Amidst the stellar line-up emerging from Bethesda Softworks this year, you could be forgiven for overlooking InXile's Hunted: The Demon Forge, but you'd be remiss to ignore it.



Described as an old-school-inspired dungeon-crawler that marries Gears of War third-person cover mechanics with a successful co-op component, Hunted has plenty to offer the discerning fan of any of the above. We can't lie; at the stage we most recently saw it out at Bethesda's BFG 2011 event it was looking a little rough around the edges, and there were balance issues with a lot of the enemies we encountered. But there's a deeper growth element to micro-managing your characters than we could fully explore in the allotted time of an event demo, and there's also no telling how far along the game is internally over the demo on offer, but we're definitely intrigued.

What we do know about the game thus far is that it's an all-action RPG-lite adventure that stars two unlikely characters who share palpable sexual tension. They're uncouth and lack the general heroic flair of the types of protagonists who usually carry these games, but this makes them far more engaging. They're flawed individuals who don't simply take their task at-hand with the usual grain of salt or as fate, but rather comment in ire or irony at what's taking place around them. As a result, they're a greater extension of the player, and therefore much more immersive as vessels, for us, than most who've come before.

We know that players will be able to swap between Caddoc and Elara at various points throughout levels, so as to allow for an expanded sense of gameplay given each of their different play-styles. And we also know that at these points, you'll be able to spend in-game currency on skills, abilities and magic. It's all very formulaic, in foundation, but the game doesn't force you to do this, a problem I faced while playing with fellow Aussie, Kreese, in co-op at our event. We're not exactly sure why the game didn't push us to explore the ability-trees, but once we delved into it, the game's uber-crushing challenge let-up measurably, making for a far more satisfying romp, though this wasn't the end of our troubles.



We also know that the game, in typical dungeon-crawling and third-person action fashion, carries with it myriad enemy-types so you never get bored, all of which are tired in different reactive play-styles. Certain enemies will require a combination of Elara's magic and Caddoc's brute force, while others will need to be taken down from afar with Elara's ranged abilities. Brutes will unceremoniously need Caddoc's melee attacks while grunts can be taken down in any way you see fit. However, there's an issue with in-game markers regarding enemy-bashing progress. This came up first when Kreese and I were tackling spirit, witchy types who took an absolute pounding. We died several times, even after buffing one another, because after a massive slaw of weapon slashes and arrows sent flying, it just didn't feel like we were making a dent. This led us to explore the immediate area for a special weapon to tackle them, or some kind of trigger for an event or trap. But, it turns out our first instinct was on the money and all we needed to do was attack, attack, attack.

Not knowing just how far into their health we were was problematic, and so we're hoping this is broached as part of the game's final HUD or with some form of in-game marker.

Hunted: The Demon's Forge isn't all just about combat though, and we know there's a heady amount of puzzle-solving and side-questing to get stuck into. And what sort of dungeon-crawler would it be without loot? We now know there's plenty of that, and it's in much of this you'll find the right sort of buffs or health potions (among much more) to even the enemy spam playing field, which can definitely come in as overwhelming. Again though, dealing with such hordes is par for the course in a game such as this, which is an in-game prompt for the exploration of character micro-management - we just want it to be a little clearer in the final product.



The final piece of the Hunted: The Demon's Forge puzzle comes with a dungeon map generator known as Crucible. Crucible allows for random map generation, or creation on your own part utilising specific tools. It's not overtly in-depth, but the basic tool-set will allow for an absolutely huge amount of variation with each dungeon you create and you'll also be able to upoload your favourites for others to play. The aforementioned looting comes in handy here too, as any Gold you collect in the single-player game can be used for the Crucible mode, unlocking more features for you to play with.

The basic premise allows you to craft a dungeon with your own set number of stages. Each stage can then be shaped by you in the way of theme, load-outs, pick-ups, enemy-types, how many enemies swarm, and what character modifications you want, and where to put them. Of course, you can randomise all of this if you so choose, but where's the fun in that? Think of it as 'Horde Mode' with a creative twist; putting said creative in your hands. And with the layers of depth in the way of how many enemies you want pounding you per stage, and how the game slowly dishes them out to you (they don't all come out at once, but rather in challenging sequence), you could be playing through these modes for a very, very long time, or, no time at all - it's entirely up to you. (For more on Crucible, you might want to check this video here).

It might not be the flashiest looking game coming out of the Bethesda gates this year, but Hunted: The Demon's Forge might very well end up being the little game that could. It has great characters (one of which is voiced by Lucy Lawless ) with great dialogue, and marries two very different gameplay-styles together successfully. Co-op is a lot of fun to play through, while the meat of the game isn't all there is to the game; with plenty on the side to keep you exploring for "12 to 20-hours", depending on your play-style. Add to this the dungeon looting component and the in-game rewards attached with more on offer in the tantalising Crucible mode, and Hunted might just tide you over until the Holiday release slaw.