Jason Hidalgo

Reno Gazette-Journal

The Monster Hunter series is my bae.

Ever since I got into the series about a decade ago, I have faithfully played various incarnations from overseas and the West, spending a fortune, not just on the games but its super thick Japanese guides. (There are video game guides and then there are Japanese Monster Hunter game guides. Talk about the gold standard of what a game guide should be.)

Meanwhile, I’ve turned several family members into my own personal coven of Monster Hunters, typically after buying them copies of the game and painstakingly teaching them its various nuances through the years.

Heck, my very first gaming videos for my Tabiasobi YouTube channel were from Monster Hunter, which were then followed by an assortment of online guides I’ve painstakingly pieced together for entries such as Monster Hunter 4U as well as Monster Hunter Generations and XX.

As such, to say that I’ve been anticipating the arrival of Monster Hunter World is a huge understatement. Case in point: I actually brought my old PS4 with me during a trip to California so I could play the Monster Hunter World Beta in the evenings. Basically, I just couldn’t wait to try the much talked about changes and improvements myself. It’s only a slice as the demo does not include a bunch of other features. That being said, the demo is an appetizer that provides enough of a taste to see what's going on.

Here are the changes that struck me the most.

Look and feel

Every discussion about what’s new with Monster Hunter World has to start with the game’s overall presentation and feel. I haven’t had a Monster Hunter game feel this new to me since Monster Hunter Tri on the Wii. Tri introduced a lot of key changes such as improved hitboxes and visuals plus underwater hunting. Even with its lower monster count, it felt like a next-generation Monster Hunter game when it came out.

The same can be said about Monster Hunter World. This game definitely benefits from the move to a more powerful home console in ways that the 3DS versions were not able to — whether it be its visuals, ecosystem, monster behavior or overall mechanics. Everything just looks so nice and detailed from the terrain and the monsters to the bullet effects (especially love how the slicing and sticky shots embed themselves into a monster’s flesh then start slicing or exploding away).

Monster Hunter World also dials down the flashy “anime-ficaton” introduced by later games, especially Generations and Double Cross with their hunter arts. You still have some nice eye candy when attacking. But gone are the oversaturated colors from Monster Hunter 4 and the extra flash from XX. Despite the extra level of detail, this one’s a little more subdued overall with its color palette, weapon visuals and sound effects while you attack, marking a return to the roots of the series.

Even with the lack of features such as the underwater hunting from Monster Hunter's third generation, the game looks and feels different enough that the jump for veteran hunters still won’t be as automatic as the switch from the third to the fourth generation. Yes, the base mechanics stem from the same foundation but this isn’t the exact same Monster Hunter that you know and love. It reminds me of a mix of Monster Hunter and Dragon’s Dogma, which is something I’ve actually been advocating for since first playing the latter. For a series that has had difficulties garnering more mainstream appeal while also being at risk for getting stale, the difference, I feel, is a good thing overall that makes the game fresh even for series veterans.

A bonafide training area

You can avail of one of the big changes in the game even before you go on your first hunt.

Monster Hunter has never been the easiest series to get into for newcomers. A lot of the changes in MHW are an obvious nod to addressing that big elephant, er, Popo (or Gammoth?) in the room and go a long way in making the break-in period for new players less of a confusing, confidence-killing slog.

This starts with the addition of an actual training area that integrates multiple elements such as training dummies, climbing areas and spots to practice the new slinger and grappling mechanics, as well as a suggested combo list and easier gear swapping. Gone are the days when “training” involved looking at a combo list or being thrown into an arena with no guidance on how to actually use the weapon you’re training for.

That being said, there's still a lot here to process for newcomers so it remains to be seen how much of a learning curve they still face despite these changes.

Good kind of camping

Quality of life is a common thread for many of the changes in Monster Hunter World and camp mechanics is one of them. In the past, camps served either as:

A starting point for hunts, particularly in low rank.

The place where you get dumped at unceremoniously via kitty cart when you faint.

The area you schlepped toward to sleep and heal or grab a map and various freebies.

Some of those still apply but base camps in MHW now serve a larger purpose and are no longer limited to one spot. For starters, you can now eat in camp, which prevents all those times when you’ve had to quit missions because you or someone else in your party forgot to get food buffs. You can also change gear anytime in camp, which is great in case you bring the wrong set or are hunting multiple monsters with varying weaknesses. Camps also serve as quick travel points, allowing you to more easily traverse the games larger maps and get from Point A to Point B. Quick travel can even serve as a map-out tactic of sorts, especially now that you no longer have distinct areas in a map that load independently as their own separate spot.

