Hunt: Showdown 1896 now has a date, as the Crytek open-world extraction shooter prepares to launch its fourth map. Consistently ranking among the most-played Steam games, Hunt: Showdown remains one of the most interesting shooters in the Escape from Tarkov mold thanks to its unique fantasy bayou setting. It still consistently pulls more than 20,000 concurrent players every day five years after launch, and now it's about to take a step forward into a new era, as we head to the mountainous peaks of Colorado.
Hunt: Showdown 1896 isn't a sequel, but rather the name for the next new chapter of Hunt: Showdown. The update's primary draw is its new map - the first in three years - but that's just the beginning of a much larger update. 1896 doesn't just move things forward a year in the story, but also advances the game to CryEngine 5.11. That means a big leap forward in visual fidelity, lighting, animation, and audio design for the open-world game, something that's immediately apparent when looking at the new map, Mammon's Gulch.
Marking Hunt's first step away from Louisiana and into the Colorado mountains, Crytek says Mammon's Gulch has been built "with community feedback in mind." It's a run-down mining area that comprises two mountainous regions separated by dark, winding mines and precarious train tracks.
There are 16 compounds to discover across the map, from ruined downs to railyards, foundries, lodges, and more, so expect to spend a long time learning all the ins and outs. "We received tons of feedback that players loved the verticality of DeSalle, so we brought even more of this to the new map," Crytek explains. "In fact, it has some of the highest elevation points in all our maps, so you'll be able to look out over compounds for enemy Hunters from above."
Hunt: Showdown 1896 arrives Thursday August 15 on Steam. Whether you're planning to jump in then, or are just curious to check the game out now, you can do so here.
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