Duck Season

85%
Game Brain Score Based on 1,311 reviews
  • story
  • gameplay
  • graphics
Duck Season Game Cover
Starting at $19.99Buy now
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Duck Season is a horror-themed game set in the 1980s, where you play a newly rented game for the Kingbit Entertainment System. The game offers seven unique endings, seven mini-games, and hidden secrets, creating a unique and immersive experience. With realistic virtual environments, VHS tapes, and mysterious subplots, this game will keep you engaged and intrigued.

  • PC
  • Virtual Reality
  • Windows
  • Oculus Rift
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

85%
Audience ScoreBased on 1,311 reviews
story81 positive mentions
grinding15 negative mentions
  • Duck Season is a well-polished title with engaging gameplay and a nostalgic atmosphere that captures the essence of the 80s.
  • The game features a high level of interactivity, allowing players to explore and interact with nearly everything in the living room, including impressive details like magazines and VHS tapes.
  • The horror elements are effectively integrated into the gameplay, providing unexpected twists that enhance the overall experience.
  • The shotgun reloading mechanic can be finicky and frustrating, leading to moments where players struggle to reload during intense gameplay.
  • The core gameplay loop of shooting ducks can become repetitive, especially when trying to unlock all endings, which requires replaying the same segments multiple times.
  • Some players experienced technical issues, such as crashes or tracking problems, particularly with certain VR controllers like the Valve Index.
  • story267 mentions

    The game's story is widely praised for its depth and atmosphere, featuring a dark and intriguing narrative that unfolds through multiple playthroughs, with seven different endings to discover. Players appreciate the blend of nostalgia and horror, as well as the immersive storytelling that enhances the VR experience, despite some criticism regarding repetitive gameplay and control issues. Overall, the story is considered a standout element, making the game a compelling choice for those seeking a narrative-driven VR experience.

    • “The game amazes with its atmosphere and deep story.”
    • “The story ties in to the devs' next two games and is one of the most intriguing stories I've seen in a long time.”
    • “The story is well written with just enough hidden lore to keep you intrigued.”
    • “The horror portions of this supposed horror game are extremely short and sparse, and nothing of note happens during the first six levels of duck hunt that you play, nor does anything you do in those six levels affect the story, meaning you are forced to trudge through a half hour of mundane, boring VR duck hunt every time you want to try for a different ending.”
    • “The story is fairly short and simple but there are lots of different ways for it to play out.”
    • “The story line outside of the game within a game progresses with twists and surprises but it is a lot of boring duck shooting to get to those points.”
  • gameplay186 mentions

    The gameplay of Duck Season is a mix of nostalgia and VR mechanics, primarily revolving around shooting ducks, which many players find repetitive over time. While the shotgun mechanics are praised for their realism and satisfaction, the reload system can be finicky, leading to frustration during intense moments. Overall, the game offers engaging elements and multiple endings, but its core loop may not sustain long-term interest for all players.

    • “The gameplay itself is challenging and varied.”
    • “The mechanics are great, and it feels satisfying to pump and reload the shotgun.”
    • “Duck season combines finely polished duck hunting gameplay with a touch of nostalgia to enhance the virtual experience.”
    • “The core gameplay is incredibly repetitive, and I would have loved some more modes, but it's a nostalgia bomb wrapped in weirdness and overall I thought it was cool.”
    • “The actual gameplay, in which you shoot ducks, is so repetitive it's mind-numbing by the third time you do it.”
    • “My one big complaint is that for as much of the gameplay as the duck hunt portions take up, not much is done to keep them fresh.”
  • graphics78 mentions

    The graphics of the game have received widespread acclaim, with many reviewers highlighting their superb quality, detailed environments, and immersive 80s aesthetic. Players appreciate the combination of beautiful visuals and engaging gameplay, noting that the graphics enhance the overall experience, particularly in VR. While some mention minor issues with performance on lower-end hardware, the consensus is that the graphics are a standout feature that significantly contributes to the game's appeal.

    • “The graphics are genuinely quite good, and the gameplay is very complete; it's worth the money spent to play it.”
    • “The game's graphics are impressive, with detailed environments and realistic character models that bring the game's world to life.”
    • “The graphics are gorgeous, the sound and atmosphere are perfect.”
    • “The idea of this game and graphics are nice, but this just feels terrible.”
    • “Most of the horror games on VR are just cheap jump scares with terrible graphics.”
    • “Yes, the graphics are great, but it is just plain boring.”
  • replayability51 mentions

    Duck Season offers significant replayability due to its multiple endings (seven in total), hidden secrets, and engaging minigames, encouraging players to explore different paths and experiences. While the main campaign is relatively short, the variety of gameplay elements and the option to revisit specific segments enhance its replay value. Overall, players find it a worthwhile investment for its immersive and nostalgic experience, despite some noting that the gameplay can become repetitive over time.

    • “The game also has multiple endings, which adds to its replayability and encourages players to explore different paths.”
    • “With 7 different endings, lots of mini-games, and Easter eggs to find, there's a lot of replayability.”
    • “The thrill of the story and the replayability of the different endings make this game well worth it.”
    • “It isn't a very long campaign, but with the multiple endings (that I've only just found out about), it has replay value for sure.”
    • “It's a bit low at $22 and the replayability is null.”
    • “There is some replay value, but for $20 you're getting something that can be completed in about an hour.”
  • humor48 mentions

    The humor in "Duck Season" is a standout feature, blending nostalgia with clever, often dark comedic elements that resonate with players. Many reviews highlight the game's ability to evoke laughter through its quirky design, hilarious mini-games, and unexpected surprises, while also maintaining a spooky atmosphere. Overall, the game is praised for its entertaining mix of humor and horror, making it a memorable experience for those familiar with the original Duck Hunt.

