I'm playing Hunt since January 2023. Although this time has had its ups and downs related to the game's development, from my perspective, Hunt has steadily worsened over the last 6-12 months, particularly in terms of its code of conduct and technical state.

The current state of the game and its vicious development cycle have started to really piss me off. I can't accept that such a great game conceptually suffers from poor design decisions, a near non-existent QA process, bad management, prioritizing consoles (as seen with the new "UI"), and numerous other issues that have plagued Hunt for years.

I love Hunt for its gunfights, its aesthetics, its variety, and all the great memories I've had playing it. But I can't turn a blind eye to the game's technical state and other nonsense.

Did the Hunt 1896 upgrade make the game significantly better? I strongly doubt it. In my opinion, it introduced more negative than positive changes. Hunt 1896 combines the worst of both worlds: long-standing issues from the old Hunt bundled with new bugs and poor optimization, while also missing content from the original version (such as the exploration mode in trials, weather conditions, two maps, etcI).

Yes, I think Map 4 is amazing (despite some parts), the weapon changes are decent and viable, and the mini-boss is well-executed. I also like the medium ammo buff and other changes. So, I acknowledge there are some positive and noticeable changes — but what's the cost?

Performance issues: Frequent frame drops and overall poor optimization. For example, with my Ryzen 2700X/RTX 4060, I often experience 52-55 FPS in 1080p on the downgraded Stillwater Bayou version, even on low+ settings. And somehow, the devs consider a Ryzen 2700 (non-X) and RTX 2060 Super to be the recommended setup — excuse me, recommended for what?

Here are some other changes and problems:

• Finally, a limited number of necro uses after two years of solo disaster/team spam. Keep it up, Crytek.
  
• Unknown user interface.
  
• New UI brings new bugs — what a surprise.
  
• VRAM leaks and other GPU-related problems.
  
• Amusingly, the version of DLSS is already outdated upon launch.
  
• New (or returning) bugs, visual glitches, and gameplay issues.
  
• Auto-move bug, UI design issues, and other problems remain unfixed over a month after the upgrade — are you serious?
  
• You can’t see your equipment after switching briefly.
  
• Mediocre event and just okay weapon variants. This event is pretty "meh" for me. I also dislike the Egypt-themed cosmetics, which don't fit Hunt's vibe. What's next — Tinky Winky themed skins?
  
• I like the burning mechanic change, but it needs more polishing and should be a bit slower.

I'm disappointed with the rework of Stillwater Bayou. For some reason, it performs worse than Mammon’s Gulch. How? Many compounds with 3-4 entrances remain unchanged, and they've added so much unnecessary visual noise to the map. Enjoy the abundance of di... I mean, mushrooms, of course.

Even as a "live service," Hunt fails to deliver a quality experience to its player base. Most of the time, critical additions, fixes, and balance changes take far too long. Usually, we get a "hotfix" after a month (if we're lucky). I have no idea why Crytek avoids pushing fixes or reverting changes during events.

• Matchmaking isn’t transparent and has been doing some crazy things lately.
  
• Lack of in-game statistics: matchmaking history (at least for your 20-50 recent games), damage history from previous matches, match events (hunter loadouts, bounty pickup time, kill feed, spawn points, extraction time and place, etc.). FFS, even just simple text would work — I'm not even asking for 2D/3D replays!
  
• Honestly, there haven't been enough additions to the PvE component of the game.
  
• Frequent connection and server issues.
  
• Reconnects still don’t work properly.
  
• 800ms trade window :)
  
• You can’t invite two friends at the same time, nor can you find a random as a premade duo.
  
• External software usage and the report system are a pain.

Some long-term issues I'd love to see fixed:

• The painfully slow development cycle and lack of hotfixes.
  
• Clothes clipping through walls and floors, allowing enemies to easily spot and kill you (especially when crouching or downed).
  
• Throwing weapons disappearing after killing AI.
  
• Bear traps placed underground or inside logs, making them impossible to see without a specific trait.
  
• Missing enemy footsteps in front of you, probably related to overlapping sounds that the engine can’t handle properly (just a guess).
  
• And all the issues mentioned and not mentioned above, such as broken traps and etc.

For sure, you can still have fun with Hunt (as I do from time to time), because its core mechanics are quite unique and interesting. But from a technical and live service perspective, it leaves much to be desired. The devs really need to address these core issues, prioritize quality and QA, and start communicating more openly with the player base. And I hope devs finally make efforts to achieve that things.

No, I can’t recommend Hunt in its current state. Maybe in the future, but not for now.

