Actually, 1890s Colorado is a reasonable place for the Scream guy to show up, says Hunt: Showdown developer: 'We believe the latest Ghost Face Rampage DLC fits into the dark, supernatural atmosphere'

Crytek has responded to complaints about a new paid cosmetic in Hunt: Showdown 1896, saying that, actually, the mask from the Scream movies does fit into a supernatural monster-hunting game set in the 1890s.

As Morgan observed last year after being executed by Diablo 4's Lilith in Call of Duty, every successful multiplayer shooter these days eventually compromises its style and theme for the sake of wacky crossover cosmetics. The process took longer than usual for Hunt: Showdown, but to my eye it began this week with the Ghost Face Rampage DLC, which adds the iconic mask from 1996 slasher flick Scream to the supernatural, historical extraction shooter.

We like a lot about Hunt: Showdown 1896, which is the new title Hunt: Showdown adopted after a huge recent update which introduced a new map, but some players have been dissatisfied with elements of the refresh, and so were perhaps primed to react especially harshly to Ghost Face. One player declared that "Hunt's identity died" when the DLC was announced, as we reported earlier this week.

I wouldn't go that far myself, and I'm not a regular player of the game so I don't have any personal investment here, but I do find it hard to agree that the bad guy from Scream is a natural fit for the Colorado mountains of 128 years ago.

"We believe the latest Ghost Face Rampage DLC fits into the dark, supernatural atmosphere as an ageless, almost mythological figure that transcends eras," Crytek said in a statement on X today. "In the 1890s, a madman took up the mask, driven into a bloody frenzy by its foul whispers on a hunting trip in Louisiana—and the rest is history."

I'll give Crytek one thing: the mask's design does resemble Edvard Munch's The Scream, which was painted in 1893. But I don't think anyone who sees the mask from Scream thinks, 'Ah, just like that period-appropriate painting.' Crytek is coming at the issue from an in-fiction perspective—Could there be a Ghost Face in the past? Sure.—but I just see the Halloween mask from the '90s.

Some players are livid about the DLC, but not everyone thinks Ghost Face is such a big deal. One response to Crytek's tweet notes that at least he's wearing an appropriate hat: "It's not turning into Fortnite. Calm down."

It doesn't sound like this'll be the last cosmetic collab in Hunt, as Crytek laid out its philosophy around brand team-ups in its statement, saying that its goal is to blend external "IPs and personalities" with Hunt's setting seamlessly.

"The aim for us is to enrich the narrative and weave new threads into the ever-evolving mythos of Hunt in a whole new way," Crytek said. "Not to simply drop new characters into the game, but to write compelling new narratives involving these crossovers to create a richer experience for established players and invite new players into our world with a few familiar faces."

If you want the Ghost Face mask yourself, it launched today and can be had for $10.