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I have yet to come across someone who doesn’t love the Wild West setting. Sure, it was initially popularised by Spaghetti Western movies starring the legendary Clint Eastwood. However, some video games have gone knee-deep in the setting too;Call of JuarezandRed Dead Redemption, for example.
However, it isn’t every day that a video game in the Wild West adds spins like bounty hunting, ginormous monsters, fending off zombies, and taking down your fellow players. Sound enticing? That is precisely whatHunt: Showdown 1896brings to the table.
If you have playedHuntin the past, dropped off midway, or didn’t enjoy it. This article might answer the question: isHunt: Showdown 1896a substantial update? Is it good enough for you to hop back intoHunt: Showdown? Most importantly, is it a hit or a miss?
Hunt: Showdown 1896releases on June 28, 2025, on Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5 (PS5), and PC.
Giddy up and Let the Hunt Consume You in Hunt: Showdown 1896
As someone with no priorHuntExperience, I had heard good things about the game here and there. Cutting to the chase,I expected an excellent old-fashioned Battle Royale title, and boy I was wrong. PuttingHuntinto a classic genre is challenging, given that it features zombies, monsters, a battle royale element, and extraction aspects too.
However, the concoction isn’t as bad as it sounds, and the game shines in many areas. First things first, the world is gorgeous. Everything is muddy and swampy; one can feel the humid countryside through the screen while playing. The game also does a fine job of striking a good balance between the PvE and the PvP.
I felt my heart pounding when I knew enemies were on me.Hunt: Showdown 1896is also incredibly unforgiving. That is because the gameplay loop doesn’t let you claim the bounty (the reward for killing a boss) without a sweat.
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As soon as you kill a boss, you need to banish them, and that sends out a red alert to all the other players about your location, and your chances of staying alive plummet rapidly. In short, it might be too much to take in during your first playthrough, but it does get fun the more you play.
The Hunt: Showdown 1896 Update Makes Significant Changes to the Game
With the recent update,Hunt: Showdown 1896promises to deliver many fresh changes. The game came out in 2018, meaning that six years ofHunthave passed at the time of writing. Therefore, the update seems overdue.
But1896is more than an update forHunt: Showdown. It feels more like a relaunch. It features an engine upgrade to CryEngine 5.11 for the game. This means there are significant upgrades to the visuals, audio, and overall experience of the game.
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While I hadn’t played the previous version of the game and only had the fortune to play1896, I looked at the previous footage. The difference is remarkable.
The update also adds a new map to the title called Mammon’s Gulch. There are also new monsters, two new weapons, and some QoL updates, which may or may not be ‘improvements,’ depending on how one looks at it. For example: while looking at the originalHunt, I found the new UI much more restrictive, providing less information than the original.
There is also bad news for eight-generation console owners, asHunt: Showdown 1896won’t be playable for them with the update. Players playing on Xbox One and PlayStation 4 can continue as and when they move to ninth-gen consoles. This is admittedlyrestrictive and starts the whole digital ownership debate again.
There are also some minor changes to the gameplay, which will make a massive difference to the player’s in-game experience. This includes a complex Bullet Drop mechanic, which I experienced first-hand.
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The new bullet drop mechanic, one of the features that wasn’t present in the original game, makesHunt: Showdown 1896feel more like an extraction shooter likeTarkov. Overall, barring a few things, the update seems to be heading in a good direction.
Is Hunt: Showdown 1896 Good?
This is a little tricky to answer. WhileHunt: Showdown 1896has a steeper learning curve than other PvPvE titles, so don’t expect to get the hang of it if you are in a hurry. Despite me being a first-time player, I genuinely enjoyed myself despite the game’s unforgiving difficulty.
The only technical issues I faced were random crashes and some UI glitches. Some were annoying, but the game’s overall quality made up for it. Moreover, Crytek is an established developer, so I’d expect them to address these in the coming updates.
The recent updates forHunt: Showdown 1896also feel pretty solid compared to gameplay footage from the previous build. If one is into FPS titles, the wild west or is just looking for a getaway title, this is a definite recommendation. By all means, pick it up, jump into a game, and slay monsters, zombies, and go against other players. Yee-haw!
Sparsh Jaimini
Gaming Writer
Articles Published :518
Sparsh Jaimini Sharma is a video games enthusiast and a Games Writer. A true white-blooded Madridsta. He is often seen grinding away at EAFC 24’s Ultimate team and learning to code when he is not writing. A Batman fan and Arkham Games connoisseur. He is the quintessential DC aficionado.
