Perfect 10? Monster Hunter World is literally a game changer | Technobubble Reviews

There comes a time in every Monster Hunter player’s life where you find yourself racked by dismay, disappointment and self-doubt while three little words start to take root in the cold, dark corners of your mind.

“This is impossible.”

I don’t know how many times I uttered or thought those same words in my decade-long monster-hunting career. As someone who started out as a bowgun main and plays solo or in a duo 95 percent of the time, I’ll be the first to admit that I’ve had more than my fair share of such moments.

I can tell you this, I’m sure as heck that I’m not the only one. As they say, there are only a few things that are certain in life: Death, taxes and thinking “this is impossible” while playing Monster Hunter.

See, for the greater majority of Monster Hunter players out there, failure is the biggest lurking monster of all. For some, it can strike swift and early into the game while you’re still rocking armor with the durability of tissue paper. For others, it can patiently bide its time, waiting until your confidence is at its apex before breaking your spirit into a million shattered pieces in more devastating fashion.

About 40 or so hours into Monster Hunter World, my confidence was as high as a Valfark streaking across the big blue sky. Up to that point, I have survived every mission on the first try while rarely fainting — this, mind you, as a slow and more fragile heavy bowgunner who can go down in one or two heavy hits. Meanwhile, my last hunt proved to be a pulse-pounding tango with a subspecies monster that unfolded in epic fashion. These included a few times where I shot down the poor creature straight out of the sky while also cheating death by the skin of my teeth via several close calls. (Admittedly, I did get one-shot by an aerial tail flip, which I misjudged since the monster’s tail was cut and I didn’t think it would reach me.)

Needless to say, I waltzed into my final showdown with new big baddie Nergigante with an extra bounce in my step. I mean, I’ve already repelled the guy without much drama before. How bad could this prickly monster possibly be?

The hunt started out smoothly and I quickly got into a groove as I alternated between my Slicing, Pierce, Thunder and Wyvernfire ammo depending on my positioning. Just a few minutes into the fight, I had its tail cut and one of its horns broken. I was in the zone.

That’s when it all started.

I believe it might have been a diving attack followed by a concentrated rain of bony spikes that eventually knocked me out. This was quickly followed by two more ignoble faints, which wiped out all my hard work and sent me packing back to headquarters. It was my first ever failed mission in Monster Hunter World. It would not be my last.

Over my next three attempts against Nergigante, I unceremoniously triple cart and get sent home as I failed to replicate the success I had in the early stages of my first hunt. With each hunt my nerves would get tighter and surefire confidence gradually gave way to fading hope. Was I just lucky with those other close hunts? Should I wait until the game’s release and play with other players?

As I debated whether to farm mats for a few more extra points of defense or switch to a sturdier Blademaster set and abandon my pride as a gunner, three familiar words slowly but surely crept into my mind.

“This is impossible.”

I texted a friend out of frustration and my custom auto-text changed one of my words to “git gud.” Even random probability is actually trolling me hard. As I switched off my system at 10:40 a.m., the game actually made me look forward to something I thought I never would. That would be my 11 a.m. dental appointment.

Welcome to life as a Monster Hunter player.

With all the brand new changes in Monster Hunter World, I’m sure some of you are wondering why I decided to start out with my Nergigante sob story.

There’s a good reason. Actually, make that two.

Reason No. 1? I wanted to give newcomers an idea of what they’re getting into. As far as Monster Hunter World’s place in the wide world of action games, the series is definitely more Dark Souls than Devil May Cry from a mechanical standpoint. It might not feel quite as unfair as the Souls series but it can definitely be brutally punishing in a way that’s familiar to folks weaned on a steady diet of old-school games. You’re going to need to gird your loins with this one, especially when playing solo or as a two-person team (four players, even with the multiplayer monster buff, makes the game much easier, all things being equal).

As for the second reason for my Nergigante story, well, given all the new additions and changes Capcom made to Monster Hunter World, I wanted to answer a question that might be in the minds of the series’ more dedicated fans.

“Is Monster Hunter World still a Monster Hunter game?”

