Big Buck Hunter
Arcade hunting game where accuracy and speed decide the score.
Big Buck Hunter is a hunting arcade game developed by Play Mechanix, in which players shoot male animals while avoiding females. The series began in 2000 with a single-gun platform and later introduced two-gun head-to-head play with Big Buck Hunter Pro in 2006.
Quick Facts
- Developer
- Play Mechanix
- Platforms
- Arcade
- iOS
- Wii
- Microsoft Windows
- PlayStation 4
- Xbox One
- Nintendo Switch
Facts from the source article.
Gameplay
Inspired by Duck Hunt, the goal is to shoot male animals as they run across the screen. A round ends when all males are killed or some escape; shooting a female animal ends the player's turn. Each scene begins with unsuspecting animals; after the first shot, they flee and the hunt begins. The game is divided into five screens called treks, concluding with a bonus round. Players can compete solo or one-on-one using two plastic rifles. Points depend on distance, weight, and accuracy. Different states offer animals such as antelope or moose, and conditions range from fog to snow. There are 16 bonus rounds. Big Buck HD machines are networked for online leaderboards, and that edition was the first to integrate Facebook and Twitter for sharing scores.
Tournaments
Cabinets connected to the CoinUp Network can host local and national tournaments; a 'Tournaments' button appears on the Game Selection Screen when a tournament is active. For Big Buck Hunter Pro & Safari, national tournaments ran monthly—Pro from the 7th to the 27th, Safari from the 1st to the 21st—until the end of 2012. National tournaments returned to Big Buck HD WILD in 2017 and 2018 on a weekly basis with monthly themes. Operators can set custom tournaments for Big Buck HD, Wild, and Reloaded via the CoinUp website, choosing prizes, cost, sites, and bonuses. A World Championship Tournament began in 2008, bringing 64 players from around the world into an elimination event. Regional qualifiers occur in August and September, with winners advancing to the World Championship held each fall in cities such as Chicago, New York City, Minneapolis, Austin, and Las Vegas. On November 10, 2012, the tournament took place at the Altman Building in New York City. Starting in 2013, players were no longer divided by region; instead they played five national tournaments, each themed to a specific animal for 2013 and 2014. Their ten best scores in each tournament determined leaderboard placement. The Ladies' Tourney, introduced in 2011, had its own qualifier. From 2015, qualifiers began as early as May with a new tournament unlocking each month, using random animals because Big Buck HD then had more than five animals. In 2016 and 2017, tournaments were again animal-themed, each featuring one or two animals. Australia and Canada also held national tournaments to determine their representatives.
Development
The concept came from Play Mechanix founder George Petro, who noticed that hunting games were popular at home but scarce in arcades after Midway's Invasion: The Abductors in 1999. He pitched the idea, and development of a prototype began, with Incredible Technologies manufacturing the arcade machine. Incredible Technologies partnered with Play Mechanix for releases until Call of the Wild in 2005. By 2006, the series had sold about 7,500 units. For Big Buck Hunter Pro, the developers contacted Raw Thrills in January 2006 for financial support; Play Mechanix continued designing while Raw Thrills handled production and distribution. Raw Thrills released Big Buck Safari in March 2008, introducing trophy hunting in Africa. Open Season followed in November 2009, adding more animals to Pro. Big Buck World, released in November 2010, combined Open Season and Safari into one cabinet. Big Buck HD arrived in 2012, merging elements from Pro and Safari with 1080p resolution and online connectivity for matchmaking and tournaments. A Duck Dynasty-themed side game was added in 2013. The Big Buck HD Wild update in 2015 added new animals through 2018 and a zombie-themed shooter side game. The developers partnered with Anheuser-Busch InBev for a special permit unlocking a 'Great White Buck' level, with proceeds donated to the National Forest Foundation. Big Buck Hunter Reloaded was released in 2020, adding new animals, interface changes, and two side games including a sequel to the zombie game and a partial remake of Raw Thrills' Terminator: Salvation.
Home releases
An iOS version of Big Buck Hunter Pro was released in 2009, followed by an iOS version of Big Buck Safari in 2011. Microsoft Studios released a Windows 8 port titled Big Buck Hunter Pro Adventure in 2013. GameMill Entertainment ported Big Buck HD Wild as Big Buck Hunter Arcade for Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One in 2016, and for Nintendo Switch in 2018. Play Mechanix partnered with Tastemakers LLC for an Arcade1Up version of Big Buck Hunter Pro in fall 2020. In 2023, Arcade1Up released Big Buck Hunter Pro Deluxe, including Hunter Pro, Pro Open Season, Safari, and Safari Outback.
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