Monster Hunter Rise Review. The wildest hunt – review addiction

Franchise success Monster hunter in the West it has always been only a matter of time. It only cost Capcom to realize that the gaijins, it turns out, are also not averse to hunting, as Monster hunter world has broken all conceivable and inconceivable records, firmly consolidating the world status of the series. Quite deservedly, of course, but inveterate fans of the series still found cause for dissatisfaction: they say, now, after leaving the mainstream, everything will not be the same as before. That is, worse.

However, judging by the first hundred hours in Monster hunter rise, it turned out, to put it mildly, no worse. And in some places it is even much better.

Open season

In many ways – from aesthetics to gameplay mechanics – Monster Hunter Rise returns to the roots of the series. This is a much less ambitious, more chamber and down-to-earth game, which is already noticeable from the plot. This time, unlike World, we are not exploring a new continent as part of an experienced expedition, but simply living our life in a quiet village called Kamura and preparing to become a full-fledged hunter – the first in several generations. But, alas, because of the alarming news, it will not be possible to calmly finish the training: apparently, Rampage is about to fall on Kamura – a horde of maddened monsters that threatens to destroy everything in its path. This natural disaster has haunted the village from time immemorial, and last time, fifty years ago, it practically wiped out the settlement from the face of the earth. The legendary hunters, who once defended the village, have long settled down and retired – now they are clearly not in shape to repeat their former feat. So you will have to learn the intricacies of the hunting craft along the way. The main thing is to prevent a disaster and find out the true causes of the disaster.

Since the tasks in Rise are, according to the old pattern, divided into single and multiplayer (if anything, they can also be completed alone), there are now two administrators: the twins Hinoa and Minoto. Each quest starts with a visit to one of them

Just in case you’re not familiar with the franchise at all, I’ll be clear about one thing: the plot is the last thing Monster Hunter is worth playing for. Although the village of Kamura itself has turned out to be a charming, cozy place, and its inhabitants (solely thanks to the visual design) want to get to know better, the story ends with a ridiculous abruptness – literally in mid-sentence. It’s a little offensive, but by the standards of the series, this is in the order of things. As in World, the single player campaign here is nothing more than a formality, designed to show what the essence of the game is. And the point, suddenly, in the hunt for monsters. You hunt, extract resources to create weapons and armor, and then go to stronger monsters and knock out components for better equipment. In order, in turn, to cope with even more dangerous prey and make even cooler equipment out of it. No dialogue threads, dynamic world development, moral dilemmas or sudden turns – just battles, crafting, and regular tea breaks with rice cakes.

In terms of gameplay, Monster Hunter Rise is unusually honest with the player: apart from endless hunting, she frankly has nothing to offer, and the game does not at all try to hide that this is entertainment for an amateur. However, the Monster Hunter series has always stood out among this kind of time killer. She captivates not with the promise of a coveted reward for the time spent, but with how the process itself is worked out in detail. Each hunt is a full-fledged boss fight in a spacious, multi-level location. And although by default, many battles are allocated almost an hour of real time, at first even such a generous limit may not be enough, because monsters are rather cunning rivals. For example, an almudron, similar to a dragon from traditional Chinese myths, lives in muddy rivers and uses the tip of its own tail as a huge brush to attack a hunter with streams of mud. The tetranodon from the side resembles a ridiculous mestizo of a platypus and a turtle, but as soon as he gets water in his stomach, he turns into a sumo wrestler – right down to the characteristic stance. And the graceful mizutsune dances across the battlefield on slippery foam and scatters soap bubbles everywhere: if you accidentally collide with them, then the hunter will begin to skid around the turns due to mucus.

These are just a couple of striking examples. In fact, the Monster Hunter Rise bestiary has almost four dozen unique monsters that behave almost like real animals. They become enraged, respond plausibly to painful blows, become exhausted after outbursts of anger, try to flee if they feel they cannot cope with the threat – and sometimes fight each other for territory. They have their own habits, characteristics and vulnerabilities, which are not only interesting, but also useful to study: knowing the prey by sight, you can find an approach even to the most dangerous creature. You just need to strain your head a little and do a little homework.