If you didn’t get a chance to play the beta and worry that Monster Hunter World is too different or might have gotten watered down to make it more friendly to newcomers, I have news for you. Beyond all its shiny bells and whistles, this is definitely still a Monster Hunter game.

Rathalos might sound a bit different but he still loves to annoy the heck out of Blademasters by constantly flying around like the coolest-looking troll you’ve ever seen. Black Diablos still makes my life flash before my eyes when she looks at me and readies her super charge while my Heavy Bowgun is unsheathed.

Besides its classic returning cast, Monster Hunter World’s new predators brings some interesting things to the table as well. Odogaron, who makes Nargacuga seem slow, apparently loves to gallivant around the Rotten Vale while quoting Ben Affleck’s Batman. Let’s just say that, yes, you will bleed if you’re not properly geared to prevent bleed status. Then there’s apex monster Bazelgeuse, who carpet-bombed me to oblivion after I laughably mistook it for a gold crown Great Girros and had the gall to attack it per my mission requirement. This mean-looking wanderer shares Deviljho’s love for inopportune stalking as well as operatic music that would make Wagner proud. It wasn’t until an actual and definitely much smaller Great Girros waltzed into the background with its lizard lackeys in tow that I realized the horrendous mistake I just made.

Having tested the mettle of many of the game’s creatures, including several elder dragons, I can say with confidence that Monster Hunter World still delivers when it comes to the “hunting” part of its gameplay. Given how the mechanics behind battling monsters serve as the soul of the series, the fact that this part stays true to its roots is a huge deal for veterans of the game.

Newcomers, meanwhile, will get a proper introduction to what Monster Hunter is all about, which is definitely a good thing. Granted, the game’s more purposeful and deliberate mechanics might cause some folks to bail when they hit that first wall. But for those who stick with it long enough to break down those walls, at least until the next one comes up, all I can say is you’re in for a treat.

OK, enough about what’s still the same, what about what’s new?

While hunts serve as the soul of Monster Hunter, visuals certainly serve as its flesh. And while it’s true that looks aren’t everything and what’s on the inside matters more than what’s on the outside, it sure is nice when you can have both.

As someone who constantly trumpets the mantra that gameplay is king, I’ll be the first to admit that it was the visuals that made my jaw drop when I saw the surprise Monster Hunter World reveal while watching the E3 2017 livestream.

As much as I loved playing Monster Hunter on the PSP and 3DS, one thing I missed when the series switched its focus to portable systems was having a true home console experience for the series. For many years, Monster Hunter Tri on the Wii was the lone exception, a game built for console from the ground up that felt fresh and looked reasonably good despite the underpowered hardware.

Outside of Tri, however, Monster Hunter has been primarily catering to portable systems, a reflection of the preferences of its Japanese base. This made sense at the time given Monster Hunter’s lack of traction in the more home console-friendly confines of the West. The downside, however, is that home console versions of the game became more of an afterthought. Instead of using the extra power of home consoles to introduce revolutionary mechanics, they instead played host to glorified ports of the handheld versions. The gameplay was still good but we saw incremental changes that, honestly, only managed to hold up due to the base mechanics’ strong foundation.

Once the China-only Monster Hunter Online game for PC came out, my yearning for a proper Monster Hunter game built for the latest consoles only became stronger. Monster Hunter XX on the Switch helped scratch that itch for a bit. But I longed to see what Monster Hunter’s “A-team,” which has been silent for four years, could build from scratch with a beefier system. It was a refrain that would regularly come up during conversations with a fellow Monster Hunter fan at work, with our conversations centering on improved visuals, monster AI and ecosystems as well as quality-of-life improvements to the aging formula.

Of course, it now turns out that while Monster Hunter’s second team was keeping the ship afloat with upgraded iterations of the old engine via 4U, Generations and XX, Monster Hunter’s first team was working on the exact game my friend and I have been clamoring for all along.

Monster Hunter World is like what The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Mario Odyssey and Resident Evil 4 were to their respective series. It’s a game changer that overhauls the old script in significant and unexpected ways while still keeping the essence of what made it great in the first place.

