What Is… Monster Hunter World

Picture taken from Reddit by user u/Rynask

Introduction

Monster Hunter World is an action role playing game developed by Capcom and published in early 2018 on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, and Q3 2018 on PC. The game is the fifth entry of the main series and is the first major series to enter the three main platforms of video games, the PS4, Xbox One and PC. The game’s plot revolves around a large group of hunters who encounters a strange behavior of a massive monster leading them on an adventure to discover the cause. Today, Monster Hunter has become a successful franchise for Capcom and has established a large amount of fan across the world, releasing merchandises and making the game’s iconic monsters to appear in other games (Metal Gear Solid Peace Walker collaboration, Final Fantasy XIV Collaboration, and others that I might not know yet). So, don’t be surprise if you see this logo around, this is the iconic “Felyne” (yes, it is spelled this way in-game) comrade that the game has, starting from Monster Hunter 4 the Felyne comrade is called as Palico(es).

 Picture taken from redbubble.com, designed by user RaitonGatsu

As an old fan of Monster Hunter, knowing that World was going to be released on the PC was the greatest news I have ever heard in my entire gaming life so far. I started off playing my first Monster Hunter game when I was in junior high, it was on my old PlayStation 2. The game was introduced to me when I saw a friend playing his PSP at school, I looked at the game and asked him “What is that game?”, back then he was playing Monster Hunter Freedom Unite when it was just released on PSP in 2009, however he simply answered to me, “Monster Hunter”. That was the start of my monster hunting journey, 10 years of hunting experience (600+ hours on Freedom Unite, 300+ hours on Portable 3^rd if not mistaken, and 300+ hours on World). I think I am eligible enough to state my personal point of view and information for those of you who plan to buy Monster Hunter World but are still worried if it is worth it. Believe me, it is.

      

 My character in Monster Hunter World, with over 300+ hours of gaming now. I play on PC platform.

World is similar to any other Monster Hunter game, it emphasizes on its “grinding” gameplay. Now, this might be the most tedious or on the contrary the most rewarding technicality that the game has. To make matter simpler, the gameplay equals to take quest, hunt, finish hunt, collect rewards, build and upgrade weapons and armors (there are more than just weapons and armors but you get the idea), and repeat the whole cycle. This might seem tedious and boring, however, what exciting about Monster Hunter is their reward system and amazing replayability at the end of the game. On top of that, thanks to the numerous free updates, it simply keeps the game alive and never runs out of new content. I will try to share as much useful information for you guys without spoiling the game’s story. We are going to talk about the gameplay breakdown, the type of weapons, and finally the type of monsters.

Character Creation

So first, at the start of the game, players are asked to create their own character which will be used throughout the entire game. This feature has been introduced from the very first Monster Hunter game and it has been like this in every game (except for Monster Hunter Poka Poka Airu Village, developed by FromSoftware, aye, the game that brought you Dark Souls now brought you cute cats that can cook and fight monsters, and Monster Hunter Story, what in the freaking world Capcom was thinking by developing this one). Similarly to most action RPG games, this feature is the most fundamental and an everybody-is-used-to feature. Selecting genders, tweaking facial features and overall body size are all part of the character creation. Apart from creating and designing our character, Monster Hunter World also allows player to create and customize their palico based on what players thought would be purrrfectly suitable. 

 Character creation and adjustment

Monster Hunter does not have the attribute system for our character to be upgraded, it doesn’t have leveling up feature for our character to get stronger too like other traditional RPG games. Instead, it relies on the weapons for damage and armors for defense. Meaning, everyone starts off with lower damage weapons and lower defense armors. As they progress, we can upgrade our weapons and armors to become stronger, this is equal to upgrading our character. That means, as you progress further it is necessary to upgrade or to change both your weapons and armors.  

Cooperative

Just like the previous Monster Hunter games, World offers the possibilities for players to engage in multiplayer experience. Players are required to use internet connection to play the online multiplayer. Traditionally, Monster Hunter allows up to 4 players in a quest of hunting monsters. It is important to keep in mind that World requires a full-time internet connection to play. Well, you can play without connecting internet but your Steam achievement (if you are playing on the PC) won’t be recorded, so I suggest you keep playing with your internet connection on. One thing that is amazing about Monster Hunter is that it is possible to beat the game by soloing your way all through the game. But, it is always a fun experience to call your fellow hunters to join in on a quest to capture or to slay the good old Rathalos (For those who are not familiar with what Rathalos is, Rathalos is a type of wyvern that you will encounter in the game, it has been Monster Hunter’s flagship ever since the first game in 2004, check out the big picture at the very top of this article, that’s Rathalos). Anyways, Monster Hunter World introduces the SOS system for the online multiplayer gameplay, this feature opens opportunity for players to hop in on an SOS quest for players who are facing difficulty hunting. Players are able to fire an SOS flare and just wait for reinforcement to join the hunt. So, go on hunt solo and fire the flare whenever you feel it’s necessary.

Weapon Types

In World, players are introduced to all 14 returning weapon types, 11 melee weapons and 3 ranged weapons, those are, the long sword (my all time favorite), the great sword, dual blades, sword and shield, switch axe, charge blade, hammer, hunting horn, lance, gunlance, insect glaive for the melee weapons, bow, light bowgun, and finally heavy bowgun for the ranged weapon. For veteran players, all weapons have similar move set as previous series, with additional new combo/attack maneuver. For players who are new to Monster Hunter, fret not, the game provides training ground and offers a list of move set for all players to choose their hunting weapon that suits their playstyle.

