It is the year 18…something. Years do not matter anymore. not since the Final Days. The Hunger has destroyed what is left of Napoleonic Europe, turning its victims into repulsive, zombie-like beings caused by the Bacterium virus. In these afflicted countries, one can only hope to survive. and finish missions. & unearth incredible riches. and flee to experience life once more. In Hunger, the upcoming game from the creators of Hell Let Loose, that is life.
A gloomy twist on the extraction shooter, Hunger will be available for PC early access in 2025. You may have already seen similarities between Hunt: Showdown and its debut trailer, which we recently exclusively unveiled. Both feature an earthy, grimy look that grounds their fantasy concepts in historical fact. However, Hunger differs greatly from many other extraction shooters you may have played in terms of mechanics.
Maximilian Rea, CEO of developer Good Fun Corporation, says, “We think players will probably feel that the most unique aspect of Hunger is our replacement of the usual gear progression gameplay loop with something more akin to an RPG like Skyrim or Cyberpunk 2077, where you build a character over time and specialize them towards a certain playstyle.”
A character (selected from a pool of heroes, each with their narrative) will be taken on a trip from level one to level 100 using Hunger’s progression mechanisms, where each milestone will unlock skills from several “Mastery trees.” Every one of them is focused on a specific specialty, such as combat, stealth, or teamwork-enhancing abilities. Rea explains, “We have discovered that they let players hone down on a certain style of play that ultimately keeps the experience fresh and allows for extremely extreme construct diversity.”
Rea talks about a wide range of interesting character builds and gameplay strategies, saying, “Some people will go after other players with a gun.” Some will set up an ambush and use cunning to surprise their adversaries with a headshot from an axe, or they will develop a persona as an escape artist. Others will spend most of their time breaking locks in an attempt to find the best stuff. Some players may only concentrate on questing, while others will pursue a career to earn money and create useful goods. Still, others will only be concerned with maintaining their group.
Players may already pick how to play each battle in a lot of extraction shooters, but Hunger’s goal of offering deeper specialization that changes over time gives its RPG systems a sense of depth beyond simple numerical attributes. Rea informs me that, especially when played alone, focusing solely on the covert Mastery tree changes the gameplay experience to something akin to the Thief games. I like how it sounds; in other extraction games, you can partially customize your playstyle to solo, competitive, or cooperative strategies with well-chosen gear, but it feels like Hunger’s prospective playstyles will be shaped by those vast character construction options.
Hunger’s most distinctive feature is how we replaced the standard gear
Although I am fascinated by stealth due to personal preferences, the trailer’s small gameplay clip promises huge, noisy firearms. That should come as no surprise given Rea and his group were known as Black Matter and made the gripping World War II shooter Hell Let Loose before founding Good Fun Corporation to produce Hunger. “Working on Hell Let Loose taught us a lot about crafting solid gunplay, with a focus on punchy animations, rewarding recoil, and powerful sound effects,” adds Rea. “We have built a new system while improving on what we have learned from our prior title, which will comfort fans.”
Hunger cannot profit from the chattering MG 42s that Hell Let Loose offers because the story takes place in the early 1800s. However, the project’s goal is not historical accuracy, thus the armament will be crazier than anything history has ever produced. There are a range of “experimental jury-rigged mechanical semi-automatics and automatics” in addition to simple flintlocks with slow reloads.
The main distinction between the team’s projects is that Hunger features a complete melee combat system that draws inspiration from titles like Mordhau and Chivalry. Rea states, “You will have a powerful and all-new combat system to learn when you shift from your rifle and draw your saber.” We are eager to demonstrate how melee combat will function in the future because players might be curious about how it will stack up against ranged weapons.
However, foes are necessary for battle to exist; weapons and mechanisms alone cannot make it complete. The hardest opponents in an extraction shooter are usually other players, but the Hunger stands in your way. Rea explains, “They range from the Brute—a blind monster that chases you around while clutching at the air—to the weaker, faster-moving, faster-attacking Waif that skitters across the floor like beetles.”
These non-player characters are more than just filler and a diversion from your primary goals. Rea emphasizes that “it is vital to realize that killing the Hunger rewards both experience and loot.” “Of course, you can choose not to get into battles, but we want to make sure there are incentives to do so.”
Hopefully, each Hunger variety will show to be a strong opponent, with unique strengths, weaknesses, and attack patterns. I am interested to see how an unexpected Brute might throw a wrench in an otherwise well-planned extraction. The finest extraction shooters employ their AI foes to add tension, terror, and stress to engagements.
