Music

Hunted has a nice dark and moody soundtrack that matches the on-screen action spot on.

Voice

Caddoc sounds suitably gruff and E’lara is prim and prissy, with a petulant nature to her voice. They fit really well and it bucks the stereotypes usually found in games like Hunted. The rest of the cast, supported by the feline tones of Lucy Lawless as Seraphine do a nice job of their roles. There are a few over-used voice types that blend after a while similar to the problems found in Oblivion and Fallout 3, but again, it’s not a game breaker.

Dialgoue

The script to Hunted is a clichéd one, though the characters of E’lara and Caddoc are well written. It’s that very dialogue and their non-romantic relationship that drives the game forwards. They are good friends and it comes through in the way they act and react to each other. They have a Legolas and Gimli vibe going on and E’lara is always trying to outdo Caddoc, she’ll keep a tally after a fight for instance and you get the feeling that Caddoc just doesn’t care as long as the bad guys are dead.

Multiplayer

Hunted: The Demon’s Forge is a great cooperative experience and you can enjoy all of the modes: single player and Crucible with a friend. Setting up a match is easy on Xbox Live and you can also play Split Screen and System Link, which is nice change to see these days in the industry. More coop is needed and definitely more Split Screen to support those gamers who don’t have a connection to a friend via Live or System Link.

From reviving a downed comrade, working out cooperative based puzzles and fighting side by side Hunted nails the experience in that respect down to a T. The host can set up a fair few options and any conflicts between host and client are resolved randomly. So if you really want to play E’lara and so do they, the game will toss a virtual coin and decide who gets who.

Your multiplayer progress is saved onto your single player character and vice-a-versa.

Multiplayer (we played a lot of it) is smooth and there was only one case of de-synching after a few hours of play. For the most part it was extremely stable and a hell of a lot of fun.

Damnit Girl!

Hunted: The Demon’s Forge is one of those games that is really built to enjoy with a friend, the AI in single player is good enough to carry you through though and it’s a solid enough game. There are a few flaws which mar the experience but it’s worth checking out. The Crucible is the icing on the cake and provides a lot of hack and slash fun if you are looking for more outside of the main campaign.