Sure you can hit things out to 500 meters but I am talking about killing game animals ethically. Accurate heart/lung shots on a Fallow deer for instance is quite difficult with 1 to 1 magnification at 150 to 200 yards, as it is with open sights. Classic rifles often had sights to 500 or even 1000 yards but that doesn't mean that you could accurately hit the vitals of an animal. The stories of hunters in those days is also filled with tales of animals needing many shots to be killed and follow-ups lasting many hours tracking wounded game that were gut shot etc. If they were so good at 200 yards than no one would bother buying a scope with magnification which costs more and is heavier. I hunt a lot with an Aimpoint for deer and find them fantastic but I limit my shots to 150 yards or there abouts. If you feel comfortable that you can take longer shots accurately than by all means go ahead. I must say that I prefer to stalk in as close as possible rather than long shots anyway, but that's just me.

Waidmannsheil.