The game features 20 different episodes with an array of environments to chose from with different weather and hunting conditions to deal with. You are also able to customize almost every piece of equipment, altering their appearance to match players preferences. On top of the upgrade able camo, consumables such as bait, scent spray, and scent wafers lower the chances of deer spotting you can make a big difference in completing a hunt. Primary and secondary equipment is offered and upgrade able through the game allowing you to progress and gain a better "skill level" as a hunter. You'll need a hunting license, which allow the player to shoot animals within the game. There are currently licenses for whitetail doe, whitetail buck, raccoon, turkey and squirrel. When a new player starts the game they receive the doe license for free. The remaining licenses are available for purchase either using earned-in-game bucks or the premium paid max bucks.
Gameplay in Maximum Archery is broken into three phases. The first phase is the Pre Hunt setup. In this phase, players must choose which tree stand or blind they would like to hunt from. Generally this selection is based on the current wind direction which can be determined by the player's GPS. The player then walks through the environment to their chosen location. Once they have found their desired tree stand the player strategically places items such as decoys, scents, or lures to attract deer to their stand.
Once everything is in place, the player can enter the hunting phase of the game. From the tree stand or ground blind of their choice, the player can use grunt calls, rattles, and bleat cans to call (attract) the deer; or try to spot them with their binoculars and rangefinder. Once a deer is near, the player can chose to draw and shoot their bow. Different elements are taken into play here like wind resistance on your arrow, deer awareness (movement could cause them to spot you), and distance, and proximity of the shot.
After the shot is taken, the player enters the third phase. This phase follows a different path based on whether they have successfully killed a deer or not. A successful shot/kill is achieved when the player's arrow hits the heart or lungs of the deer. If you hit elsewhere on the deer or miss the deer completely, this is deemed as a mission fail. If players successfully hit their target, they must then collect their deer. Once the deer is collected, the player has completed the hunt.