 All 14 weapon types

So far, I have played Monster Hunter (2004), Monster Hunter Freedom 2, Monster Hunter Freedom Unite, Monster Hunter 3 (Wii), Monster Hunter Portable 3^rd, and finally Monster Hunter World. I think, Monster Hunter World distribute the strength and weakness of each weapon type equally. In other words, each weapon has their own uniqueness which will make you want to try them out as you progress further in the game. This is one of the amazing gameplay Monster Hunter World provides, despite the grinding, players are given the option to step out of their comfort zone and to try different role in each quest they take by changing their weapon type. On top of that, since the distribution of the weapons’ strengths are equal, it is the main reason that allows players to solo all monsters in the game. However, I only recommend this for veteran players as going solo on tough monsters usually will take longer time but man, the pride…

Pink Rathian encounter

The Monsters

Next up, I am going to talk about the overview of what kind of “enemies” you are going to face in Monster Hunter. Well, the title says it all, you are going to hunt monsters. But, just what kind of monsters you are going to hunt. Monster Hunter always has this immersive feeling that lets player assume the role of a hunter and at the same time as a nature enthusiast who is hunting either for pride or for the sake of balanced ecosystem. In World, there are the introduction of new monsters most notably the Great Jagras (a type of giant four-legged lizard) and Anjanath (a t-rex like monster) which feature a lot on the gameplay trailer. There are also the returning old monsters such as the afore mentioned Rathalos, Rathian (the female counterpart of Rathalos), the aptonoth (the innocent herbivore which always become the victim of all carnivores), and other monsters that I don’t want to spoil for you guys veteran players. 

An encounter with Anjanath

Now, Monster Hunter has this habit of classifying types of monsters for hunters to hunt and to study the behavior of the monsters through their hunter notes. I am going to talk about the most basic monster classification first, those are the small monsters and the large monsters. The small monsters consist of all those monsters that will not pose as great threat to you, they are there simply because you need some of their materials to create certain armors or weapons, or you simply need their meat to be cooked. The large monsters are the real objectives in the game, they are the ones you need to hunt in order to complete the quest. This includes the Rathalos, the Great Jagras and the Anjanath that I mentioned before, they are all large monsters. 

To make matter more specific, the large monsters are divided into 6 types of monsters, those are the bird wyvern, fanged wyvern, brute wyvern, piscine wyvern, flying wyvern, and finally the elder dragon. Although some monsters don’t actually look like a wyvern (some are actually fish some like dinosaurs) but that’s just how Monster Hunter classifies their monsters. Each monster in World has unique interaction to different environment. Another new feature which I found really really cool, that is the “turf war”. In previous Monster Hunter games, the encounter of one large monster with another large monster is normal. They will try to attack hunter while at the same time hitting each other unintentionally, there was never a real fight between monsters until World. When certain monsters encounter each other, the game will automatically be engaged in a turf war where a special animation occurs. For example, Rathalos and Anjanath will engage in a turf war when they happen to encounter each other. Turf war occurs only on certain combination of monsters, it deals damage to the losing monster or both monsters will end up in a tie, inflicting damage to each other. Not only this acts as a cool immersive wildlife experience, this also comes in handy when it comes to damage output veteran players want to cause. Win – win!

Note: Not all monsters will engage in turf war but they will still attack each other!

A turf war between Diablos and Black Diablos

Conclusion

To summarize, Monster Hunter World is so far the best game I have ever played, and I think it’s one of those best game in 2018. Capcom has made the right decision in bringing the game to global players, no more region restriction, no more handheld platform exclusive, we are talking about major installment of the series. The game has the core elements of classic RPG game which are the progress of the character that we play, and the unique playstyles offered to players. I can see Capcom’s effort in really trying to gather as many players all around the globe, they provide full in-game tutorials which are very newbie friendly, they provide fresh new stories which is also newbie friendly and at the same bringing a whole new hunting experiences for veteran Monster Hunter players. The number of monsters in the game is cannot be compared to Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate (having a total number of approximately 125 monsters, small and large monsters included), however the uniqueness Capcom designed for each monster in World brings about the most immersive Monster Hunter game I have played so far. The game is currently on their first year since its released and I can tell you this game will be alive for several years thanks to the free updates and constant maintenance by Capcom. They really know how to keep this game as lively as it could. The free updates are amazing, a lot of awesome collaboration, from acquiring Dante’s skin from Devil May Cry to playing as Geralt in collaboration of The Witcher 3. And it is all free! Talk about free, there are paid content but those are all cosmetic items that have no effect on changing the gameplay other than eye candy. 

 

 The Witcher 3 collaboration as part of the free update

Also, Monster Hunter Iceborne has come out, it is the first expansion pack for World, it brings along new monsters and returning monsters, it adds new hunting locations and new weapons and armors and a lot more that I might not want to cover in this conclusion. For your information, Iceborne is not free, it is a paid expansion pack, but I assure you it is worth the price.

 Image taken from fanatical.com

Monster Hunter World Iceborne was released on September 6th 2019 on PS4 and Xbox One, January 9th 2020 for PC.

So, there we go, I hope I have covered the information that you guys need to assure yourself whether or not to buy or not buy Monster Hunter World. The game takes time and dedication but in the end it will all be worth it. Plus, the game can go up to 50% discount on steam, so it’s really really worth to try. See you in the hunting ground, fellow hunters.

Cheers.