It’s a slight shame to see the Meowster Chef get axed after making his silver-screen debut in last year’s live-action movie, but Yomogi the Chef and her cute little rice-pounding kitties inject a level of cuteness that was sorely missed in the gruff and goofy Monster Hunter World. The people of Kamura Village range from quaint and elegant, to rough, boisterous, and theatrical–though some signature janky facial animations can cause the English localization to result in some cringy and uncomfortable cutscenes. But with a smaller village comes a greater concentration of the franchise’s charming cast of throwaway characters. Hope you like DangoĪs a potential casualty of the effort to streamline the core experience, Kamura Village is a little smaller than your typical in-game quest hub. There are even a bunch of secret messages masterfully hidden around each map for the lore-hungry few to scout out when not on the clock that should take a good while to fully uncover. To keep fast-travel from shrinking the scope of the world, creatures able to boost your combat prowess are strategically scattered around, creating just enough reason to take the long route to your target. The reduction in ground clutter results in areas that feel less nestled in farfetched fantasy and better suited to the frantic action of the hunt, with tools like Great Wirebugs, additional spawn camps, and your rideable Palamute doggy pal helping make traversing the grandiose locales an adventure in and of itself. Though noticeably less dense and detailed compared to the last major release, Rise features sprawling zones that, at a glance, often dwarf that of its predecessor. Once you decide the hunt is on, it’s on.Īnother part of what enables the break-neck pace of Monster Hunter Rise is the return of open-world gameplay. From seamless battlefields littered with supplies to a level of player mobility far and away from the franchise norm, there’s virtually zero downtime between battles. Everything about the core formula has been optimized to the tee. From large enemy attacks you can vault over to sling-shotting yourself from the quest hub and straight into a seat at the restaurant for a pre-hunt meal, it’s clear the game was designed around the Wirebug from the get-go.Īs the possibilities present themselves, it’ll be hard to go back to a time before. It’s a tense moment of judgment with plenty of risk, and you’ll doubt your decision until the moment you touch down. Committing to the assault is like watching a game-deciding shot unfold in your favorite sport. There’s a level of expertise needed to properly time a Wirebug skill, though. It’s both an offensive and defensive toolkit that builds upon the situational Wedge Beetle and arguably unbalanced Clutch Claw from the previous title, with at least a half-dozen reasons to use it arising every second.Įverything about the core formula has been optimized to the tee. Whether you’re lugging around a hefty hammer or packing lightweight dual blades, you can close in on fast-moving targets, zip out of harm’s way, or quickly execute a bunch of flashy weapon-specific assaults at the push of a button. This new swiftly-recharging resource allows players to web-sling their way through any given part of the hunt, turning the largely grounded experience of past games into a far more fluid and reactionary affair. It’s that stigma that recent titles have attempted to shake without foregoing what made it great.īuilt to add a new level of verticality and speed to the traditionally sluggish combat system, the crowning achievement of Monster Hunter Rise is the Wirebug system. Unforgivingly long animations and steep learning curves have sent many hunters packing over the years. The titular monster hunts are lengthy battles of brain and brawn where even a poorly timed chug of a potion can open you up to a world of hurt. Web-slinging wins againĪs in previous games, Monster Hunter Rise pits you against terrifying beasts at the top of their respective food chains. Whether it outshines what came before, though, depends on what the future has in store. It takes the franchise another bold step forward in the right direction while retaining just enough of the old-school charm to not further alienate veterans left wanting after the last. Monster Hunter Rise is a brilliant standalone entry that builds upon what the previous game did both right and wrong.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |