3.25/5
I’ve played lots of games in the Monster Hunter series, starting off my journey with the PSP and Wii games. It’s not the best one I’ve played, nor is it the worst. I’ll break it down with not very in-depth notes:
- Graphically, it is a very good-looking game. You need to have a good GPU, though. Like, needs to be within the latest 3 gens, or you need a console.
- For Co-op, it leaves a lot to be desired. With the squads, link parties, and environment links, you would expect there to be a smooth cooperative experience, however that is not really the case. I was really looking forward to a seamless co-op experience, as that is one of the main reasons I play these games, to spend time with friends.
- Squads are just WoW guilds with private lobbies, but it does make it easier for everyone to join the same lobby.
- Link Parties are fairly good, you get invites to any mission a party member starts. In camp though, you won’t see each other unless you’re also in the same lobby, so you need to do both Squad AND Link Party.
- Environment Link is an option for a link party. It lets you see each other and work together on expeditions, aka just wandering around. This WOULD be awesome, if it didn’t end the moment you touched a large monster (which immediately now counts it as a Quest and puts you on a timer) and allowed you to actually go between areas, since it’s meant to be open world. To move between areas (Desert, Forest, etc.) you need to un-environment link, travel to the appropriate area, then re-link.
- Monster Hunts are fine, same as seen in past games for the most part. They added a new wound mechanic which is pretty neat.
- The “Raider Ride” system from the previous game has been brought forward, different name and is now even more useful. I approve.
- Story…it’s the worst I’ve played in a Monster Hunter game. They made it more fluid, which drives you away from the heart of the game, which is posting and completing quests to hunt monsters. There are several instances in early missions where you can’t post quests or expedition between story missions. Lots of following people around and talking to people needlessly.
All together, it makes for an…interesting experience. I can’t fully hate it, because I love Monster Hunter games, but is it worth $70 on PC? Probably not, especially so if you have a computer that is more than 3 years old and you end up needing to spend $1000+ on a new GPU to be able to see it better than this:
3.25/5 – not the best, but definitely not the worst.
