My uncle Don on his ranch in Montana for decades used his 222 with a Unertl scope for hundreds of head of big game .Only when he hunted Moose and Elk would he use a larger rifle .He told me shortly before he died he had killed over 300 deer in his 75 + years of hunting most with the 222 and never lost one when shooting with that rifle. He also killed a lot of Bear with the 222 .Again it is not the caliber but the shooter and my Uncle was a quite excellent shot. He shot a lot for semi sustenance and meat. I have seen him wack Mule Deer at 250 plus yards and obliterate a Black Bears skull at 75 .He shot so many coyotes with that old rifle that you could never count over the years.