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UPLAND GAME HUNTER
Manufacturer: Head Games/Activision (1998)
Price: $19.99 boxed
Genre: Upland gamebird hunting simulation
System Requirements: Win95, Pentium 133 or faster, 16 MB RAM, Mouse, CD-ROM, Sound
Card, Direct X, 25 MB HDD space.
DESCRIPTION: Upland Game Hunter is the latest, and possibly the best, upland game bird hunting sim to come down the pike. Designed by Diversion Software (the same folks who developed the excellent Sporting Clays game), Upland allows players to experience the frustration and excitement of hunting a variety of game birds: pheasant, chukar, 4 species of grouse, quail, bobwhite and ptarmigan in three general hunting areas (woods, fields, desert). To help you along Diversions includes 4 breeds of bird dogs (each with it's own characteristics) and of course a nice selection of Remington shotguns.
The game is pretty straightforward: choose your equipment (i.e. shotgun and dog), your location and go hunting! The hunting screen consist of an overhead view of the hunter, his dog and the nearby terrain (kinda like Microsoft's Close Combat). Each hunting area is roughly 20 acres- so start walking! There is a nice menu bar which list the dog commands (i.e. heel, hunt, flush, etc.) and a button to take you to the big map screen where you can see the entire 20 acre hunting location. Most of the action takes place in the regular hunting screen where your hunter and dog work their way down dirt roads and fences fields. The overall graphic effect is actually pretty good- I really liked what I saw.
Once you do find some game, and it's flushed from the brush, you are taken to the first person screen where you take aim and shoot. Again, not bad graphic-wise and very similar to what you'd find in Sporting Clays. The animation is also pretty good. Once you have bagged your limit your hunt is over.
I really like Upland Game Hunter. It's the best upland game bird hunting sim I've seen, plays well and is good-looking to boot. It may not be 3D or state of the art but it does offer players a decent simulation of bird hunting.
THE SCOUTING REPORT:
THE PROS:
Good overall package:
gamplay, interface, sounds and graphics are more than decent.
Nice selection of game birds.
Good selection of shotguns and hunting dogs.
THE CONS:
Reviewed by Steve Ellis