Armor all

Traditionally, Monster Hunter armor diverged in several ways. First, you had different looks between male and female armor. Then you had to craft separate versions for melee weapons and long-range weapons — a distinction that separates the game’s two main classes, known as Blademaster and Gunner — with bowgun and bow users typically getting less defense overall to account for their range advantage.

While Monster Hunter World still keeps the difference in looks between male and female armor (male Anjanath armor, for example, features a bulkier set with a closed helmet while the female version shows more skin and has an open helmet face), it drops the hard distinction between Blademaster and Gunner armor. This means you only need to make a certain armor type once and it can be used by both Blademaster and Gunners. The game will then apply automatic stat adjustments depending on whether you’re using a close-range or long-range weapon. On one hand, I like the extra convenience this entails as you no longer have to craft separate armors for melee and ranged weapons. You do lose that extra cosmetic variety, however, that used to distinguish a Blademaster armor from a Gunner armor in terms of looks.

Armor skills, meanwhile, have been streamlined a bit by replacing the old point system with skill levels. Before, each armor piece would typically come with partial point values for certain skills that can be combined with other armor pieces that have the same skill. Once those points reach a certain total threshold like 10, the skill would then activate. In Monster Hunter World, each armor piece comes with a skill that activates by itself, so you get a skill boost even with just one piece. It’s not as big a boost as a full set from the older games but you can still get that by stacking the effects of other pieces with the same skill. The main difference now is that it’s no longer an all-or-nothing proposition where you have to reach a point total before a skill activates.

If the Samurai set from the game’s deluxe edition is also any indication, it appears that there will be available skins that let you change the look of an armor set while keeping its skills. Just based on the beta, however, I’m not sure if the transmog feature from Monster Hunter XX will be available in this game as well.

Fly on the wall

Goodbye, paintballs. To track and mark your target monster, you now use scout flies to gather information about the monster via its footprints and marks to create a profile of the creature and then track it automatically. The flies can also start tracking a big monster once you encounter it, even if you didn’t track its footprints beforehand.

Personally, I loved the old paintball mechanic when I first started playing Monster Hunter. Admittedly, though, they started to feel a bit old after several generations and also became a source of frustration during long and tough hunts when I had to constantly re-apply them.

Granted, the flies make tracking a bit too easy for the most part. But it also adds an extra element to the gameplay, particularly when you first track footprints, scrape marks, mucus or other remnants from a monster. Admittedly, it's not perfect. The fact that it tracks both gathering items and footprints using the same color glow can be a bit annoying when looking for monster marks, especially when faced with a short time limit. It can also be a bit of a pain when a map has multiple monsters and you end up tracking the wrong creature.

Then again, this encourages developing knowledge about a stage's ecosystem and remembering each monster's turf. Since the demo doesn't save mission progress like a normal game, I'm not quite sure if a monster's tracking info gets saved for future hunts or if you have to re-track monsters everytime you start a stage.

No boundaries

As mentioned earlier, Monster Hunter World ditches the old system of having separate areas in each map that had to be loaded individually as you entered them. Instead, you have a large overall map that takes out those hard loading screens every time you switched areas.

For series veterans, this is a bit of a double-edged sword.

For starters, you lose the ability to map out of an area to escape a monster or catch a break if you’re getting your butt whooped. Although those load screens were more a function of the limits of technology when Monster Hunter first came out, they became integrated into the series gameplay through the years.

On the plus side, you still have options for catching a breather, whether it be using stealth mantles or simply fast traveling back to camp after getting some separation from a monster. Basically, you still have options for escape but you just have to think differently.

I also love how the lack of loading screens makes for a better, more realistic flow for hunts. You’re basically always engaged and interacting with a world that’s also a lot more dynamic and features terrain that’s more in line with the real world. Gone are the mostly flat areas, replaced by terrain with varying gradations that are more, well, natural. The lack of loading screens also encourages you to use your environment to your advantage, such as leading your target to a tangle of vines to immobilize them or baiting them into another monster to trigger a fight over territory.

More monster interaction

Speaking of monsters, one of the things I love about Monster Hunter World is the interaction between its various apex predators. In the older games, it used to annoy me how you would get two big monsters on the same map and they would essentially ignore each other and gang up on you. They could still damage each other but it’s more like collateral damage. Regardless, it felt highly unnatural.

In Monster Hunter World, getting two big monsters in the same area typically triggers a fight for territory, which is more reflective of animal behavior in the real world and adds an extra dimension of strategy to hunts. It’s just nice to see this baked into the game’s mechanics now as opposed to only appearing in cutscenes like they did in the old games.

