Previews// Hunted: The Demon's Forge

RPG protagonists can be so dull these days. So... heroic. It’s hard to believe that if you were but a poor farmer unknowingly blessed with the power to suppress an evil force, that you’d go on a quest to save the world out of the kindness of your heart. No reward. Not even a bonk with the kingdom’s princess.

So it’s refreshing to see the main characters of Hunted: The Demon’s Forge take something of a capitalist view on fantasy Samaritan work.

Elven bowmaster E’lara and uber-hench swordsman Caddoc are journeying through the corrupted wasteland of Kala Moor to investigate the disappearance of innocent townsfolk. But it’s all on the promise of riches beyond their wildest dreams - a promise made by the scantily-clad and highly sensual spirit Seraphin.

As the dynamic duo seek to slay the nasty orcs and beasts that have captured the land’s people, they’ll also be opening chests and solving puzzles to uncover a wealth of treasure and valuable equipment. Bethesda is calling Hunted “a third-person dungeon crawler with the intensity and action of a modern-day shooter,” and that’s evident the moment you start playing.

In single-player, you’re free to select either E’lara for long-range attacks or Caddoc for meaty close-up skull-smashing. From there, you trundle around initially narrow pathways of mountainside temples, highlighted with moss and other overgrown foliage. While the camera is positioned right behind your character while adventuring, aiming snaps the view to an over-the-shoulder position. Think Gears of War, in a decidedly Tolkien-esque universe.

At various points there will be structures that allow you to switch between the two main characters, which is handy if you’re on your tod. What Bethesda really wanted to showcase since I first saw the game a year ago was the co-operative multiplayer mode, which sees two players work together to tackle mythical beasts and creatures.

I was able to get a good idea as to now E’lara and Caddoc could work together to complete dungeons. In this new section of the game, Seraphin leads the pair to a castle… whose king happens to be the mysterious spirit’s father. With all the chaos that’s taking place in the land, the monarch is having a hard time fending off various beasts and creatures that keep harassing him.

My partner and I assume it’s something a bit meaner than Jehova’s Witnesses, so we travel down a mountainside and towards the kingdom, where we’re greeted by some rather insane-looking humans. The first job was to clear the area of any enemies, so one of us hopped on a catapult contraption to set up an explosive surprise while the other shot down crazies from afar for security.