Monster Hunter: World (PC) Review

By Brandon (Michael) Howard 16.09.2018

Review for Monster Hunter: World on PC

It's the late 2000s, and the PSP in languishing in relative obscurity in the West. While the handheld had its fair share of solid titles, it never quite reached the ubiquity of Nintendo's DS line of consoles. On the other side of the ocean, though, a little series called Monster Hunter was taking Japan by storm, and making the PSP a major success, in no small part due to its incredible ad-hoc capabilities. Since then, Monster Hunter has slowly climbed in popularity, inspiring knock-offs, and a wide variety of new titles. This latest entry - Monster Hunter: World - is a great starting point for new players, but also brings some changes long-time fans will surely appreciate.

Monster Hunter has always had a slightly steeper barrier to entry than many similar action role-playing games. It's got tons of complex systems, a huge variety of weapons, and a combat system that feels weightier when compared to other titles in the genre. Monster Hunter: World might not be the most user-friendly title in the world, but it's probably the most beginner-friendly Monster Hunter to date.

In many ways, Monster Hunter: World is an MMO masquerading as a single-player experience. It's loaded to the brim with systems players will need to take the time to master, and it's filled with little interruptions that players of similar games might not expect, such as taking time to sharpen your weapons, or maybe just taking a short break out in the field to cook some meat. It's an adventure with a truly unique rhythm, and one that rewards those willing to sink hours and days into its massive world.

Screenshot for Monster Hunter: World on PC

Thankfully, this entry goes a little more out of its way than usual to handhold new recruits. After creating a character in the delightfully in-depth character creator, a short intro plays that covers the basics of the plot (surprisingly, it mostly involves hunting monsters), and also the basics of field movement. From there, the player is introduced to the main hub, and also given the opportunity to get a feel for the many different weapon types available.

Combat is unsurprisingly the main component of a series that has gamers going out and slaying monsters the size of a small mountain, so finding a weapon type that fits your play-style is paramount, and there are a lot to choose from. Newer comers will probably enjoy the straightforward nature of the sword and shield, or the speed of the dual blades, but more advanced might enjoy the complexity of the insect glaive, or some of the series' other truly unique weapons.

Screenshot for Monster Hunter: World on PC

After getting set up with a couple comfortable weapons, it's time to get to the literal meat of Monster Hunter. Taking down giant and entirely unique creatures is one of the biggest draws of the series, and World delivers on that promise in a big way. Monsters are hugely varied, from giant insects, to electric unicorns, and dinosaurs of all shapes and sizes. Each encounter is hugely varied, and you will have to employ a number of different strategies to bring them down.

There's a definite learning curve to each encounter. Monster Hunter rewards its hunters for carefully planning out their attacks, and simply charging in will likely lead to your untimely demise. Some bosses are better approached with certain weapon types, so if melee attacks aren't quite doing the trick, switching up your repertoire a bit might give you the boost needed. Experimentation is rewarded heavily, and players will find themselves benefitting from learning more about the various ways to exploit each massive encounter.

Screenshot for Monster Hunter: World on PC

Monster Hunter: World really succeeds at immersion in ways that many of its predecessors struggled with. There's a lot less time spent grappling with the menus and systems, and more time exploring and killing giant, impossible monsters. The fluidity of travel achieved by reducing the loading time between areas also helps establish a sense of exploration that's new to the series. There are tons of other small quality of life features that bring the player away from menus and into the fight.

The multiplayer offers a good bit of variety to running missions solo, and the quests appropriately scale to accommodate up to four players in total. It actually feels a lot more approachable than the multiplayer in other big name titles, since it feels more co-operative than competitive. Still, this is a game where the long-term value is largely rooted in having a few buddies to enjoy it with. It's possible to run through all the content this has to offer with you and your AI cat warrior friend, but planning and plotting out missions with friends is probably the best way to enjoy it.

Screenshot for Monster Hunter: World on PC

Cubed3 Rating

8/10
Rated 8 out of 10

Great - Silver Award

Rated 8 out of 10

Monster Hunter: World still has all the complexity expected from this series, but it dishes it out in much more palatable chunks than usual. It's still got a frightening amount of depth, but it feels manageable in a way that few in the series have pulled off before. Players may still feel a little lost from time to time, but a little guidance from series vets or other friends can drastically reduce the growing pains new players will likely experience. On top of all that, this is one of the best-feeling titles the series has had to date; so saddle up with some friends, and explore all the New World has to offer.

Developer

Capcom

Publisher

Capcom

Genre

Real Time RPG

Players

1

C3 Score

Rated $score out of 10  8/10

Reader Score

Rated $score out of 10  0 (0 Votes)

European release date Out now   North America release date Out now   Japan release date Out now   Australian release date Out now   

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