One other thing I loved was how your Palico can actually tame minor monsters and have them fight by your side. I found that to be a hoot, especially when my Palicoes actually ride them during battle.

Damage and distance

The addition of damage indicators can be a sore spot for purists. For newcomers or even longtime players who don’t have the wherewithal to remember complicated formulas or weak spots for a bazillion monsters, however, it’s a godsend.

It’s just nice to see clear, concise proof of how much damage an attack is doing as opposed to hoping and guessing that you’re doing the right thing if you don’t have everything memorized.

I especially like it as a Gunner main as it helps figure out the right ammo to use and ideal spots to hit to pump out maximum damage. Add a reticle for gunners that also gives you an idea of the critical distance for each ammo before you shoot and these are the kinds of quality-of-life improvements that I can get on board with as a longtime fan of the game.

The item wheel

As much as I love Monster Hunter, its user interface for item switching has always driven me a bit batty. This is especially true as a gunner, which adds a buttload of ammo to your already sizable item list.

Heaven knows how many times I’ve used the wrong item while hurriedly switching mid-battle or even fainted after I wasn’t quick enough in scrolling through the item bar to get an Antidote or Max Potion.

While the traditional item bar remains in Monster Hunter World, you also get an option now for a quick item wheel that includes your key items. It also comes in four sets that can be toggled for stuff like items, equips and ammo. It’s a huge quality of life improvement that makes item use quicker and hunting a lot smoother.

No arm flex

On the subject of item use, when I talk to newcomers who flame out of Monster Hunter, the arm flex is a common complaint I hear when they list the reasons why they end up quitting. I try to explain that it’s an intended mechanic that prevents heal spamming and encourages players to learn timing. But the fact that the hunter does what they consider a stupid action, can make it a hard sell.

In contrast, the ability to heal while moving in Monster Hunter World is easier to accept. Your mobility is still limited so you’re still an easy target. But at least you’re not rooted to the same spot as you flex your arms like an idiot while a monster barrels toward you.

The fact that getting hit or doing a roll in mid-animation cancels the full heal is also a good mechanic as it gives you an option to avoid massive damage if you mess up your timing while also preventing heal spamming.

More targeting options

The addition of a soft lock on in Monster Hunter 3U was one of my favorite quality-of-life improvements in the series, especially as someone who started out as a Gunner main. Monster Hunter World builds on that by also adding focused targeting as a second option. This acts more like an actual lock-on mechanic for folks who want to track a monster’s movements more automatically.

Combined with the reworked perspective and targeting for gunners — which makes MHW feel more like a third-person shooter — gunning feels a lot more intuitive this time around while hitting targets also feels quicker and easier. Do be warned that the focused targeting can get squirrely at times especially when following targets on terrain with significant unevenness. Fortunately, you can toggle it off when it acts up with a simple press stick press. Otherwise, you can go to your setting and change it to the soft lock-on from previous games.

Smoking guns

Speaking of gunning, I started my foray into Monster Hunter as a Gunner main. Yes, I dabbled with the longsword while playing Monster Hunter Freedom Unite on the PSP at first but I honestly didn’t play that game long enough to claim that I spent a serious amount of time on it.

Instead, my first Monster Hunter game that I really played the heck out of was Monster Hunter Tri on the Wii. I didn't know any better back then and started out as a Gunner, which was like a baptism of fire. As tough as it was having half health and being one- or two-shot by the game's heavy hitters, gunning is what ultimately got me hooked on Monster Hunter. I just loved the ability to mix and match bowgun parts, easily inflict status conditions on monsters and shoot flying creatures straight out of the air. In fact, I logged in more than 500 hours before even touching a Blademaster weapon in that game.

Once Monster Hunter 4 and Generations came along, however, I switched to maining the Insect Glaive. Part of it was the fact that I was putting together guides so I focused on finishing key quests for the story and online as quickly as possible. The other reason is that gunning is crazy expensive and also a bit of a pain to set up as far as your item pouch was concerned. It wasn’t until Monster Hunter XX that I started gunning again, largely due to the fun you can have with the different hunting styles as a Gunner.

With Monster Hunter World, I will be starting as a Gunner main once again for the first time in years. There’s just something satisfying about the gunning mechanics with this game that made me feel in love with the Bowguns once again. The game also adds some new quirks for the Light and Heavy Bowguns and you get the option to customize them again, though I'm not sure if it's as comprehensive as it was in Tri.

