| “ | M - What's the story with this bear?
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The Old Bear is a unique Bear and the primary antagonist of Episode 2: Luminance Fugue in Wintermute. He also appears as the antagonist of The Hunted Part One, Part Two, and Part Three Challenges.
Episode 1
Paradise Lost
The Old Bear is first seen in the closing seconds of Episode 1, where Will Mackenzie sees him attacking Jeremiah, who takes the trapper's rifle to shoot it as the episode ends.
Episode 2
The Wounded Trapper
In Episode 2, the Old Bear makes his first appearance at the Carter Hydro Dam, where he charges Mackenzie right as he enters the fenced-in Staging Area. Mackenzie manages to close the gate, stopping the charge but is knocked out. When Mackenzie awakens some time later, the bear is gone.
After finding meds for the old trapper, Jeremiah tells Mackenzie that the bear will hunt them both across the island unless they kill him since the Old Bear has a taste for the blood of men. He recounts a story where a similar Old Bear from 150 years ago was nicknamed the "Demon Bear" after a Hunting party of three members failed to kill him despite allegedly unloading their rifles into him. Jeremiah concludes that the only possible way to kill the bear is with the legendary Bear Spear, and directs a reluctant Mackenzie to the Hunting Lodge in Broken Railroad to retrieve it.
The Best Defense
The Old Bear is encountered again in Broken Railroad, where he pushes over a Train Shuttle that Mackenzie is inside of, knocking him unconscious. When he awakes, Mackenzie finds the bear missing, replaced instead by Methuselah sitting by a fire under an Aurora.
After Mackenzie find and repairs the Bear Spear, the Old Bear is seen keeping his distance from the pilot on a nearby ledge as he makes his way through Forlorn Muskeg back to Mystery Lake. Mackenzie wonders that perhaps the Bear Spear does have some magical protection to it, at least for now, before taunting the retreating Old Bear.
Signal to Noise
In the third mission, the Bear guards one/two of the Shortwave Towers required to get the Transponder Parts to boost Jeremiah's shortwave radio. He can be driven away by using the Bear Spear before struggling with him.
When attempting to return to Mystery Lake after getting all the parts, the Old Bear ambushes Mackenzie and then drags him to his den.
What One Man Can Do
The player must navigate through the Old Bear's Den while avoiding the bear in order to retrieve the Bear Spear. Mackenzie successfully kills the Old Bear for good with the spear, apologizing to the creature's remains that he did not intend to kill him, but unfortunately "this world will make murders of us all." Mackenzie later returns to the Trapper's Homestead with the Transponder Parts and informs Jeremiah that the bear is dead, before passing out.
Challenges
As well as his role in the story, the Old Bear appears in The Hunted, Part One, The Hunted, Part Two, and The Hunted, Part Three Challenges. In the first two challenges, the bear is invincible and cannot be killed.
Part One
The challenge revolves around the bear stalking the player through Pleasant Valley to the Trapper's Homestead so they can get the Bear Spear. The Old Bear will hunt the player throughout Pleasant Valley and Mystery Lake until the player reaches the Trapper's Cabin.
Part Two
After completing part one, part two is unlocked and begins where the first part ended. The roles are switched, with the player hunting the bear as it runs through Mystery Lake back to its den.
Part Three
The Old Bear is slated to appear in a third challenge.
Gallery
Redux Episode 2
Predux Episode 2
The Hunted Challenges
Trivia
- Jeremiah constantly refers to the bear as "He" despite no genitals being present on the body.
- The Old Bear differs in appearance from normal bears; having 3 arrows imbedded behind the bear's head (with one broken off), blood all over the mouth, a scar below the right eye, small scars on the muzzle, longer leg and back hair, and 2 scars on the right side of his body above the belly.
- Aside from aesthetics, the bear is mechanically similar to any other bear the player might encounter (albeit immune to being killed). Wolves will run from the Old Bear.
- The Old Bear's home is situated in Forlorn Muskeg, inside the Old Bear's Den.
- In The Hunted, Part Two, the bear follows a very specific path as it runs across Mystery Lake. If the player doesn't see the old bear, they might need to walk along a certain path to get it to spawn.
- Unlike normal bears, you can not stop the the Old Bear from charging at the player by shooting the flare gun and/or firearms at it.
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