The flying wyvern loves to swing its tail with poisonous spines – it is worth stocking up on an antidote in advance, and during the hunt it would be nice to cut off a limb and deprive it of its advantage. If the monster has sensitive hearing, then sonic bombs will stun it. When it is inconvenient to chase a fast enemy, put a trapping hole in his way and attack while he tries to get out. In addition, there is often a chance to use the environment to your advantage: for example, a river flowing in the Flooded Forest is teeming with piranhas – why not lure them by throwing a piece of raw meat at the monster? If the toothed fish gnaw lightly on the enemy’s shell, then the weapon will not bounce off the hard surface when struck.

Hidden talents

There are many such nuances in Monster Hunter Rise, and you can understand them all day long. Much of the pleasure comes not from moving up the food chain – from weak opponents to strong ones – but the feeling of one’s own development as a player. While the hunter with each defeated monster is getting closer and closer to the desired equipment, the person on the other side of the screen is gaining knowledge and experience. You learn to predict the behavior of monsters, prepare for sorties more carefully, and slowly think over the most convenient tactics and useful tricks. Gradually, step by step, the previously invulnerable monsters turn into sports equipment for training, and the hunting time is slowly but surely decreasing. First thirty minutes, then twenty-five, fifteen, less than ten … It’s hard not to be proud of yourself when the proof that you have become better is right before your eyes: on the timer.

Although in this case we can safely say that there is no limit to perfection. Monsters are only half of Rise’s combat system; the second, even richer in mechanics, half is, in fact, weapons and equipment. Despite the fact that the game can technically fit into the framework of an action-RPG, there are no classes as such: your play style and abilities depend on what the hunter is armed with. And there are as many as fourteen types of weapons in the arsenal – all are available immediately, and you can freely switch between them in the camp. Among them there are both quite familiar things like swords, bows and hammers, and absurd chimeras like a transforming ax and a giant combat bagpipes, on which you can play buff songs, breaking the muzzles of monsters.

Moreover, it is not the imagination of the authors that amazes, but the fact that among all these units there is no uniquely better one. All are equally effective, each has its pros and cons. You can choose a weapon based solely on your taste and without thinking about the meta and traditional RPG types – there are simply no wrong or boring options, in my opinion. A heavy two-hander deals a lot of damage and cripples monsters in several swings, but the blows need to be charged, and it takes time – if you do not calculate it, you can miss. The twin blades are great for status effects like paralysis due to their speed, but the short blades sometimes make it difficult to reach vulnerable spots. The bow gun (archaic firearm) has ammunition for all occasions, but cartridges have the unpleasant property of running out: you need to carry resources with you to replenish ammunition right in battle.

One of the biggest complaints about World that I’ve seen most often on the game’s Steam page was combat mechanics – or rather, how it feels. To many newcomers who were waiting for a peppy action game for their money, she seemed too slow, clumsy, clumsy. This is partly true, but I would rather call the battle (in the positive sense of the word) “weighted”. Monster Hunter does not obey the logic of the JRPG, where the protagonist can playfully swing a blade of his own height. The weight of the weapon and movement feels authentic, the player feels every blow that hits the target (especially if he chops off the tail or breaks the horns), and the monsters are quickly punished for trying to randomly hit the keys.

And while Monster Hunter Rise remains true to these principles, the authors thoroughly shake up the dynamics of the battles with the help of a new mechanic – rods. Now every hunter can create a flickering cable by pressing two buttons in order to instantly close the distance or, conversely, dodge an attack. Need to urgently retire for a couple of seconds and sharpen your weapon? Jump onto some high ledge where you cannot be reached. Was the monster hit so strong that it threw the hunter into the air? You can call a beetle in the fall and immediately retreat – or sharply counterattack in a jump.

Acrobatics noticeably increases the pace of the gameplay, but does not prevent it from remaining “balanced”: it is just that now the player has much more control over the character, and during the battle there are fewer awkward pauses. In addition, the management of the beetle stock, which recovers over time, acts as a separate element of tactics, and it fits well into the overall picture. The only pity is that it is rare. Apparently, mindful of the fiasco with the grasping claw from Iceborne, which quickly became the object of hatred of the players, the authors decided not to push the new chip beyond measure – only a few monsters force them to use the rods to the fullest. On the other hand, it may be for the best. Otherwise, the innovative (for such a conservative series) mechanics could seem like a gimmick imposed through force.

