The Best Hunting Video Games: Part 1

by Arthur Grainger February 24, 2023

Via: edit of Duck Hunt art by alycea tinoyan and screenshot from Carnivores: Dinosaur Hunter.

Have you wondered what the best hunting video game is? Today we will seek to answer this question as we present some of the most incredible gaming experiences for those who love to hunt! So, get into a comfy seat, grab your controller (or mouse and keyboard), and let's see how many dinosaur dunks we can get.

Duck hunt (1984)

Via: Screenshot of Duck Hunt.

One of the classic hunting games to come out of the 1980s was the 1984 Dunk Hunt, which throws you into a fun recreation of trying to hunt down… ducks. You are paired with your trusty rifle and your fury beagle friend, and you are tasked with culling as many ducks as possible to rank up the highest score.

This game has three primary game modes:

Game A: 1 Duck
Game B: 2 Duck
Game C: Clay Shooting

The game is quite basic by today's standards, but in the 1980s, it was revolutionary as you had an arcade experience in your own house with the NES! What makes this extra special is the game came with a wired orange gun controller that allowed you to feel as if you were aiming and shooting at ducks in real life.

So, if you want an essential hunting video game experience with a physical gun controller, we highly recommend this classic!

Skyrim (2011)

Via: Screenshot of Skyrim from GameSpy.

Skyrim, released in 2011, is still today one of the best sandbox games ever to be released. It is still one of the most played and talked about games, and because it is so open, it would have hunting!

The base game has many hunting activities, with a wide range of fun to find and conquer. You can equip yourself with a bow, magic or blade and head out into the frost wilderness to hunt down elk, wolves, sabre cats, foxes, trolls, and so much more. When you defeat your foe, you can take their pelts and meat and use them to make equipment to survive the continent's harsh climate.

Overall, Skyrim is great because it allows you to play a game how you want. You should also check out the modding scene, as so many mods make hunting even more enjoyable. Such as a hunters guild found in Whiterun or extra game to be hunted. We will have to write a post about how great hunting in Skyrim can be!

Carnivores: Dinosaur Hunter (2010)

Carnivores: Dinosaur Hunt Xbox

Via: A screenshot from TheXboxHub.

Carnivores: Dinosaur Hunter is an excellent game if you’re looking for a modern shooting experience that replicates the hunting experience but with some fantastical elements. Venture out into the environment and time of day of your choice and choose to hunt one of fifteen different dinosaurs.

Each dinosaur is unique and will act differently during the pursuit of the game. Some will run at your approach, whilst others, like the T-Rex, will run at you. It will be up to you how you go about taking them down, and you can select between several varieties of weapons to achieve these goals. These weapons are a pistol, a shotgun, a sniper rifle, and a crossbow.

So if you want to experience what trophy hunting dinos might be like, this is an exciting game to try out.

Way of The Hunter (2022)

Via: Promotional material from the Epic Games Store.

Way of the Hunter is one of the recent hunting sims to come out in the last year and is a beautiful experience any hunting enthusiast should experience. The world is gorgeous, and the devs have paid close attention to even the most minor bits of detail.

The game has you become an owner of a massive hunting lodge set in a vast open world full of a North Americanesque landscape. In this sandbox, you can hunt how you want with various weapons and equipment to aid you in this experience. You can play as a solo experience or get your friends on board and have some of the most memorable experiences in gaming.

Monster Hunter (2020)

A Seregios slashes at hunters with its claws in Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak

Via: Screenshot from Polygon of Monster Hunter Rise.

If you’re after a fantasy hunting experience where no one questions hunting with a sword as a viable method, then Monster Hunter is a great game to explore this concept.

You fight massive monsters in a low fantasy setting with steampunk and pre-industrial technology. Your love as a Hunter is to protect villages, research programs, and the general populous from the threats posed by this giant roaming beast.

The game provides you with a range of equipment and gear which slowly becomes more powerful as you progress. With special class abilities, you can fight using bows, swords, and hammers to create different effects to defeat stronger foes.

Pokemon GO

Via: Promotional material from the pokemongolive.com.

For those trophy hunters, PokemonGO is a great way to add some hunting to your gaming experience. This game allows you to find Pokemon as you walk around the real world and catch them to slowly build up for pokedex and train them to fight other players' Pokemon. You can even fight boss Pokemon to get great rewards and a chance to capture rare beasts!

Big Buck Hunter Reloaded (2020)

Via: Promotional material from the Big Buck Hunter® Reloaded™ website.

For those who love a classic arcade experience, Big Buck Hunter is a big name in the hunting arcade gaming business. Released in 2000, the developers have released several renditions, most recently in 2020 with their Reloaded system.

The goal of the games is simple, to shoot the male animal, and if you shoot a female, the round ends. However, the 2020 version introduces several new game modes to the classic one, with new animals to hunt and even a zombie-killing one! In addition, you can get a great experience wielding a controller that feels like a rifle in a safe simulation to practice your targeting abilities.

Hunting Unlimited 2010 (2009)

Via: Promotional material from the Hunting Unlimited 2010 Steam page.

If you’re looking for an excellent basic trophy-hunting adventure, you can get it with Hunting Unlimited, which allows you to hunt and collect iconic animals throughout Canada and America. The graphics aren’t the best, but when you’re hunting and have great gameplay, what more do you need?

Red Dead Online

Red Dead Online Hunting Awards Guide

Via: A screenshot of Red Dead Online Hunting from Rdt.com.

Red Dead Online isn’t strictly only a hunting game; it is an open online world set in the wild west of 1898 America. You are an outlaw who can earn some hunting awards by killing specific animals and various other hunting activities. This could be a fun experience with friends in a beautiful world as you try and outrun the law and see who can get the best game.

Final Remarks: The Best Hunting Video Games: Part 1

Free Blue Arcade Joystick Stock Photo

Via: pexels.com.

So many excellent hunting video games allow you to experience the thrill of pursuing game. You can do it from the comfort of your home in the lush open worlds of the wild west, as a dinosaur hunter, or as a virtual experience in the real world as you collect up all the trophies. Hunting games are brilliant.

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