One thing I liked about the HBG in Monster Hunter World is the addition of special ammo such as Wyvernsnipe and Wyvernheart, which become available for use by filling a special bar. Wyvernsnipe lets you crouch siege mode style and shoot off one powerful shot that triggers an initial set of explosions followed by a second damaging barrage. This is great for inflicting massive giant enemy crab damage in one fell swoop. Wyvernheart, on the other hand, turns your HGB into a chain gun that you can keep firing until you run out of charge. The individual hits do less damage than Wyvernsnipes explosion but you can chain a ton of them for flinching monsters or making quick work of Barroth’s mud armor. The latter also can be activated even without a full bar but lasts a for shorter period of time if only partially charged. The only downside is that I didn’t seem to see an option for Siege Mode anymore unless I just missed it.

For Light Bowguns, you get a special ammo called Wyvern Blast that allows you to plant wyvern ammo on the ground and then shoot at it while the monster is close by to trigger a damage boost. It also appears like it can self-destruct and damage any nearby monster. For Light Bowguns, which aren’t as damaging as their heavy counterparts, this provides a much welcome attack boost on top of traditional methods such as Rapid Fire.

One thing I love is how switching to different ammo at first doesn't require reloading right off the bat. Also, if a certain ammo has been unused or was reloaded before you switch out, it will remain fully loaded when you switch back to it. Basically, every ammo in your gun starts out fully loaded and retains whatever ammo count it has after you switch out (e.g. if you can hold 5 Pierce ammo per clip, shoot 2 and switch to Fire ammo without reloading, you will still have 3 Pierce bullets ready to shoot from your chamber when you switch back to it). If you like to use different ammo types with one gun, this is much welcome for quality of life.

As for bow users, you get nice mobility options as well as a neat dragon pierce shot (press triangle and circle at the same time). that can hit monsters multiple times, especially when shot from head to tail or vice-versa. More importantly, it looks freaking cool.

Super smash melee

Ranged weapons aren’t the only weapons to see changes. Melee weapon lovers will enjoy the many new nuances for each close-range weapon as well. There are so many little things here and there that I haven’t even found them all even after trying each weapon.

Insect Glaive users, for example, can now chain multiple air moves and dashes to stay airborne for a longer time while kinsect use is much more streamlined, allowing you to get essence colors more easily. Axes gain new head-smashing moves as well as the ability to hold a charge that prevents tripping (hallelujah) from over-eager Longsword users (you know who you are). Great Sword gets a new shoulder tackle that allows for more dynamic re-positioning while Charge Blade gets a sliding dash mid-combo, charged sword slashes and the return of the upward shield thrust.

I could go on and on but I encourage you to try every weapon as you might find yourself loving a weapon you didn’t like before.

Mount rush-no-more

As someone who mains the Insect Glaive as my melee weapon of choice, I'm a big fan of the mounting mechanic introduced in Monster Hunter 4. At the same time, the mechanic can be abused by hunting parties with multiple players.

MHW tries to address that by making mounts take longer to topple a monster. In fact, there were times when I felt that I could have done more damage by simply attacking a monster without mounting it, at least in solo mode. Admittedly, I'm concerned that the pendulum might have swung too much the other way but I've only played the demo so I'll save judgment until the final game. For example, I didn’t get to see just how much damage teammates make while hitting a mounted monster, so I wasn’t able to factor that into my observations.

Maybe the game has a skill that'll make toppling via mounting faster, which would be a great move as it prevents normal mount spamming and requires you to invest in skills to make the mount-and-topple mechanic more viable.

PC-style settings

If you’re playing the game on a PS4 Pro or Xbox One X, you’re in for a treat. The game adopts some features from the master race’s favorite gaming machine by adding three extra settings based on your gameplay preferences.

Prioritize Resolution

Prioritize Framerate

Prioritize Graphics

The first two are pretty self-explanatory, with one prioritizing the ability to lock a higher resolution for a crisper HD display while the second option targets a smoother frame rate above 30 FPS. The third choice, meanwhile, adds better textures and more elements such as vegetation to the field.

Since I normally focus on the monster and don’t look that closely at the backgrounds, I picked the frame rate option, which is honestly what I’d prioritize as well when playing PC games. I did get to try playing the game on a regular PS4 and while the frame rate isn’t as smooth, I didn’t run into any major problems such as slowdown. One caveat is that I did not try multiplayer mode on the regular PS4.

Anyway, those are just some of the changes I've noticed from my initial time with the game. While the changes aren't perfect, I like what I see so far and can't wait to see what else the game has in store. Hopefully, the changes also encourage more newcomers to join as a healthy player population makes the hunting community a lot more fun. See y'all out there in the monster-hunting field!

Technobubble covers games, gadgets, technology and all things geek. Follow Technobubble poobah Jason Hidalgo’s shenanigans on Twitter @jasonhidalgo or his Tabiasobi Youtube channel.