At the top of the list are the game’s visuals. Although Monster Hunter Tri felt like a big improvement visually over its predecessors, the advancement represented by Monster Hunter World is leaps and bounds beyond that.

I certainly expected the next generation of Monster Hunter to feature monsters with more detail, which Monster Hunter World delivers. What I did not expect was the level of improvement and attention to detail given to the game’s environs. For the longest time, monsters ruled Monster Hunter’s roost while the game’s areas felt more like placeholders that were just there to serve as containers for your hunting exploits. Granted, I remember thinking how neat it was to be able to interact with the environment by gathering materials or tracking a monster via paintballing when I first started playing Monster Hunter. With the exception of a few tweaks and Tri’s foray into underwater areas, however, the series’ environmental mechanics haven’t really changed much in its nearly 15-year existence.

That is, until Monster Hunter World. Thanks to a multitude of changes that completely revamp how you interact with its world, the game’s environment transforms from a mere afterthought to the point where it now shares top billing with the game’s monsters. I remember wondering why Capcom decided to name the game Monster Hunter World instead of Monster Hunter 5. Now it all makes sense. Monster Hunter has usually been about two things: monsters and hunters. Now its world is an equal piece of that entire puzzle providing a canvas that feels just as alive as the monsters and hunters that populate it. Monster Hunter World’s areas teem with an abundance of life, much of which you can interact with.

Whereas being in the same area as several monsters before used to be a ticket to the kitty cart because they end up joining forces to give you a good beating, the same situation in Monster Hunter World now triggers a fight for territory between two or even three monsters. These territorial fights are mighty impressive and while the bigger creature typically prevails, I’ve seen a Tobi-Kadachi send a Rathian fleeing after a timely tail attack.

In addition to the monsters that you can hunt and carve, there’s also an assortment of little creatures littered about everywhere. In some cases, these can provide advantages in battle, whether it be healing via a Vigorwasp or paralyzing a monster by hitting a Paratoad at the right time. Just keep in mind that the same electric mist that can stop a monster cold can do the same thing to you, too. Even small creatures that seem to serve no purpose can still be interacted with as well. By equipping your small capture net, you can catch these critters and use them later to decorate either your private quarters or your larger private suite. I’ve captured birds, frogs, giant flying millipedes and even small hordes of ants, the latter occurring much to the amusement of my brother, who I didn’t realize was watching me for several minutes.

“I can’t believe you just captured a line of ants,” my brother said with half amusement and half disbelief.

“Yup,” I replied.

“Is there no limit to what you’re willing to catch with that little net of terror of yours?” he said.

“Nope,” I said. “Just wait till you see my awesome room.”

“I don’t know if I want to stay in a room with a line of ants on the floor,” my brother replied before scurrying away like a Melynx that just got a good whacking.

Can’t argue with that.

The same level of interaction extends to the world’s large ensemble of flora. In addition to gathering those familiar herbs and mushrooms, which you can now pick up on the run without having to stop, you can also trigger Poisoncups to spill a toxic puddle on the ground or lead monsters to a vine-laden tree that can trap them for a few seconds.

You can even hide inside bushes, which helps a lot given the absence of hard map-outs in the game’s now more open sandboxes. Others serve as rope vines that you can swing with parkour style to get to hard-to-reach places. Inanimate objects can be used to your advantage as well, such as sending a pile of rocks crashing down on a monster’s head.

Monster Hunter World’s areas are as alive as they are vast with lots of hidden nooks and crannies for you to explore. I can’t count how many times I got sidetracked while hunting a monster because I noticed a little opening or ran across a Grimalkyne cat that goads me to follow it as it runs back to its secret hideout, eventually teaching my cat partner a new skill. Learning about the game’s different environments gave me the same sense of wonder I felt from exploring Breath of the Wild’s various locations thanks to all the random and unexpected things I ran into. It’s the thrill of making such discoveries that encourage me to keep exploring the game’s larger sandboxes as I continue to stumble upon new things in areas I thought I’ve fully examined.

