One of the best aspects of Hunt: Showdown is its unique, weird west setting and engrossing lore. Set in the aftermath of a mysterious viral outbreak in 1895 Louisiana, Hunt: Showdown has players fighting back against a malign entity known as the Sculptor and its many terrifying, inhuman (and occasionally, human) agents. Within this framework, the game builds a sprawling narrative of seemingly disconnected events and characters. The lore of Hunt: Showdown is deep and fascinating, and uncovering it can take some work.
There are three main places in Hunt: Showdown where the curious can explore the game’s lore. The first and most accessible is the Store. Every Legendary weapon and hunter skin in the game has a short description that gives us insight into Hunt’s setting or the characters. This source or lore is the shallowest and only becomes relevant after you’ve spent some time exploring the other two: the Book of Monsters and the Book of Weapons. Both are found in the Library section — found at the top right corner of the home screen — under the titles Liber de Monstrorvm and Liber de Armamentariis, respectively.
To unlock Book of Monster entries, you need to kill certain types of AI enemies repeatedly, and to unlock Book of Weapons entries, you need to use each weapon, tool, and consumable in the game a certain number of times. Very few of these entries are simple descriptions of items; more often than not, they are short stories and vignettes that eventually converge on each other, revealing a bigger narrative.
There is a shortcut for those too hungry for Hunt: Showdown lore to invest the time unlocking Book entries. Community site Fandom contains (almost) all Hunt: Showdown Book entries. There is also a Hunt: Showdown TV series in the works, which will shed more light on the game’s world and characters.
