Man, I have some very fond memories of Headhunter when my family first owned a Sega Dreamcast. I never actually finished it back then, for what reason I really don’t remember. But I remember considering it a top tier game. I remember liking it more than Metal Gear Solid at the time. I absolutely know it’s not as good. Looking back now, Headhunter is a good game in its own right, but it is not even on the same level. Don’t get me wrong here, it’s a good game. Arguably one of the best games on the console. But, replaying and finally finishing it last week, I feel this game really suffers from a bit of an identity crisis. I genuinely don’t know how to narrow it down. Is it a Metal Gear Solid clone? A stealth-focused Resident Evil? Or a partially open world action-adventure game? I guess it’s all of those things, to an extent.
Headhunter was released by Amuze late in 2001, only in PAL regions. I gotta say its definitely one of the best looking games on the system, which makes sense given how late it arrived on the console. Headhunter was a November release and the Dreamcast stopped production in March of 2001. Set in the near-future in a city based on Los Angeles, criminals are now punished with not only imprisonment, but by having their organs harvested for the very wealthy. Doesn’t sound so far fetched, eh. Law enforcement is run by the Anti-Crime Network (ACN) with bounty hunter-like agents known as Headhunters. Regular firearms have been replaced with Electric Neural Projectile guns which cause severe pain, paralysis and finally death but keep organs intact. The story follows Jack Wade, former Headhunter, who wakes in a secret laboratory with no memory of who he is or how he got there. After breaking his restraints and escaping, he collapses and is brought to a nearby hospital. Jack gets filled in a little on his past and learns he was once a top Headhunter, but his license has now been revoked. We learn Christopher Stern, ACN Founder has been murdered. Jack works with his old boss, Chief Hawke and Stern’s daughter Angela to investigate the murder. Jack must regain both his licenses and his memory to bring the guilty party to justice. The plot develops and unfolds through FMV cutscenes, quite obvious propaganda commercials and very corny news broadcasts.
To regain his licenses, you have to run through varying levels of the LEILA (Law Enforcement Intelligence and License Approval) Virtual Reality simulations. These sections are clearly modeled after Metal Gear Solid’s VR missions, but they’re fairly basic and are noticeably easier. To get around the city, Jack borrows Angela’s motorbike. Back when I first played it all those years ago, I thought this part of the game was unreal. Playing it now, it actually feels quite tedious, except for much later in the game when it kind of plays into the story. The city gives an impression of being open world, but it’s more of a restricted, guided track. There’s little to discover and most of the time you’re simply riding from A to B. By modern standards, this comes across as incredibly linear. Even at the time of release, Grand Theft Auto 3 had released about 2 weeks prior on the PlayStation 2, redefining what ‘open world’ meant. But still, within the Dreamcast’s library, Headhunter was ambitious enough to feel fresh at the time.
I’ve referred to Headhunter as a Metal Gear Solid clone and in some respects that is true, but it is more of a mash-up between Metal Gear Solid and Resident Evil. It borrows some of the stealth elements you’d expect from Metal Gear Solid and incorporates action elements present in both games. While not a survival horror game, it’s quite heavy on the puzzle elements you would expect from the Resident Evil series. You interact with items within the environment and the environment itself to solve various puzzles to get you through each part of the story. It then throws in those semi open-world elements. You control Jack in a third-person style, somewhere between Solid Snake’s tactical movement and Resident Evil’s more set camera work. Headhunter does improve on both of these with it’s inventory and item management, it just feels more streamlined. The control scheme is okay, but a little rough around the edges. The overall result is best described as a third-person action adventure game heavily inspired by both Metal Gear Solid and Resident Evil. It incorporates both item and environmental puzzles, stealth and semi-open world elements but it just doesn’t quite fit into any specific genre or sub-genre. It’s tricky to define, which kinda plays into it’s odd charm.
Flaws aside, Headhunter still manages to deliver a good gaming experience. Amuze has done a pretty solid job of squeezing everything they could out of the Dreamcast in what might be the best looking game on the system. The weather effects also look fantastic for the time. The motorbike physics and open-world elements aren’t great, but honestly these don’t really play a big enough role to worry much about them. Yeah sure, there are some small parts in the VR missions where you have to do timed runs on the motorbike, but other than that it’s really more of a bit-part. The soundtrack is an absolute banger, this is unsurprising as it was handled by Richard Jaques, the same guy responsible for the Metropolis Street Racer soundtrack. The story is definitely believable and I quite enjoyed how it unfolded. The writers clearly fired up some old action movies while writing the story as Jack and some of the other characters come out with some pretty corny one-liners. It simply adds to the atmosphere. Despite its shortcomings, Headhunter stands out as one of the Dreamcast’s more unique gems. Its gritty atmosphere, strong presentation and compelling story combine with decent enough mechanics to make it a good experience for anyone wanting to dip their feet into the world of Sega Dreamcast.
Verdict:
Headhunter is a visually impressive action-adventure game with a compelling story and solid atmospheric design that borrows elements from the likes of Metal Gear Solid and Resident Evil. While it does suffer from something of an identity crisis and features some rough game mechanics, it manages to deliver an enjoyable and unique experience for the Sega Dreamcast.
Deck Compatibility: 10/10
Overall Game Rating: 6.5/10
Dad with a Deck 
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