THE MAKING OF HUNTER
Swimming across shark-infested waters under the cover of night, you reach the shores of an enemy outpost. Commandeering a helicopter, you rise into the darkness and begin scattering bombs onto their satellite dishes. But then disaster strikes – a nearby gun turret has locked on. Swerving to avoid a barrage of homing missiles, you realise there’s no way out. Your new ride is going down in a ball of flames. Fortunately, the parachute you brought from the store earlier is still in your inventory. Sailing to safety as the chopper explodes, you slink into the shadows to die another day.
Such survival stories emerge readily on each new playthrough of Hunter. Released in 1991, it was preceded by many other videogames that gave players the freedom to explore large virtual worlds on their own terms, from Adventure to Elite and Zelda. But with fully 3D, third-person perspective graphics and mission-based gameplay, Hunter held its head high as a flag-bearer for a particular style of sandbox adventuring that would eventually become ubiquitous. Decades later, the game would draw comparisons with Grand Theft Auto III and among other free-roaming modern action titles. This achievement is made even more remarkable considering that the game design was entirely the work of a lone developer.
