TheHunter Classic is actually Free to Play

TheHunter Classic has been around for a while. I wouldn't say that I have been playing it since the beginning because I don't know that for a fact. I will however say that I have been on it since before the graphics were any good and the guns, bows and species options were limited. I have not been a member all this time, I would usually purchase a subscription for 3-6 months each year and then take a break from it for an undetermined amount of time. what has always brought be back to it is that the developers have never stopped working on improvements and additions to the game play. A rare feature in today's gaming marketplace.

I would be the first to tell you that theHunter can be a bit of a money pit. There is a literal ton of equipment available for hunters to purchase. Each has its purpose, making parts of the game hard or impossible to enjoy without coughing up some dough. However, I have recently returned to the game after a long hiatus and the first thing I noticed is the changes that have been made to make the experience more accessible for new players, including the removal of the subscription program and the increased ability to use earned in-game currency (gms) to purchase new weapons and equipment rather than the constant need to purchase with real cash (ems).

Any veteran of the game will know how these changes have overhauled the game but I thought I would take a few minutes to outline their significance for newer players.

TheHunter has always been a "free game" but anyone who's played it will know that term was used loosely. In the past, the free version of the game started you out with the ability to hunt 3 free species and provided you some starting gear: a rifle, a shotgun, binoculars, and a doe call (let me know in the comments if I'm missing something). which seems adequate until you realize how hard it can be to hunt anything without the proper callers or gear. Making the game feel more like a forest walking simulator than a hunting simulator.
A quick trip to the store page is a shock when you see how much some of the gear can cost to acquire. This, I believe is where TheHunter struggled to keep it's player base up. The removal of the subscription service itself does not eliminate this issue but paired with changes to the store makes playing for free not only possible but in my opinion fun and exciting.

Once upon a time, gms were only good to buy ammo (non subscription), and consumables such as climbing gear, scent eliminator etc. Now they can be used to purchase anything in the store with the exception of bundled items. and can be earned by selling animals you have harvested This is a game changer for new players. Although it will not make the first hours any easier for you, there are missions for everything and they all pay out gms. Once you have completed some missions you will be able to afford to buy a new caller which will make completing other missions easier and so on. It will give you the chance to enjoy the game before you decide spend your hard earned money rather than it being a prerequisite.

I am not going to go into much detail right now about how to progress through the game, only to say that your should start with the deer missions (there are several species) and avoid purchases any new weapons or camouflage until you have acquired some callers. Camouflage is season specific so wearing summer forest camouflage in a field, during the fall is no better than the default t-shirt and pants. So hold off until you have disposable funds. I find scent eliminator to be a helpful but many disagree with me so I will leave that up to you.

My 3 tips for beginners are as follows

1. Be still. If you suspect something is close, use your caller. Without Camouflage , you are visible and you smell so getting an animal to approach close enough to hit with a shotgun can be hard enough without you moving around and making noise.
2. Be stingy with how you spend any early game gms, don't get distracted with weapons. You can hunt all species using your shotgun and most of them with the rifle you start with. My suggestion is to purchase callers to make completing more missions easier. With time you will earn enough to upgrade your arsenal. Check the store page to see what can or can't be hunted with each weapon.
   
3. Join multiplayer servers with experienced players and ask for help. I have had many new players do this to me and I welcome it. Often times a mission will require you to harvest a species using a specific gun or ammo. You don't need to shoot this yourself only harvest it. So I can shoot it and you could harvest it; mission complete. Just remember, these people don't need to help you so be respectful and ask nicely.
   
   Bonus tip: Don't run out of ammo

I hope this will help new players get past the first few hurdles and into the excitement that is TheHunter Classic. I will follow this post up with some more specifics on how I would get started in the game, some instruction on where to find concentrations of different species and anything else I can think of sharing. Let me know in the comments if you have any questions about what I have said or a suggestion for a topic you would like me to cover

Add me on TheHunter IGN is "Rezlems" or join my multiplayer games anytime, server name is "Rezlems Live 2 Hunt".
Stay sneaky and I hope to see you out there.