Speaking of cats, Monster Hunter World features the cutest, most relatable and arguably most helpful incarnation of your Palico friends yet. I actually recreated my old cat, Inky, who passed away from cancer a few years back. A stray that my brother found shivering in the street, Inky used to hop on my chest as a little kitten and lick my face when I slept on the couch. I moved three times with that cat, who was with my brother and I through the tough times in college when we lived paycheck to paycheck all the way to the point where we finally had successful professional careers. Through thick and thin, Inky was a warm and loving companion who gave both of us great joy. I mean, how many cats do you know that can fetch like a dog? Anyway, my Palico's likeness to Inky is so uncanny, I sometimes catch myself smiling, almost crying or doing both at the same time. It's like having an old, loyal friend by my side once again.

I actually gave my Palico a poison weapon and the little bugger is a toxic terror against the monsters I face. I also can’t count the number of times Inky has saved my hide with her uncanny timing for Vigorwasp heals as opposed to the more random cat heals I used to get in previous games. Otherwise, you can manually request your Palico to heal you if needed in a pinch. Healing is just one skill that your cat can do. One of my cousins, for example, has his cat set to plant flash bomb bubbles, which he’s used on several occasions to send a Rathalos crashing down to the ground.

I do miss the ability from Monster Hunter X and XX to take control of your own cat as a living weapon and use it to hunt monsters. Maybe that’s something that can be added at some point. In the meantime, you have your full complement of actual weapons available, each with its own new features. As someone, who traded my bowguns for the Insect Glaive for the majority of Monster Hunter 4 and Generations, I love the weapon’s new aerial combos, which grant you lots of mobility and make mounting a breeze. Granted, mounting takes longer and has diminishing returns when you’re not in a group. But the extra aerial option combined with easier bug aiming and upgrading are a nice quality-of-life improvement. Gunning, meanwhile, is a lot less cumbersome thanks to a revamped aiming system and extra mobility. You’re still gonna be broke buying ammo for a good part of the game but it’s so much fun that I’ve returned to maining the Heavy Bowgun for Monster Hunter World.

Story quests, meanwhile, can now be tackled as a team instead of solo, allowing you to enjoy World’s expanded story with others. While it’s certainly not The Last of Us, Monster Hunter World’s story is the most expansive ever seen in a mainline Monster Hunter game and actually tackles some interesting themes related to the game’s elder dragons. I won’t spoil it here but it certainly made going through the story a lot more interesting compared to previous games.

You also have optional quests that further expand your mission pool and can be repeated. Meanwhile, expeditions, which are more open-ended and aren’t timed, allow you to enjoy the game’s vast areas at your leisure if you want to explore or fulfill some bounties without worrying about a ticking clock. These bounties, by the way, typically reward spheres that can be used to upgrade your armor’s defense and require you to fulfill assignments that can be done mid-mission like gathering enough mushrooms or hunting certain types of monsters. You also can fulfill requests for improving your canteen or garden, which provide buffs or resources that make your hunting life much easier. You even have special arenas that allow you to fight monsters in a special enclosure, complete with ballistas, cannons and a Dragonator. Add the ability to send freelance cats on missions for procuring materials or finding Grimalkynes and camps and there’s no shortage of things to do in Monster Hunter World. By the time I reached Nergigante, which is not the end of the campaign, I was close to 40 hours into the game — and that’s without tackling several optional missions. That’s also before fighting monsters such as Teostra and Kushala Daora, which I had to unlock by finding enough of their tracks as part of the story.

Now that I’ve talked about what’s new in Monster Hunter World and answered whether this is still a Monster Hunter game, another question comes to mind.

How does it compare to games from the past?

The answer is something that I really thought long and hard about. I love Monster Hunter. In fact, there’s no other series that I’ve spent as much time on in the last two or so console generations. While I’ve always scored the game high even way back when people would slam it for its “clunky gameplay,” I’ve never given the game a 10. Heck, I’ve never given any game a 10 since I started reviewing them as part of my job. That is, until Breath of the Wild last year.

