This game has the biggest split in reviews I've seen.
There's a huge paywall to really get into the game but that wall typically only comes if you like it enough to spend money on it. The free to play experience is fine to demo the game out plus signing up for an account nets you a three day membership. You won't get the full experience but you'll be able to preview the meat of the gameplay, which is what this game is all about.

If you don't have a lot of free time there is no gameplay whatsoever. However, if you're patient enough to just sit back and immerse yourself for a while with the occasional distraction, you'll find the deepest hunting game out there. It's pretty much just like real hunting. You walk to a good spot or find and track signs of an animal. Then you carefully set up a shot and shoot it. There's a thrill to findind a big buck, grizzly bear, or a huge flock of fowl coming your way. Shooting it is a challenge, and pulling off a clean kill is rewarding. Adding it to your ever-growing list of kills and trophy-shots is merely the aftertaste of a good hunt.

As for the pay to play element, if you like the demo but don't want to spend a ton of money then drop some cash on a basic membership, a universal gun, and some camo. Expect to spend about $30~40 dollars if you really like the experience and want to play a lot for a few months.

TL;DR, if you want authentic hunting, this is it. Also much much much better with friends in multiplayer.

This game has the biggest split in reviews I've seen. There's a huge paywall to really get into the game but that wall typically only comes if you like it enough to spend money on it. The free to play experience is fine to demo the game out plus signing up for an account nets you a three day membership. You won't get the full experience but you'll be able to preview the meat of the gameplay, which is what this game is all about. If you don't have a lot of free time there is no gameplay whatsoever. However, if you're patient enough to just sit back and immerse yourself for a while with the occasional distraction, you'll find the deepest hunting game out there. It's pretty much just like real hunting. You walk to a good spot or find and track signs of an animal. Then you carefully set up a shot and shoot it. There's a thrill to findind a big buck, grizzly bear, or a huge flock of fowl coming your way. Shooting it is a challenge, and pulling off a clean kill is rewarding. Adding it to your ever-growing list of kills and trophy-shots is merely the aftertaste of a good hunt. As for the pay to play element, if you like the demo but don't want to spend a ton of money then drop some cash on a basic membership, a universal gun, and some camo. Expect to spend about $30~40 dollars if you really like the experience and want to play a lot for a few months. TL;DR, if you want authentic hunting, this is it. Also much much much better with friends in multiplayer.