Hood: Outlaws & Legends Introduces The Ranger

Video game developer Sumo Digital and publisher Focus Home Interactive have cast the spotlight on the shadowy figure of The Ranger in the first character gameplay trailer for their upcoming medieval PvPvE multiplayer heist game Hood: Outlaws & Legends.

Hood: Outlaws & Legends is a new and somewhat different take on the Robin Hood folklore, where you step into the roles of four of the legend’s main characters to plan and attempt to execute the perfect heist. In an intense competition involving three teams, two teams of players control Robin ‘The Ranger’ (Robin Hood), Marianne ‘The Hunter’ (Maid Marian), John ‘The Brawler’ (Little John), and Tooke ‘The Mystic’ (Friar Tuck), and compete to infiltrate various medieval-styled locations which are guarded by four AI guards. Each character has their own unique and mystical abilities to use against the opposing team, who have the same unique abilities, and against the AI guards, in order to be the first to find and steal the loot.

With the introduction of The Ranger in the first video in the series (embedded below), the devs showcase the unique abilities Robin has at their disposal. If you’re familiar with playing as the stereotypical assassin archer in games such as Thief, Skyrim, Assassin’s Creed, and many others, then you already have a feel for what Robin’s capable of. As the premier master of the English longbow, Robin specializes in eliminating opponents from a distance, supported in no small part by stealth and surprise attacks. In your hands, Robin will be key to reaching out and dropping in-game opponents with a single quiet headshot before they even know you or your team are anywhere close.

However, in a steady set of hands, Robin’s longbow can be a much more versatile tool used for more than just the perfect headshot. Ropes can be found at various places around the locations you’ll be attempting to infiltrate. A precision bow shot can drop these ropes from their elevated positions, to be retrieved by you or your team, and then used to climb a location’s walls, allowing you to bypass more heavily guarded pathways.

Each character has their own special trait they can use that doesn’t always involve their signature weapon. Robin’s special trait involves being able to scout and identify opponent players and AI characters, marking them on the map for the rest of the team to see for a short while. Robin’s unique gear item is a flash bomb that can be thrown near opponents, causing it to explode in a blinding flash of bright light, temporarily dazing opponents in close proximity.

The Ranger’s high DEX score allows them to deftly evade melee attacks, and also allows them to sneak up on opponents to deliver the trademark backstab. And when it’s time to forego clean and quiet in lieu of loud and dirty, The Ranger’s Far Sight ability allows you to fire an AoE sticky explosive incendiary arrow that can clear out and weaken multiple opponents at once, or cause the distraction you or your team needs at just the right moment.

The Character Gameplay Trailer also briefly mentions Perks that Robin and the other main characters will be able to unlock and equip. These Perks will add finesse touches to a character’s abilities, allowing you to customize the character to better fit your playstyle. There’ll be more information from the devs regarding these Perks released at a later time, as will the next three character gameplay trailers.

Hood: Outlaws & Legends is currently available for preorder on PC (Steam / Epic Store), PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. Get your preorder in quickly to earn early access to the game starting on May 7, three days before the official May 10 launch date. And in case you missed it, check out the four Character Stories videos that provide backstory narrative for each of the main characters.

Source: Games Press / Focus Home Interactive