Playing video games can be the antithesis of being outdoors. Spending too much time in front of the television is the very reason so many parents instill a love for the outdoors in their children. But then again the best hunting video games can be really fun.
Besides that, hunting games are a great way to experience hunting in Alaska or Africa but don’t have the funds to travel there. They can also be a way to satisfy the yearning for hunting when you’re injured or sick. But nobody should waste their time on bad titles so we selected the five best hunting video games.
The Hunter
There is a big difference between a game and a simulation, and Emote Games’ The Hunter is a simulation. Most hunters discard playing video games because they don’t resemble the real thing at all, but that cannot be said for this 2009 video game as the developers put a lot of attention to details.
The hunter must take care of his surrounding, landscape, wind direction and other necessities we’re familiar out of our experience in real life hunting. A pretty interesting addition to the game is the usage of ethical weapons, as you can’t shoot a rabbit with a shotgun. The expansion, The Hunter: Primal, came out in 2015, and as with the original, most people mind the in game hunting licenses, not much else.
Big Buck HD
For some of us holding a mouse while pretending to hunt is not going to do it, and unfortunately, handheld controllers are now only almost exclusively made for gaming platforms, not especially for different types of games. Fortunately, some old school arcade shooting games got an HD remake, one of them being the Big Buck, and it will take you down memory lane without a doubt.
As we said, it is an arcade game, so it might not be easy for everyone to try their hands on it, but we consider it a great buy for bars, pubs, and hunting-themed restaurants. Having this bad boy in your local hunters’ gathering home might be the right way to end some of those “who’s better” debates.
Cabela’s Big Game Hunter: Pro Hunts
Cabela’s just had to have a game on this list, and with this title, they really set the bar high, with the greatest and probably most unexpected feature in the inclusion of professional veteran hunters such as Jim Shockey, Wade Middleton, and Ralph and Vicki Cianciarulo. These pros are there to give you tips on how to step up your game, and their advice can surely be used in real life hunting too.
The graphics of the game are amazing, and you’ll sometimes get your head of the prey stalking mode, and end up just watch the stunning scenery of North America, which is your hunting ground in the campaign mode.
Deer Hunter 2014
Mobile video games are all the craze these past few years, and that trend didn’t miss the hunting genre, so even though we didn’t get an abundance of Android and iOS games, we can be satisfied with the quality of the Deer Hunter 2014. First of all, the game is free, and the platform for it is in your pocket, so you can always satisfy your desire for hunting wherever you are, at the doctors, in the subway, it doesn’t matter.
There is a wide variety of firearms, scopes, and gear to choose, and more than 100 species can be found in your crosshairs. The satisfaction of the bullet time is unexplainably pleasant and graphics surpass our expectations for a mobile game.
Bass Pro Shops: The Hunt
If you’re not able to play Big Buck HD but still don’t want to hold a mouse or a phone while you hunt virtually don’t despair as there is an at-home alternative for it – Bass Pro Shops: The Hunt. Available for Nintendo Wii and Xbox 360, it might be a good way to try to get your kids into hunting as the controller you get with the game looks undeniably cool.
The game offers mini-games inside of it, and there is a great mix of tracking,stealth movement, and shooting. While it has it flaws, Bass Pro Shops: The Hunt is a unique take on the hunting genre right now, it can help turn your living room into a hunting ground and have some fun with your family.
Don’t agree with us? What do you think the best hunting video games are?
