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by Jeffrey
It's finally here! Monster Hunter Wilds. The spiritual successor to Monster Hunter World released over the weekend and there are some... issues... But there's also so much that's great that it can be easy enough to ignore them. Sometimes.
For those unfamiliar with the Monster Hunter series, it's essentially a gear based action RPG completely focused on boss battles. You gear up, eat a meal, craft consumable items and traps and then set out to find and defeat a large beast. Then collect parts from that beast to use in crafting new gear for you and your Palico, a humanoid 'Felyne' helper. This loop repeats itself, and can be incredibly satisfying.
Where Wilds is setting itself apart in the biggest way from it's predecessors is that it's now an open world game. And while this is a huge plus, and serves this style of game well, the story mode so far doesn't really reward you for exploring. You're kind of just heading from A to B, defeating a gigantic monster, followed by occasionally long cutscenes and stiff moments of dialogue between that. Being repeatedly farted on by a huge pink gorilla is also a theme relatively early on. Yeah, that's right.
Having said that, the gameplay itself is wonderful. The combat feels amazing to get down just right. The same 14 weapon types from the last two entries are back and enhanced by the use of a new mechanic called Focus Mode. Which not only allows you to target weak spots on monsters with new ultra cinematic abilities, but also allows you to go straight into certain attacks you were previously only allowed to use mid combo.
The new riding mount is great too, allowing you to carry a second weapon on it's back to swap on the fly, a new feature for the series. If you're efficient with multiple weapon types, the ability to mix it up to fit the situation is great.
With only about 10 hours put in personally it's hard to say where this game lands. These titles always play best AFTER you complete the story. Is it better than World? There are arguments for and against that.
But I want to hear from you! Is Monster Hunter a series you're interested in? Would you like to see us design prints around your favorite characters and scenes from the Monster Hunter universe? Be sure to leave a comment below!