THQ Nordic and Nine Rocks Games are excited to announce Elkcrest Island, the fifth and final map DLC for Way of the Hunter, and for the first time ever, it is completely free. Serving as a heartfelt thank you to the dedicated players and community who have supported the game over the past 3.5 years, Elkcrest Island marks a celebratory close to the Way of the Hunter journey before the studio turns its full focus to the next title in the franchise. At the same time, players can look ahead: the Steam page for the upcoming project goes live today, allowing fans to begin adding the game to their wishlists. While the final name is still in discussion, this marks the official start of the next chapter for the development team.
Wishlist the new game on Steam now:
Next Hunting Adventure | Announcement Teaser:
Welcome to Elkcrest Island
Update 1.31 is now live, and it brings Elkcrest Island, a remote northern wilderness, rich with North America's most iconic game species. This isolated, sparsely populated landscape also debuts a new predator in the franchise: the North American cougar! And the most requested animal is making a comeback: Merriam’s wild turkey.
Players can explore dramatic hills and mountain ranges to scout major big game, from moose and elk to Bighorn sheep, caribou, Sitka deer, Wood bison, and the imposing Kodiak bear. Those seeking variety can head to serene lakes and open plains, home to wild ducks, surf scoters, pheasants, and lesser scaup. Predators like the Gray wolf and Red fox roam the terrain, while patient hunters may even spot the swift snowshoe hare.Preview Event
Watch the trailer here | Elkcrest Island DLC:
Full Animal List – Elkcrest Island:
North American cougar (Puma concolor couguar)
Alaska moose (Alces americanus gigas)
Barren-ground caribou (Rangifer tarandus groenlandicus)
Bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis)
Gray wolf (Canis lupus)
Kodiak bear (Ursus arctos middendorffi)
Lesser scaup (Aythya affinis)
Merriam's wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo merriami)
Mountain goat (Oreamnos americanus)
Pheasant (Phasianus colchicus)
Red fox (Vulpes vulpes)
Roosevelt elk (Cervus canadensis roosevelti)
Sitka deer (Odocoileus hemionus sitkensis)
Snowshoe hare (Lepus americanus)
Surf scoter (Melanitta perspicillata)
Wild duck (Anas platyrhynchos)
Wood bison (Bison bison athabascae)
The Elkcrest map is available now! The base game is required to play the DLC.
Available Now – Update 1.31:
Alongside the free DLC map Elkcrest Island, update 1.31 is now live on all platforms. This update also brings the North American cougar to Nez Perce Valley, Aurora Shores, and Elkcrest Island - harvest one or explore its need zones to unlock more info in the in-game encyclopedia. Alongside the new content, update 1.31 fixes essential issues and provides compensation for players affected by the previous update 1.29.1 before the hotfix. Let’s take a closer look.
Compensation for Players
Update 1.31 also brings several fixes and includes compensation for earlier update issues.
For everyone:
All players receive compensation for the inconvenience caused by the update 1.29.1. Since some players lost a rare-fur trophy, we’re adding a guaranteed high-fitness rare-fur animal to every reserve:
Nez Perce Valley: Melanistic Mule Deer - Private/Lowland
Transylvania: Albino Red Deer - Private/Lowland
Aurora Shores: Melanistic Alaska Moose - Primary/Grassland
Tikamoon Plains: Albino Cape Buffalo - Private/Savanna
Matariki Park: Albino White-Tailed Deer - Private/Lowland
Lintukoto Reserve: Melanistic Fallow Deer - Private/Highland Forest
For players affected by update 1.29.1:
If your save file was impacted and you loaded the game before the hotfix was available, this update will apply a herd-management recovery boost. The game will identify weaker animals in affected habitats and increase their fitness by 50% toward the habitat’s gene-pool maximum, which means a small boost to those, who have lost their herd management progress. As part of this process, the game will automatically trigger a new in-game year the first time you load in after the update, but only for those affected saves.
Additional improvements:
Some herd management stats that previously failed to load correctly should self-correct over the next two in-game years.
Version 1.31 (Build: 174393) patch notes:
Added: Free DLC: Elkcrest Island
Added: North American cougar to Nez Perce Valley, Aurora Shores, and Elkcrest Island
Tweaked: Compensation for players affected by update 1.29.1
For everyone: All players receive a guaranteed high-fitness rare-fur animal on each reserve (excluding Elkcrest Island)
For affected players affected by update 1.29.1: A small herd management boost across all reserves
Fixed: Missing magazine model on the Christensen Modern Hunting Rifle
Fixed: Issue where long blood marker expiration times caused extended loading times or crashes on some reserves
We will be grateful for any feedback and bug reports via THQ Nordic Redmine. When creating a ticket, please make sure that you enter the correct version of the game.
Thank you, and happy hunting!
More info:
Get the game here: https://thqn.net/woth-steam
Website: http://wayofthehunter.com
Discord: https://discord.gg/wayofthehunter