I'm playing Hunt since January 2023. Although this time has had its ups and downs related to the game's development, from my perspective, Hunt has steadily worsened over the last 6-12 months, particularly in terms of its code of conduct and technical state. The current state of the game and its vicious development cycle have started to really piss me off. I can't accept that such a great game conceptually suffers from poor design decisions, a near non-existent QA process, bad management, prioritizing consoles (as seen with the new "UI"), and numerous other issues that have plagued Hunt for years. I love Hunt for its gunfights, its aesthetics, its variety, and all the great memories I've had playing it. But I can't turn a blind eye to the game's technical state and other nonsense. Did the Hunt 1896 upgrade make the game significantly better? I strongly doubt it. In my opinion, it introduced more negative than positive changes. Hunt 1896 combines the worst of both worlds: long-standing issues from the old Hunt bundled with new bugs and poor optimization, while also missing content from the original version (such as the exploration mode in trials, weather conditions, two maps, etcI). Yes, I think Map 4 is amazing (despite some parts), the weapon changes are decent and viable, and the mini-boss is well-executed. I also like the medium ammo buff and other changes. So, I acknowledge there are some positive and noticeable changes — but what's the cost? Performance issues: Frequent frame drops and overall poor optimization. For example, with my Ryzen 2700X/RTX 4060, I often experience 52-55 FPS in 1080p on the downgraded Stillwater Bayou version, even on low+ settings. And somehow, the devs consider a Ryzen 2700 (non-X) and RTX 2060 Super to be the recommended setup — excuse me, recommended for what? Here are some other changes and problems: [list] [*] Finally, a limited number of necro uses after two years of solo disaster/team spam. Keep it up, Crytek. [*] Unknown user interface. [*] New UI brings new bugs — what a surprise. [*] VRAM leaks and other GPU-related problems. [*] Amusingly, the version of DLSS is already outdated upon launch. [*] New (or returning) bugs, visual glitches, and gameplay issues. [*] Auto-move bug, UI design issues, and other problems remain unfixed over a month after the upgrade — are you serious? [*] You can’t see your equipment after switching briefly. [*] Mediocre event and just okay weapon variants. This event is pretty "meh" for me. I also dislike the Egypt-themed cosmetics, which don't fit Hunt's vibe. What's next — Tinky Winky themed skins? [*] I like the burning mechanic change, but it needs more polishing and should be a bit slower. [/list] I'm disappointed with the rework of Stillwater Bayou. For some reason, it performs worse than Mammon’s Gulch. How? Many compounds with 3-4 entrances remain unchanged, and they've added so much unnecessary visual noise to the map. Enjoy the abundance of di... I mean, mushrooms, of course. Even as a "live service," Hunt fails to deliver a quality experience to its player base. Most of the time, critical additions, fixes, and balance changes take far too long. Usually, we get a "hotfix" after a month (if we're lucky). I have no idea why Crytek avoids pushing fixes or reverting changes during events. [list] [*] Matchmaking isn’t transparent and has been doing some crazy things lately. [*] Lack of in-game statistics: matchmaking history (at least for your 20-50 recent games), damage history from previous matches, match events (hunter loadouts, bounty pickup time, kill feed, spawn points, extraction time and place, etc.). FFS, even just simple text would work — I'm not even asking for 2D/3D replays! [*] Honestly, there haven't been enough additions to the PvE component of the game. [*] Frequent connection and server issues. [*] Reconnects still don’t work properly. [*] 800ms trade window :) [*] You can’t invite two friends at the same time, nor can you find a random as a premade duo. [*] External software usage and the report system are a pain. [/list] Some long-term issues I'd love to see fixed: [list] [*] The painfully slow development cycle and lack of hotfixes. [*] Clothes clipping through walls and floors, allowing enemies to easily spot and kill you (especially when crouching or downed). [*] Throwing weapons disappearing after killing AI. [*] Bear traps placed underground or inside logs, making them impossible to see without a specific trait. [*] Missing enemy footsteps in front of you, probably related to overlapping sounds that the engine can’t handle properly (just a guess). [*] And all the issues mentioned and not mentioned above, such as broken traps and etc. [/list] For sure, you can still have fun with Hunt (as I do from time to time), because its core mechanics are quite unique and interesting. But from a technical and live service perspective, it leaves much to be desired. The devs really need to address these core issues, prioritize quality and QA, and start communicating more openly with the player base. And I hope devs finally make efforts to achieve that things. No, I can’t recommend Hunt in its current state. Maybe in the future, but not for now.