The desire to give the player maximum control is also noticeable in two other ideas that Rise appropriately looked at from its predecessor – Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate… Substitution skills change certain aspects of weapon mechanics – just like the hunting styles from MHGU, from where they got some of the techniques. For example, hammer masters can choose from two types of charged strikes: the first deals more damage, and the second allows you to combine empowered attacks into combos. Both options will not change the style of play at the root, but it is still convenient that there is an option to more sensitively customize the gameplay for yourself, even if the choice is strictly limited. The same can be said about the special “web attacks” that consume the stock of rods – in fact, this is the Hunter Arts from MHGU in a different guise. The ability to crank up some kind of anime super strike pleases, but does not negate the need to understand how the weapon works. The only disappointing thing is that substitution skills and web attacks are, of course, equal, but some are inevitably “more equal than others.” It was not possible to sensibly balance them, unlike other elements of the battle: the alternatives that open in the course of the passage are often much better than standard techniques. They either do more damage, or give an invulnerability window, or do something else useful – sometimes even too useful.

Finally, the latest attempt by Monster Hunter Rise to diversify the gameplay was Rampage mode, which the developers actively promoted before release. In fact, this is a hybrid of ordinary hunting and tower defense, where you need to protect the gates of the village from several waves of monsters, and in the final – defeat the leader of the horde. Since here opponents are attacking in groups, you have to fight off them with ballistae, cannons, machine guns and other turrets that players place manually. Much the same as we did in World when hunting Dzora Magdaros, only in Rise this idea was brought to mind. And it is played … as it seems to me, controversial. Yes, a major change in the situation dilutes the routine well, and sometimes battles really cause excitement. While ground monsters attack defensive structures, and flying ones pour fire from heaven to hunters, the strongest enemies rush right through to the village – you need to think quickly. It is especially cool when, at the most difficult moment of the battle, a gong sounds, which multiplies the damage of the hunters several times, and you jump from the barricades straight into the hell to chase away the invaders personally – goosebumps.

This gives the impression that there is basically no optimal way to enjoy Rampage. You can go through these tasks alone, but then you need to rush around the battlefield, as if it were a routine, in order to keep up with everything at once: not particularly difficult, but dreary. And in a multiplayer game for four, even taking into account the fact that there are much more monsters there, the hunters will quickly deal with any problems without any coordination or hints of tactics. In addition, the mode does not offer any special awards or unique items of equipment – apparently, the developers again decided not to impose. The result is fun, which makes sense to touch either for the sake of farming components for some equipment, or if you sincerely like to shoot dinosaurs from a minigun and a medieval howitzer.

Sometimes the leaders of the horde are the Supreme Monsters – enhanced versions of the usual ones with new attacks and properties. Alas, it is still possible to hunt them only within the Rampage: they do not occur in nature.

In short, there is a reason to scold Monster Hunter Rise. But against the background of the hundreds of hours that I spent in the game, all the possible nit-picking seems to me rather petty: I already know that I will spend at least the same amount in it. If World opened a window to Europe for the series, then Rise not only cemented its success, but also submitted a powerful application for the title of one of the best action games of recent years. Stylish, fun and good old fashioned.

Pleased

• amazingly deep gameplay;
• thoughtful action with acrobatics;
• visual design of everything and everyone;
• as always a gorgeous soundtrack;
• good optimization for not the strongest platform.

Upset

• no long endgame;
• some of World’s finds could have been left behind;
• new game mode – fun for a couple of times.

How we played

In what: the game was purchased by the author.

On what: Switch.

How many: about 110 hours.

Achievement of the editorial office

“Best friend”

Create the perfect replica of your cat in the companion editor.

Вердикт

Monster Hunter Rise даёт поклонникам серии именно то, о чём они просили: удобный современный геймплей на классических хардкорных рельсах и ничего лишнего. Лучшего момента для знакомства с серией представить нельзя — сейчас она пике своей формы.