While theHunter: Call of the Wild might be an incredibly immersive hunting simulator, the game does still offer a few unique abilities, perks, and skills that can help make each hunt a little easier for players jumping in for the first time.
Skill points are granted to the player with every other level starting from level 2 and leading all the way up to level 37. From that point onwards, skill points will alternate with perk points to be awarded every 3 levels, which means hunters need to be very careful and selective with what skills they acquire, and what they feel like would suit their hunting style the best.
With that said though, there are still quite a few skills in the skill tree that are much more beneficial than others, especially when tracking down larger or faster animals who might be tricky to pin down, so it can be worth picking these up right away to help make the game easier and much more enjoyable.
8 Locate Tracks
For the majority of the game, players will be tasked with seeking out animal tracks to help them find the exact location of their prey. However, when starting out, it can be extremely difficult to follow these tracks through the many bushes and large overhanging trees that surround the tranquil and peaceful open world.
Luckily, Locate Tracks makes this far easier by narrowing down the navigational cone at its first and third levels, while the second level increases the overall distance of the tracks. This is a skill beginner players are definitely going to want to acquire as soon as possible since it can prevent them from getting lost by giving them much more accurate guidance.
- Level 1: The directional tracking cone becomes more accurate and narrower.
- Level 2: Increases distance at which tracks are visible.
- Level 3: The directional tracking cone becomes even narrower.
7 Endurance
The Endurance skill only has one tier, and it makes it so the hunter's heart rate rises much slower when moving which might seem fairly unimportant initially, but it can be extremely useful after missing a shot and moving closer to the animal to try again.
Usually, this would end up with the next shot being inaccurate and the reticle swaying across the screen, which can end up wasting all the valuable tracking that was done beforehand if the animal scurries away. However, with Endurance, this becomes far less likely and since it cannot be upgraded, it's well worth investing in as early as possible.
- Level 1: Increase your endurance so that your heart rate rises slower while moving and falls faster when idle.
6 Improvised Blind
Walking up to an animal out in the open is an easy way for it to become startled, so in order for hunters to set up a lethal shot, they're going to need to stick to the large vegetation in the area to keep them hidden. Improvised Blind is a skill that helps with this by further decreasing the player's visibility when they are inside bushes and shrubs.
Keep in mind, this doesn't mean that it will reduce any noises that are made when hiding in the greenery, but it nonetheless is ideal early on in the game when the player is only just getting used to the layout of the land and each of their new weapons.
- Level 1: Further decreases your visibility when inside large bushes & shrubs.
5 Sight Spotting
Another skill that players should unlock as soon as possible is Sight Spotting, a fairly simple ability that enables the hunter to spot animals while in aim mode with weapons without having to bring out their binoculars, which can often take too much time and can even end up spooking the prey.
This skill not only makes analyzing the animal much easier and more convenient, but it also allows hunters to get a better idea of how valuable their trophy will be. If the animal doesn't have a very unique fur type or if it is fairly lightweight for example, then the player will know to leave it alone, which can save a tremendous amount of time in the long run.
- Level 1: Unlocks the ability to spot animals in aim mode with weapons.
4 Keen Eye
There are several lookout towers dotted across the open world in theHunter: Call of the Wild which every player should take full advantage of in order to scan their surroundings without any scenery or obstructions getting in their way. However, the Keen Eye skill takes this to a whole new level by detecting need zones and animal groups on the map when the player is standing at the top of a lookout tower.
It should be said that this ability does have a cooldown, but if a hunter only travels up the towers every so often, it can make for an easy way to immediately find animals when it's proving to be troublesome on the ground.
- Level 1: Adds a chance of revealing need zones on the map near the lookout point.
- Level 2: Adds a chance of revealing animal groups on the map near a lookout point.
3 Soft Feet
Soft Feet is an incredibly useful skill that can make every beginner's life so much easier. The way it works is it reduces the noise generated when the player moves through grass and leaves, and at level 2 this also includes bushes and shrubs.
With the game aiming to be as realistic as it can possibly be, this does mean that even the slightest brush of grass can send an animal racing away from the hunter, which can become incredibly annoying since players are going to be spending a lot of time analyzing their prey while hiding away in greenery. Therefore, Soft Feet can save a tremendous amount of time that might otherwise be spent chasing down a darting deer, raccoon, or bear.
- Level 1: Reduces the noise generated when moving through grass and leaves.
- Level 2: Reduces the noise generated when moving through bushes and shrubs.
2 Pack Mule
When most players first start hunting in Call of the Wild, their first concern is usually to begin looking for tracks to get up close and personal with their very first prey. The truth is, this is an easy way to become over-encumbered, especially if they are continuously buying new weapons and callers to try out with each new hunt.
This is where Pack Mule comes in, a skill that increases the player's base carry capacity by 15% which makes a huge difference considering that smaller weapons usually don't weigh too much, and could be vital during an intense hunt. Additionally, this skill also removes the need for a backpack, which is always good since they can end up making a tremendous amount of noise while out in the wild.
- Level 1: Increases the base carry capacity by 15%. Does not affect backpacks.
1 Track Knowledge
A main objective for hunters in Call of the Wild should always be to seek out max-weight tracks, but players actually cannot identify how heavy the animal they're tracking is until they put 3 points into the Track Knowledge skill. Essentially, this skill is all about knowing more about the animal being tracked including its gender, fur type, and even its current health.
This can make it much easier to prepare for the eventual encounter since the player can know exactly which weapons to use depending on the animal's health, and how valuable it's going to be depending on the weight and fur without even needing to be in close proximity to them.
- Level 1: Reveals information about the animal's gender when investigating footprints.
- Level 2: Reveals information about animal group size and approximate health when investigating footprints.
- Level 3: Reveals information about an animal's approximate weight and fur type when investigating footprints.
TheHunter: Call of the Wild is available on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series S, Xbox Series X, and PC.