As much as I love Monster Hunter World, I’ll be the first to say that it isn’t perfect. Despite its many quality of life improvements, for example — including the ability to research monsters and learn what materials they drop from which body part as well as the removal of many of its more cumbersome systems — the game can still be quite complicated, especially for newcomers.

Although I love the new ecosystem and its interactions, tracking footprints can be a pain later in the game when you have to search large swaths of areas to find special monsters in order to progress the story, particularly in places like the Rotten Vale or Coral Highlands. And while the game removes hard zones, there will still be times when monsters won’t follow you out of a specific area. I had to goad Nergigante multiple times before he followed me out of his lair, for example, as he usually kept running back once we got to a certain point, breaking the immersion of a living environment. Then you have little niggles, like how the same button that makes you dash while climbing rocks and wall vines makes you jump off a tendril vine.

Looking at the overall picture, however, those are minor quibbles in an extensive, bold and risky reinterpretation of a beloved formula. Monster Hunter World is the biggest, most impactful change to occur in the history of the series, one that creates a new, bold blueprint that will now shape its future games. It also marks the series' conscious decision to move away from being a Japan-centric game to one that’s made for all gamers around the world.

The game could have easily done what’s safe and made minor improvements to a tried-and-true formula. Instead of going for the easy cash grab, however, Monster Hunter World takes a big risk creatively and financially by going for broke and making the most ambitious entry in the series at a time when Triple-A games are under immense pressure to perform. Monster Hunter World is a labor of love and it shows in the game’s attention to detail and its massive, impactful changes. At the same time, it has managed to keep an essential part of Monster Hunter intact. That would be the one-on-one connection between hunter and monster when they meet on the field and take each other head-on.

Is it perfect? No, it’s not. Is it a 10? In the eyes of this Monster Hunter veteran, absolutely.

This is the best mainline Monster Hunter game I’ve played. Ever. It’s also one of the best games I’ve ever played, period.

As for Nergigante, it turns out an hour in the dentist’s chair can do you wonders. Maybe sitting there motionless with a clear mind was akin to meditation. Maybe it’s because of all the medication coursing through my numb face. Whatever it was, I got a sense of clarity that made me replay my past Nergigante hunts in my head and figure out patterns I didn’t notice in the heat of battle.

So I got home, booted up my PS4 and made a beeline for Nergigante with a new sense of hope.

“I shouldn’t worry about only having two chances before failing this mission,” I thought. “Nergigante actually needs me to make three big mistakes in order for him to win, so he’s the one in a tougher spot!”

Naturally, I quickly get knocked out just a couple of minutes into my hunt after doing a panic roll.

Unlike the first hunt where I started out great and choked in the last few minutes, however, this hunt proved to be the opposite. I started poorly but slowly started doing better as the hunt went on. Soon, I was in the zone again and was making more correct decisions than dumb ones. After a heated battle, Nergigante started limping away toward his lair with two missing horns and his cut tail tucked between his legs. I wait for him to sleep and Wyvernfire his face but the tough bastard refuses to fall so I lead him out into the open to finish him off. Unfortunately, another poorly executed roll knocks me out.

As I nervously made my way back to his lair, I started to ponder the meaning of life and the correct dosage for ibuprofen. I then arrive at Nergigante’s location, admire his sleeping face for a moment, then load the Wyvernfire once more and pray that this last shot gets him.

Boom! The horny sucker is still alive and kicking. And he's super pissed.

I mutter “oh, sweet Jeebus” and quickly run toward the same open space where I fainted just a few moments ago. Everything was a blur after that. I remember pelting him with shots here and there but, honestly, I spent more time running around like a fool than shooting the guy.

Then I pressed the trigger one more time and the death animation played. I thought I was dreaming, looked at the screen again, slammed my hand on the couch and stood up and yelled “yeah!”

I rarely, ever yell. Like, never.

I excitedly text the same friend, who responds, “Haha sounds like a 10/10 to me.”

Talk about a perfect response.

Rating: 10 out of 10

10 out of 10 Cost: $59.99, PS4 and XB1 (PC release later)

$59.99, PS4 and XB1 (PC release later) http://www.monsterhunterworld.com/

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