold. Everything is also released automatically after a certain amount of gold is earned, so there is no worry about buying items for the mode. However, since all of the areas are essentially arena-style combat in several waves, there is very little ingenuity for your custom-made dungeons, and it only really works if you are checking it out for a novelty or looking for a different take on horde mode.
While the co-op gameplay is where Hunted shines, everything else could have used some polish or a change in design. For example, the use of spells and abilities in-game is not well thought out. Your spells and special abilities are relegated to a pause menu, where you can upgrade them on a simple, single-path tree and assign them to the d-pad for use. Since the three magic spells are the same for both characters, it is wiser to choose two of them and have them permanently assigned to one character each, leaving the other three spots open for the three special abilities to use in combat. To upgrade spells, you need to use crystals earned from combat, but for the most part the spells never change except in mana consumption and power, rendering this light RPG element almost useless if it weren’t for boss battles.
Graphically, the game is a major letdown. The aesthetics suffer from the muted color palette you expect from that era, with mostly muddy textures and color desaturation found across your travels. This is probably a design choice, given that it's a dark fantasy setting, but a little vibrancy here and there could have helped the game pop a bit in sections. Even where there is a different tone of color to the backgrounds, it just blends with the more common browns, grays, and blacks. There is just very little that makes it visually striking. The character models are also a bit stiff and basic in their looks, with the cutscenes looking rough with their stilted animation.
Sound is also a mixed bag. The voice actors portraying Caddoc and E’lara were both decent, but the rest of the actors sound like they are phoning it in. This is a shame too, especially when the biggest name in the cast, Lucy Lawless, is attempting her best sultry diva tones as Seraphine. Lawless is wasted in her role, coming in and out of the story in short bursts but always coming off as trying too hard to be tantalizing. The combat sounds and music were adequate, but also somewhat forgettable.
Hunted: The Demon's Forge is basically a co-op dungeon crawl, which feels a bit unpolished and uninteresting to play through. Any world-building is done through the pause menu, but most of it has nothing to do with the fights or the place you are in as you crawl through the dungeons. I guess in one sense, this is expected and adds to the old-school charm the game is capturing. But when games such as Dark Souls can convey more backstory and in-depth flair with a minimalist approach to narrative, Hunted feels like it's severely lacking all around.
Of course, this is hindsight talking; Hunted: The Demon's Forge was an attempt to service a niche in the co-op market, and while the short run-time of about 10 hours is breezy enough to get past most of the game's glaring flaws, it is, at the end of the day, a game that is fairly monotonous to get through. Caddoc and E’lara are likeable protagonists, but the adventure they partake in is of little importance and completely forgettable. It's the cooperative gameplay that saves it from being totally wretched, but only the most die-hard fans of co-op games would really enjoy the experience Hunted provides.
Author's Note: This review was originally written for the website Blistered Thumbs, back in 2011. I have edited it from its original sheet and am posting it here to preserve it.