Hood: Outlaws and Legends
Genre: Action-RPG | Developer: Sumo Digital | Platform: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S | Release Date: May 10, 2021 | Model: Buy2Play
What kind of game is this? In this PvPvE game, two rival gangs of 4 players each try to steal a treasure from the state and bring it back to their own village. It is inspired by the tales of Robin Hood, who also stole from the rich to give the loot to the poor.
Specifically, players must steal the key to the treasury from the Sheriff, a strong NPC, then find and open the treasury, and transport the treasure from there. From that point, it will be removed with a winch.
However, many NPCs and, of course, the opposing player team, which has the same objectives, will interfere.
How is Hood: Outlaws and Legends doing currently? The game launched on Steam in May 2021 with nearly 9,000 players at peak. However, within just one month, the numbers significantly plummeted to 575 players at peak.
There was much criticism regarding the clunky gameplay, the balance of different characters, and the behavior of the AI, which was often easily tricked. Additionally, too many matches ended up being turned at the last second and with a lot of luck at the winch. Instead of having to rescue the treasure yourself, it was enough to fill the last percentage of the bar. This led to a lot of frustration.
In the last 30 days, there were only an average of 13 players active on Steam. At peak times, 41 players were online simultaneously. Even though Hood can also be played on consoles, many players on Steam report that hardly any matches start. This has led to a 61% negative review rate in the last 30 days.
That’s why I believe Hood will die in 2022: Hood was really fun for me in the first hours, although that was likely largely due to the players. However, only after the first 5 hours, balance issues and weak matchmaking were noticeable downsides. These have not improved since then, but rather deteriorated. Those who start with Hood now mainly encounter strong players.
In 2022, a PvP game with so few players can hardly survive for long. That’s why I think Hood will not make it through this year.
