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🎮️
GamingTranscript
00:00Welcome to Nez Perce Valley. This breathtaking hunting reserve in the heart of Idaho is home
00:08to a myriad of different game animals, big and small. Here we will first meet our protagonist,
00:15River Knox, who is, after 10 years, returning to his ill grandfather's hunting lodge, Bear Den
00:22Ranch, to help him out with work at the reserve while he's recovering. The way of the hunter,
00:28Wild America, is at its core an open-world hunting simulation that emphasizes realism and immersion.
00:38And while there are no restrictions, and you're free to explore the entire reserve at your own pace,
00:44the story around River and his friends and family is seamlessly interwoven with your hunting trips.
00:51You will meet many of River's old friends, as well as some new ones, but not everyone is equally eager
00:56to welcome him back to Nez Perce Valley. Who the hell are you? Like many beautiful places,
01:03it harbors a few gloomy secrets that River must uncover to set the record straight.
01:09Then I changed something for all three of us. Whether you're filling restaurant's orders of game meat,
01:14or harvesting the highest quality trophies to fill your hunting lodge with taxidermy art, the thrill of
01:20the hunt is ever-present. You have a vast array of equipment and skills at your disposal to
01:27successfully stalk, kill, and harvest game across swamps, forests, and mountain regions.
01:34First and foremost is your top-of-the-line hunting gear. Use the money you earn hunting to buy various
01:40rifles, shotguns, bows, and crossbows. Each weapon is categorized within a tier system that helps you
01:48identify which animals it is suitable for hunting. You'll want a much bigger projectile for hunting
01:54moose than badgers or small deer. Otherwise, you'll leave the animal injured but alive,
02:01which is both ineffective and highly unethical. Pair your weapon with premium optics to hit your mark
02:07at any range, and use other equipment such as collars, mobile stands, and binoculars to your advantage.
02:14Way of the Hunter, Wild America, features world-renowned brands such as Remington Steer, Leupold,
02:22Bushnell, and Primos. To visualize an experienced hunter's view of the world, we added a few
02:30accessibility features. First and foremost is a mechanic we call Hunter Sense. On foot, it will highlight
02:39animal tracks, droppings, and need zones, as well as, after the hunt, blood trails, and harvestable
02:46animals themselves. Hunter Sense will also help you identify animals' gender, age, trophy value,
02:54and more by looking at them through a pair of binoculars. Additionally, it will help you gauge the
03:00distance of a shot you're about to take and indicate where said shot will land. Thus, it is a great help to
03:07get you started on your hunting journey, regardless of your experience level. A secondary but also very
03:14powerful tool is the Animal Sound Visualizer. It indicates where an animal's call is coming from,
03:20and helps you recognize the animal's emotional state and distance.
03:28As a realism-driven hunting simulation, you'd expect Way of the Hunter, Wild America, to boast
03:34lifelike animal behavior and game mechanics. And you'd be absolutely right. Animals will, of course,
03:41react to the player's presence. Most of the time, they will flee once they pick up a scent,
03:47or see or hear something unusual. But that's just the tip of the iceberg. All animals have a life cycle
03:54and a trophy rating, which are interlinked in many ways. Generally speaking, the larger an animal gets,
04:01the better its trophy rating, and therefore its value. Age is an essential factor in size, so you
04:07can expect to harvest the best trophies from mature animals, while young animals will usually be smaller
04:14and less valuable. But since age isn't the only factor in determining how large an animal can grow,
04:20Way of the Hunter, Wild America, simulates every single animal's fitness rating. The higher this rating,
04:27the better the chance that a deer will develop magnificent antlers, or that a bear will become
04:33a huge hulking creature over time. The fitness rating of any given herd or group of animals
04:40also affects their offspring's fitness level. That means culling weak animals from a herd will not yield
04:47great profit immediately, but will positively impact the herd's future value, because only the fitter
04:53animals remain to mate and breed, leading to fitter young animals that will grow into stronger adult
04:59and mature states. Animals seek out their individual need zones at relatively steady time frames. Most
05:06animals need to eat, drink, and rest, and they usually return to the same few spots they're familiar with.
05:13Some, like hares and badgers, don't travel very far, and most of their need zones will be within a
05:19particular area. But others, like wolves or waterfowl, will travel vast distances to reach their preferred
05:26need zones. Every group of animals is continually simulated. This means you can always find the same
05:33animals again, if you know where to look. However, if you hunt them at one of their favorite spots,
05:40don't expect them to return anytime soon. They will eventually, but you might need to lay low for a
05:46couple of days and set out for new hunting grounds in the meantime. These were some of the impressions
05:53and mechanics awaiting you in Way of the Hunter Wild America. Stay tuned for more and good hunting.