Leaving the bolt-action boomsticks and the telescopic sights back at the cabin and opting for something a little more primitive - a handgun, shotgun, bow, or flintlock - is often the most rewarding way to play these games. Even with gun shake, bullet drop and other ballistic irritants modeled, hunting with scoped rifles can start to feel rather clinical after a while. With a crossbow or 19th century cavalry Colt in your hands you know youcan't justheart-shot every unsuspecting ungulate from half a mile away.
No, you have to carefully creep closer (staying downwind, naturally) or entice the quarry toward you with musky chemical attractants and alarmingly phallic calling devices. There’s something deliciously dastardly about luring something furry to its doom. Seeing a far-off stag stop and turn its head on hearing a fake doe call or a rattled pair of antlers makes our inner Wile E. Coyote chuckle every time. The glee would be even... umm... gleefuller if there was more skill involved. The chance of making an effective call is usually determined by an RPG-style stat rather than the outcome of an ingenious mini-game. We’re still waiting for the hunt sim that does something really inventive with sonic seduction.
10,000 glowing Steam reviews in, anime Stardew Valley-like Fields of Mistria reveals "major update" with, oh my goodness, mounts to ride around on
Stardew Valley creator ConcernedApe says he's "got way into Balatro" after designing collab art for the poker-themed roguelike, and it's like being "in a trance"
