Duck Season
- September 14, 2017
- Stress Level Zero
- 3h median play time
Get on SteamDuck 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
Reviews
- Duck Season offers a nostalgic experience that effectively captures the essence of the 80s and 90s, making players feel like kids again.
- The game features a well-crafted story with multiple endings, encouraging replayability and exploration of hidden secrets.
- The shotgun mechanics are immersive and satisfying, providing a realistic shooting experience that enhances gameplay.
- The gameplay can become repetitive, as players must shoot ducks repeatedly to progress through the story and unlock different endings.
- Some players experience issues with the controls, particularly with the shotgun mechanics, which can feel awkward and unresponsive at times.
- The game is relatively short, with many players completing it in under two hours, leading to concerns about its value for the price.
- story244 mentions
- 30 % positive mentions
- 66 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The game's story is a well-crafted blend of nostalgia and horror, featuring a dark narrative that unfolds through interactive gameplay and multiple endings, with players encouraged to explore hidden lore and secrets. While the main storyline is relatively short, it offers a compelling experience that enhances the duck hunting mechanics, making it a standout title in VR storytelling. However, some players find the gameplay repetitive and the controls frustrating, which can detract from the overall experience.
“The amount of hidden story and lore was incredible; the fact that you can interact with nearly every item and that even every single magazine has small minute details was really a nice touch.”
“As you progress, a mysterious storyline unfolds, adding depth and intrigue to the game.”
“The story line of the game is just so well thought out, and you can tell how much effort the Stress Level Zero team put into this game.”
“Severely lacking story, frustrating grip system on the shotgun, repetitive and uninteresting gameplay, and an abrupt ending.”
“The story is overrated and telegraphed so hard that it's not even remotely surprising, and it has some extremely bizarre bugs on Linux systems for some reason.”
“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.”
- gameplay160 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 56 % neutral mentions
- 12 % negative mentions
The gameplay of this VR title is characterized by its simple mechanics centered around duck hunting, which can become repetitive over time despite offering satisfying shotgun controls and a nostalgic atmosphere. While the game features multiple endings that encourage replayability, many players find the core gameplay loop lacks variety and depth, leading to a mixed reception regarding its overall value and engagement. Overall, the shooting mechanics are praised, but the limited gameplay experience and short duration leave some players feeling underwhelmed.
“The mechanics are great, and it feels satisfying to pump and reload the shotgun.”
“Plus, the gameplay can keep you entertained for hours, especially if you explore all the mini-games and arcade mode.”
“Duck season is a very good VR game, feels really good to shoot at ducks and everything controls well, and most of it is extremely polished.”
“The actual gameplay, in which you shoot ducks, is so repetitive it's mind-numbing by the third time you do it.”
“I found myself becoming bored of the main 'duck hunt' game due to lack of variety in gameplay and environments.”
“Only 20 minutes of very repetitive gameplay.”
- graphics75 mentions
- 61 % positive mentions
- 35 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
Overall, the graphics of the game have received positive feedback, with many users praising their quality, detail, and immersive qualities that enhance the gameplay experience. While some reviews noted glitches and issues with accessibility, the visuals are often described as stunning and well-suited for the game's nostalgic themes. The combination of great graphics, sound design, and atmosphere contributes to a compelling experience, particularly in VR settings.
“The graphics are superb, and it's packed with interactive fun.”
“Everything about Duck Season is right on point; from the way that the day transitions into evening and night, to what mom is doing in the background, the little-but-significant added details everywhere that you look, the realistically immersive graphics, the remarkable gun mechanics, the hidden secrets, and more.”
“The graphics are gorgeous, the sound and atmosphere are perfect.”
“It was full of glitches and the graphics sucked.”
“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.”
- replayability50 mentions
- 24 % positive mentions
- 70 % neutral mentions
- 6 % negative mentions
The game offers significant replayability due to its multiple endings (up to nine), hidden secrets, and mini-games, encouraging players to explore different outcomes and experiences. While the main campaign is relatively short, the variety of gameplay elements and easter eggs provide ample opportunities for replay, making it a worthwhile experience for those who enjoy uncovering all the game's content. However, some players note that the gameplay can become repetitive over time, which may affect long-term engagement.
“Many different endings, many secrets to discover, and a lot of replayability despite it being short.”
