80I love the smell of gunpowder in the morning.

However, my days of outdoor hunting are over, thanks to Hands-On Mobile’s release of 3D Hunting Trophy Whitetail Championship 2009 for the iPhone.

Hunting
MFORMA
March 2009

Sure, I’ll miss the smells, tastes, and adrenaline rush of actually hunting. But now that I can stalk bucks from the comfort from my own home, office, or anywhere that I take my iPhone, I think I’ll live.

3D Hunting, a franchise that has already sold millions of units, has successfully breached the mobile gaming scene with their offering of this deer hunting title. The impressive graphics, diverse weapon repertoire and easy gameplay makes this game a good offering at the App Store; however, is it worth the price?

The first thing you notice when playing 3D Hunting is the incredibly clear and sharp visuals. From the menus to the hunting action itself, 3D Hunting’s clean graphics are some of the best available among iPhone applications. The animal models look especially impressive. For comparison’s sake, 3D Hunting has PS1/N64 quality graphics. Now, this may not seem impressive, but consider the following points:

  1. The iPhone was not made to be a gaming device
  2. N64 might be one of the greatest systems of all time (See: Super Smash Brothers, Golden Eye, Mario Kart)

3D Hunting has two different hunting modes. The first mode is simply called Hunt. In Hunt, you have pretty much unlimited time to shoot critters in a pretty much infinitely large environment. This is where you practice your aiming and other hunting skills.

The second hunting mode is called Action Hunt. This mode is the campaign version of the game. After you’ve mastered your skills, you can now put them to the test by traveling to different areas and hunting various game.

Controlling your hunter is pretty straightforward. The buttons for movement are found in the bottom corners of the screen. In the left corner you will find your forward, backward, and side-to-side motion buttons. On the right: your look up, down, and side-to-side buttons. At times, controlling your hunter with these controls feels unnatural and delayed, but it works. This is not a game in which you would want to use an accelerometer. Firing involves tapping a small target button which is also found on the bottom right of your screen.

You will also find more buttons on the top of your screen. These are some extra functions that one wouldn’t expect to find in a mobile hunting game. Some of these functions are the use of a scope, the use of a call, the use of scents and the use of binoculars. Each of these options come in handy during your expeditions and really go above and beyond mobile hunting expectations.

Another great aspect of 3D Hunting is the Trophy Room. Head here to find your archived collection of your best kills throughout the game. Each entry has a rotating, fully intact version of your trophies for your viewing.

However, like most games, 3D Hunting can be a little rough around the edges.

First, if you’ve read any of my prior reviews, you will know that I believe in-game crashing is a very negative thing. For 3D Hunting, things are no different. I have to give 3D Hunting a break because of how complex the game’s graphics are, but there is still a significant amount of crashing that happens in this game. Luckily, Hands-On will be releasing an update for this game which should help with this issue. Also, like with any app you download from the App Store, be sure to restart your iPhone to ensure the highest quality experience.

Is 3D hunting a perfect game? Clearly, no. Is it even the best iPhone game I’ve played? No, probably not. Still, 3D Hunting brings one of the best available mobile hunting experiences. The price is right at a cool $.99. It’s worth a try for hunting and gaming enthusiasts alike.

About The Author

Chase Gharrity is a Blast Games correspondent.

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