Big Buck Hunter Pro - raw thrills

Developer:  Raw Thrills

Year:  2001

Genre:  Shooter / Hunting

Production:  7500

Game Play

Inspired by Duck Hunt, the game's goal is to shoot the male animals as they run across the screen. The round ends after a period of time when all the male animals are killed or if some get away. If a player shoots a female animal, they are out. Each scene will begin with a couple of animals walking without any suspicions. After a first shot is done, the animals will begin running and the hunt starts. Big Buck Hunter is separated in five screens, also known as "treks". A hunting sessions concludes in a bonus round. The players can either participate solo or one on one by using two plastic rifles. How much points will be earned depends on certain factors like distance, weight and accuracy. There are different states to choose from with a variety of animals, like antelope or moose. The hunting can be done in different conditions varying from fog to snow, with overall 16 bonus rounds. All of the Big Buck HD machines are networked so they can track the players' rankings through online leaderboards. Big Buck HD was the first edition to integrate Facebook and Twitter, which allows players to share and compare scores and awards via social networks.

Development

Big Buck Hunter's concept came from Play Mechanix founder George Petro. After the release of Midway's Invasion: The Abductors in 1999, Petro thought that hunting games were popular in homes but there was also a lack of those in arcades. He pitched the idea to the design team, and shortly after started developing the prototype, with Incredible Technologies handling the manufacture of the arcade machine. Incredible Technologies partnered with Play Mechanix to release the rest of the games until Call of the Wild in 2005. By 2006, the Big Buck Hunter series had sold around 7,500 units.

Needing financial support to make the next game in the series, Big Buck Hunter Pro, the developers contacted Raw Thrills in January 2006. As a part of the agreement, Play Mechanix continued to design the games, while Raw Thrills took over the production and distribution. In March 2008, Raw Thrills released Big Buck Safari, which introduced hunting in Africa, as well as trophy hunting, and included animals such as zebras, elephants, hippos, and other big animals. They released Open Season in November 2009, which added more animals to Pro. In November 2010, Big Buck World was released to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Big Buck Hunter. It combines Open Season and Safari into one cabinet.

In 2012, they released Big Buck HD, which combined elements from Pro and Safari and presented them in 1080p high-definition graphics, and added groundbreaking online features such as the ability to compete with players from other locations live, improved tournaments, and easier account creation. A Duck Dynasty-themed side game was added in 2013. In 2015, the update Big Buck HD Wild was released. The game added new animals in annual software updates through 2018, as well as a zombie-themed shooter side game.

The developers partnered with Anheuser-Busch InBev, offering a special permit that unlocks a special "Great White Buck" level. The money earned from purchases of those went to the National Forest Foundation to help preserving forests in the United States.

In 2020, Big Buck Hunter Reloaded was released. In addition to new animals, two new side games were introduced, including a sequel to the zombie game as well as a partial remake of Raw Thrills' previous arcade rail shooter Terminator: Salvation, which was released in 2010. And it also presented a brand new player interface to make it easy to navigate.