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DEER HUNTER 2
Manufacturer: Sunstorm Interactive (1998)
Price: $19.99
Genre: White-tail deer hunting simulation.
System Requirements:  Win95, Pentium 133 (P200 recommended), 16 MB RAM, 40 MB HD space, PCI video, Direct X compatible 3D accelerator card (recommended, but not required).

Deer Hunter 2 offers you a hunting experience unlike any currently on the market: full 3D environment (using Direct 3D), full movement in the hunting screen, a top-notch selection of gear and four hunting locations (each with 3 seasonal settings for a total of 12 different venues). The hunting locations are HUGE (over 49 miles of layout) making it a true challenge when tracking down bucks and signs. In such a large hunting area the new GPS unit is a big help. Deer Hunter 2 is now the game to beat in almost every category when it comes to deer hunting sims.

Deer Hunter 2 is a truly awesome hunting experience. It's much more challenging that it's predecessor- and I mean REALLY challenging!! It does take some time and work to locate both signs and deer- no more jumping about on the old map and setting up in a likely spot. Deer Hunter 2 works your deer behavior knowledge and deer hunting skills to the max! Putting you on ground level calls for some serious tracking and hunting strategy. However, it does get tedious at times- just like in real life. Just be careful not to doze off (which can happen during the slow periods).

The menus are set up much like the old game: choosing location, gear and weapons. However, there are some new twist: players can choose the season (pre-rut, rut, post-rut) and time of day for a location (which is critical when you have to choose your gear). New gear items include 3 deer calls, drip bags, doe decoys, camo gear and three scents. Player must also sight their chosen weapon before the hunt at the local target range- otherwise you may be wasting your time even taking a shot at a buck. The sighting profile is then saved for the player for future hunts. New weapons (outside of the compound bow, muzzle loader, shotgun, and sighted bolt-action rifle) include the .44 handgun (with sight), semi-auto shotgun (with slug ammo), lever action rifle, a traditional longbow and a sighted crossbow!

Now into the good stuff. The graphics are excellent- although the trees look very similar to those found in the first game. When walking about you can find tracks, scrapes, droppings- the gamut when it comes to deer signs. If you do take a shot at a buck (or doe, there are does in the game) be prepared to track the animal down- following tracks AND bloodtrails! Everything (except maybe the trees) looks dramatically improved. Like I said before- say hello the "monster buck" of the hunting sim woods. Gameplay is pretty standard but greatly improved with a full 3D environment and movement in any direction. The game even has a "walk and look" feature to allow players to look about (using the mouse) as you walk! Like Rocky Mountain Trophy Hunter, Deer Hunter 2 also offers varying weather conditions as well.

The deer AI is excellent- almost frustrating when compared to the original DH. By the way, the deer look AWESOME!! The whole environment is enough to give even the seasoned cyber-hunter "buck fever". Binoculars are another necessary and one can adjust the magnification just by right-clicking with the mouse. Be prepared to make tough decisions when it comes to gear- you only have room for six pieces of gear (the tree stand and decoy take up two spaces each) so gear up for the season/conditions. I've come to pass on the GPS and go for more useful gear (rattles, calls, etc.). The best strategy I've found is setting up the treestand with a drip bag and calling them in.

Deer Hunter 2 is probably the most challenging deer hunting game on the market- and one of the best looking. Buy it now before it sells out and be prepared for the toughest hunting experiences offered for the PC!!

THE SCOUTING REPORT

THE PROS:

• Excellent graphics!
  Awesome selection of weapons, gear and hunting locations.
  Ability to now move around in the hunting area in the the first person.
  Great deer AI.
  Does and bucks.

THE CONS:

• Somewhat clucky graphics engine (solved by patch).
  The need for a higher end PC in order to gain graphic effects.
  Can be frustrating at time- maybe a bit too realistic.

DEER HUNTER 2: EXTENDED SEASON
Manufacturer: Sunstorm Interactive (1999)
Price: $19.99
Genre: White-tail deer hunting simulation.
System Requirements:  Win95, Pentium 133 (P200 recommended), 16 MB RAM, 40 MB HD space, PCI video, Direct X compatible 3D accelerator card (recommended, but not required).

Just like the original Deer Hunter, Sunstorm has developed an extended season add-on. This updated incarnation of the original Extended Season is just as good, if not better, than it's predecessor.

Extended Season 2 updates Deer Hunter 2 to the latest patch and adds several new features to an already excellent game:

• Mule Deer! Now players can hunt for monster white-tails AND mulies.
• Four new southwestern hunting locations set in Texas.
• New, updated hunting locations featured in Deer Hunter 2.
• New weapons and gear including range-finder binoculars, scoped shotgun and a drivable ATV and truck!
• GeoMax terrain editor in order to allow players to design new hunting locations from scratch.
• A Deer Hunter 2 Strategy Guide which includes various tips and instruction on using the GeoMax editor.
• Doe tags to allow for legally harvesting does.

The pro and cons are pretty much the same to what I found in Deer Hunter 2 since Extended Season really doesn't radically change the game. What I did find is that overall game preformance was slightly improved after I uninstalled and reinstalled Deer Hunter 2 (minus all the patches) THEN installed Extended Season. I don't understand why this is- but the "clunkyness" is less noticeable now. Go figure.

Like the original Extended Season, this new version is a MUST HAVE for anyone owning Deer Hunter 2 or considering purchasing the game. Worth every dollar spent!