    • “This is a fun and spooky way to relive some nostalgia, and let's be honest, we all wanted to shoot that dog at some point for laughing at us, lol.”
    • “The sense of humor and easter eggs are worth it alone... and the duck hunting is good times, and the aim and reload mechanics work just fine.”
    • “Duck season is fun, humorous, and terrifying at the same time.”
  • atmosphere46 mentions

    The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its immersive and nostalgic qualities, effectively capturing the essence of the 80s and early 90s through detailed graphics, sound design, and engaging environments. Reviewers highlight the successful blend of nostalgia and horror, creating a surreal experience that resonates with players, even those unfamiliar with the era. Overall, the atmosphere is considered a standout feature, elevating the gameplay and making it a memorable experience.

    • “The visual style perfectly captures the 80s atmosphere, with detailed environments and smooth animations.”
    • “All of this combined together creates such an immersive atmosphere that it really does start to feel like the real life of a 10-year-old.”
    • “Great atmosphere, great graphics and excellent sound design together make this a worthwhile experience.”
    • “Interesting mix of nostalgia and horror, that has mediocre gameplay, but really one of a kind atmosphere.”
    • “Playing it in VR actually made me fear even though you know it's fake just by the atmosphere.”
    • “First and foremost, the atmosphere is so well done.”
  • music23 mentions

    The game's music has been widely praised for its nostalgic and immersive qualities, featuring a well-crafted soundtrack that blends synthwave and 80s-inspired tunes, enhancing the overall gaming experience. Players appreciate the catchy and fitting compositions, particularly during minigames and boss fights, although some find the repetitive nature of certain tracks can become tiresome over time. Overall, the music effectively complements the game's ambiance and aesthetic, making it a memorable aspect for many players.

    • “The soundtrack is so well done, with the minigames' songs specifically really showcasing that retro vibe.”
    • “The game's soundtrack adds to its nostalgic vibe, with a mix of synthwave and 80s-inspired music that perfectly captures the game's aesthetic.”
    • “It's all so creative, the music is very catchy and fitting, and something about this game's general premise and plot is just so captivating.”
    • “There was some story going on in the background and the endless childish music is only getting on my nerves.”
    • “There's only so many times I can joyfully shoot at the same duck target, with the same shotgun, to the same music.”
    • “The music and duck sound effects were better in that old game too.”
  • grinding17 mentions

    The grinding aspect of the game has received mixed reviews, with some players finding the pursuit of 100% completion enjoyable and not overly tedious, while others criticize the repetitive duck shooting segments as frustrating and time-consuming. Many users noted that certain achievements can feel tedious, particularly when they require extensive grinding, which detracts from the overall enjoyment of the game. Overall, while some players appreciate the challenge, others feel that the grinding elements significantly hinder the experience.

    • “100% completion is really fun and it isn't tedious at all. The game is fun to 100% complete, and if you're looking for a game to finish to completion, this could definitely be one of them.”
    • “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
    • “This is the game's greatest weakness - after a couple of times playing through the game, the duck hunting feels tedious.”
    • “But for 20 schmeckles, I didn't really have that much fun on this one, and at times grinding duck hunt became more of a pain than a pleasure.”
  • emotional13 mentions

    Players describe the game as an emotional rollercoaster, evoking feelings of nostalgia and deep connection through its touching story and impactful moments, such as the poignant decision to shoot the dog. The blend of fun, horror, and emotional depth leaves a lasting impression, making players feel both joy and sorrow, reminiscent of childhood experiences. Overall, the game successfully achieves a rare emotional resonance, particularly for a horror title.

    • “This game is a perfect combo of: fun, emotional, scary and enjoyable all around.”
    • “What an emotional rollercoaster.”
    • “Wow....just wow....I just played through and got the cannon ending. Wow, it was an emotional ride.”
  • stability11 mentions

    The stability of the game has been criticized for its buggy controls, particularly with the pump action shotgun, which often fails to reload properly, leading to frustrating gameplay experiences. Users have reported issues such as freezing visuals in the headset and inconsistent controller performance, especially on the Valve Index. While some players find the game enjoyable overall, the technical glitches significantly detract from the experience.

    • “Totally worth it and runs great.”
    • “Would be a 10/10 or 9/10 if the gun is not buggy.”
    • “Buggy controls; the pump action shotgun fails to recognize the pump about half the time, so I ended up failing over and over because the gun wouldn't reload, and yes, I added ammo (a manual process). It's just the pump action that won't work.”
    • “The gameplay of the in-game duck hunt analog is equally disappointing, as it presents you with slow, easy shots even on the hardest difficulty, while having an unrefined and often buggy pump action to load a new shell.”
    • “Shooting the ducks is so much fun :) though if you have a Valve Index, expect weird controls, buggy mini-games, and buggy animations.”
  • optimization7 mentions

    Overall, the game is praised for its excellent performance and beautiful graphics, with good optimization for various hardware, resulting in smooth gameplay and no motion sickness. However, some users noted minor issues with specific mechanics, such as shotgun reloading, suggesting that further optimization could enhance the experience.

    • “No motion sickness, and the optimization for multiple hardware.”
    • “+ excellent performance, no stutters, tracking is great.”
    • “Solid game, great performance, great graphics and really great gameplay!”
    • “I don’t know if it’s because the optimization for the Index controllers is not optimal or if it’s something else, but the reloading of the shotgun felt a bit odd and not quite on point.”
    • “It needs optimization, until then.”
Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

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Play time

3hMedian play time
16hAverage play time
1-10hSpent by most gamers
*Based on 8 analyzed playthroughs

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