An action RPG
Maneater is a role-playing action game that puts you in the figurative shoes of an angry apex predator that wants to eat people. It's easy to grasp and play, with fantastic graphics bolstering the overall experience.
Old topic, new execution
Sharks have long been a favourite topic in the action genre, with titles such as Depth and Jaws Unleashed giving you control over the predator and sending you on adventures.
Maneater by Tripwire Interactive is another such title, but with a twist. It adds an RPG aspect to the gameplay, having you begin as a young, inexperienced predator to set you then on a path to revenge.
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A developing environment
In the beginning, you live on a fictional town's shores, feeding on local fry. Eventually, your diet switches to humans, but a shark hunter then catches you. Even more, he hurts the baby you're carrying, which pushes the adventure forward.
Logical gameplay
To develop your strength, you start by feeding on small prey. The 'evolution' in this game adds armour pieces to your body that make you more capable of attacking and defending yourself.
In some cases, you may even develop attributes of the species you consume, which gives you more of an edge over your enemies. This levelling up ultimately takes you to the status of a 'megashark.'
As you evolve, you also fight boss battles: some with humans and others with different predators. Despite its open-world design, this game's end goal is to kill the man who harmed you in the very beginning.
Requirements
This game isn't free. You'll have to purchase it to enjoy the approximately 10 hours of the gameplay experience. Regarding the platforms, you can run it on Windows 10, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4.
Could be better
While this game creates a genuinely jaw-dropping experience at first, its novelty quickly wears off as you go through repetitive missions. Still, if it gave you a bit more flexibility as the predator, or even allowed multiplayer to add variety, this would be one of the top titles in the genre.
