Hunt: Showdown Chapter 2 Makes 20 More Compounds Horrible
Blood Testament Chapter 2 is already live in Hunt: Showdown 1896. Inferno is back with a deliberately high appearance rate, and the Firefighter Supply returns with the Flame Rifle. Then on October 13, things get considerably worse: Bileweavers expand into 20 additional compounds across Hunt's maps and Bloodweavers start appearing during Blood Moon matches, where their jumping attack causes Bleeding.
So this is one of those Hunt updates where the interesting part is not really how much stuff Crytek added. It is how many new ways the game has found to interfere with whatever sensible plan you thought you had.
Inferno changes where you want to move. Bileweavers turn more compounds into places you would rather somebody else entered first. Bloodweavers can make you bleed while another Hunter is waiting for exactly that kind of administrative inconvenience.
Hunt already had enough things going wrong at once. Crytek has apparently looked at that situation and decided there were still dangerous levels of competence occurring.
Inferno is only one part of the current disaster. See our Blood Testament coverage for the rest of Crytek’s ongoing plan to make entering a Louisiana swamp increasingly resemble a clerical error.
Inferno is back, so your favourite route may currently be on fire
Inferno returned on October 6 and Crytek has given it a high appearance probability during the first week, with the frequency being adjusted later according to player feedback.
I actually like that approach. If you are bringing Inferno back, bring the bloody thing back. Don't make it a rare weather condition players encounter twice before Christmas and then ask them how they feel about it.
More importantly, Inferno screws with something Hunt players normally rely on: knowing the map. You learn these compounds. You learn where people usually approach from, which gaps you can rotate through and where some patient lunatic will probably be watching a doorway because apparently his evening has developed into a seven-hour personal vendetta against one particular barn.
Then the countryside catches fire.
The map itself has not changed, but your good route may now be the route where everything is burning. Smoke interferes with visibility, fire makes sections less attractive to cross and suddenly the little plan you had in your head needs revising while somebody with a Mosin is taking considerable interest in your revised planning procedure.
That is much more useful than environmental variety for the sake of looking pretty. Hunt works because information matters so much. Knowing where somebody probably is, where they probably went and which route they are likely to use is half the fight. Setting part of that information on fire is therefore quite effective.
Someone stocked the Firefighter Supply with a flamethrower
The Firefighter Supply also returns during Inferno, including the Flame Rifle.
I still cannot get past this.
There is a wildfire. Crytek has installed a special Firefighter Supply to help you deal with the wildfire. Inside is a weapon that shoots burning liquid.
Still, as an actual game mechanic it makes sense. Inferno is no longer something you merely tolerate while travelling between useful places. It has its own useful supply location attached to it, which gives players a reason to engage with the condition instead of simply muttering "for fuck's sake" and walking around the orange bits.
And then, on October 13, Crytek starts putting spiders in more places.
If burning forests, bleeding spiders and strangers shooting you through sheds somehow sound relaxing, head into our Hunt: Showdown hub for more ways the Bayou can ruin an otherwise perfectly good evening.
Twenty more compounds can get Bileweavers
When All Hallows' Cleave starts on October 13, Bileweavers get a much larger infestation pool.
Crytek is adding 20 additional compounds across all maps, with five of those compounds selected in an individual match. That second part is quite important because "Bileweavers infest 20 more compounds" initially sounds as though Crytek has simply covered Louisiana in spiders and gone home.
It hasn't.
What changes is uncertainty. Places that previously did not have this problem can now have this problem. Five are chosen per match, which means the mechanic can start turning up in parts of the maps where players are used to dealing with other problems.
And Hunt already has plenty of other problems.
Another team in the compound is a problem. AI making noise is a problem. Losing health is a problem. Making a bad rotation is a problem. Having a Bileweaver jump into the situation while all of that is happening is basically the Hunt equivalent of somebody reversing into your car while you're already filling out the insurance form for the first crash.
That is why this kind of PvE addition interests me much more than just adding a stronger monster.
Hunt's AI is rarely at its best when it kills you by itself. It is at its best when it makes dealing with another player worse.
Bloodweavers understand this perfectly
During Blood Moon, Bloodweavers can appear.
They're red Bileweaver variants, they're more aggressive and their jumping attack causes Bleeding. Their eggs can cause Bleeding when they hatch too. That sounds like a fairly small change until you think about what Bleeding actually means in Hunt.
Something has happened that you now have to deal with.
Immediately.
And Hunt is full of people who are absolutely delighted whenever you suddenly need to deal with something immediately.
You hear movement from another team, reposition, get jumped by a Bloodweaver and start bleeding. You now have an aggressive creature nearby, health disappearing and at least one other human being somewhere outside who has just heard enough noise to realise the evening is finally going his way.
The Bloodweaver does not need to kill you.
It just needs to turn a manageable fight into complete bullshit for about ten seconds.
Ten seconds in Hunt is enormous. You can make coffee, raise a family and get shot through a wooden wall in considerably less.
That's why "Bileweaver but red" undersells it. The interesting part is not the colour or even the extra aggression. Bleeding forces a response, and forcing a response while PvP is happening is exactly where Hunt's monsters stop being background wildlife and start becoming active participants in your financial ruin.
This is the bit of Chapter 2 actually worth watching
There is more in Blood Testament Chapter 2, obviously, but Inferno and the Weaver changes are the stuff that can actually reshape ordinary matches.
Not dramatically. Hunt has not become another game overnight.
But that is probably why these changes fit it so well.
A burning route doesn't need to redesign the map if it makes you approach the same compound differently. A Bileweaver doesn't need to become a boss if it forces movement at the wrong moment. A Bloodweaver doesn't have to murder you itself if it makes you stop bleeding while somebody else does the murdering.
Hunt has always been extremely good at taking one small problem and arranging for three other problems to arrive while you're looking at it. Blood Testament Chapter 2 appears to understand the assignment.
If CRIMENET saved you from reading patch notes written with all the emotional electricity of a washing-machine warranty, you can throw a few coins into the Ko-fi evidence locker.
Hunt: Showdown Blood Testament Chapter 2 FAQ
When did Blood Testament Chapter 2 start?
Chapter 2 launched on October 6, 2026. Inferno returned immediately, while the expanded Bileweaver and Bloodweaver changes arrive on October 13 with All Hallows' Cleave.
Is Inferno back in Hunt: Showdown?
Yes. Inferno is back with a high initial appearance probability, although Crytek may adjust how often it appears based on player feedback.
What changes with Bileweavers?
Bileweavers can infest 20 additional compounds across Hunt's maps. Five eligible compounds are selected per match, giving the spiders considerably more opportunities to ruin somebody's otherwise perfectly reasonable evening.
What are Bloodweavers?
Bloodweavers are more aggressive red Bileweaver variants that appear during Blood Moon conditions. Their jumping attack causes Bleeding, and their eggs can inflict Bleeding when they hatch.
Is the Flame Rifle back?
Yes. The Firefighter Supply returns during Inferno conditions and can contain the Flame Rifle, because Hunt's interpretation of firefighting remains wonderfully questionable.
Comments