“The game is short - less than one hour for a single playthrough - but the amount of hidden surprises plus the arcade nature of the main loop make it highly replayable.”
“With 7 different endings, lots of mini-games, and easter eggs to find, there's a lot of replayability.”
“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.”
“There is some replay value, but for $20, you're getting something that can be completed in about an hour.”
“It does have some replayability, but not a massive amount, at least for me.”
- humor43 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is widely praised for its clever design, nostalgic references, and a mix of light-hearted and dark comedic elements. Players enjoy the funny interactions, particularly with the iconic laughing dog, and appreciate the inclusion of humorous mini-games and Easter eggs that enhance the overall experience. While some find the humor repetitive over time, many agree that it adds significant charm and enjoyment to the gameplay.
“Duck Season is fun, funny, and just has a lot of really clever design.”
“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.”
“This game really is a love letter to those old times and full of easter eggs and funny ideas.”
- atmosphere40 mentions
- 53 % positive mentions
- 40 % neutral mentions
- 8 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its nostalgic and immersive qualities, effectively blending elements of horror with a detailed, early 90s aesthetic. Reviewers highlight the game's ability to evoke feelings of nostalgia while maintaining a creepy ambiance, enhanced by impressive graphics and sound design. Overall, the atmosphere is considered a standout feature, making the experience engaging and memorable, even for those unfamiliar with the era it represents.
“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.”
“Fantastic game that has a great story & atmosphere, a must buy for horror fans.”
“The atmosphere was done really well and at the scary parts, it always made me genuinely terrified.”
“This game does a great job setting the tone while establishing an early 90s atmosphere.”
“First and foremost, the atmosphere is so well done.”
- grinding15 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 7 % neutral mentions
- 93 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be excessively tedious, particularly during the duck shooting segments, which can feel like a chore rather than an enjoyable challenge. Many reviewers express frustration with the repetitive nature of the tasks required to unlock endings, leading to a lack of motivation to continue playing. Overall, the grinding is seen as a significant weakness, detracting from the overall experience.
“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.”
- music14 mentions
- 36 % positive mentions
- 43 % neutral mentions
- 21 % negative mentions
The music in the game is widely praised for its catchiness and creativity, with many players finding it memorable and fitting for the game's atmosphere. Some users noted that the soundtrack enhances the overall experience, making them want to dance or sing along, while others felt that the repetitive nature of the music could become tiresome over time. Overall, the audio elements, including sound effects, contribute significantly to the game's immersive quality.
“It's been over a year since I've played it and I still sing the theme song and see that damn dog in the shadows at night.”
“Thank you to whoever made this game and also thank you for 'Kazoo Kid'; I need that song in my mix now.”
“The audio, the music, and the visuals all combined perfectly to really immerse you into this experience.”
“The music and duck sound effects were better in that old game too.”
“You shoot some more ducks... you shot the dog... the 8-bit music suddenly stops… and you are fighting for your life.”
“There's only so many times I can joyfully shoot at the same duck target, with the same shotgun, to the same music.”
- emotional12 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Players describe the game as an emotional journey that evokes deep feelings, often reminiscent of childhood experiences. The story is praised for its charm and impactful moments, particularly the poignant ending that resonates with themes of loss and nostalgia. Overall, the game is characterized as an emotional rollercoaster that leaves a lasting impression on its players.
“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
- 9 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 91 % negative mentions
The game's stability has been widely criticized, with users reporting numerous bugs, glitches, and control issues, particularly with the pump-action shotgun and VR interactions. Many players feel the game was released prematurely, leading to a frustrating experience despite some enjoyable gameplay elements. Overall, while some users found it worth playing, the technical problems significantly detracted from the experience.
“Totally worth it and runs great.”
“Very buggy, boring, and felt like it was published before it was finished.”
“Shooting the ducks is so much fun :) though if you have a Valve Index, expect weird controls, buggy mini-games, and buggy animations.”
“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.”
- optimization5 mentions
- 60 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 40 % negative mentions
Overall, the game is praised for its beautiful graphics and solid performance, particularly for a title from the early VR era. However, some users noted issues with specific mechanics, such as shotgun reloading, suggesting that further optimization, particularly for index controllers, is needed.
“Seems like a fun game with beautiful graphics and great performance.”
“Performance is very good as expected for a game from the old VR days with a simple texture style.”
“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.”
