Monster Hunter: World Review (In-Progress: Low Rank)

With how expansive, and how Monster Hunter games play, reviewing Monster Hunter World is being broken into three sections going over the Low Rank, High Rank, and Meta Rank experience. With each in-progress article focusing on a specific section of the hunting experience, they’ll also pick apart different aspects of the game. This being the first article, it'll cover the Low Rank portion of Monster Hunter World.

For those new to Monster Hunter World, welcome to the most easy to access the series to date, being the first mainline series to be back on the console since Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate for the Wii U, having skipped a generation. A substantial volume of MonHun has, and hasn’t, changed. For the most part you’ll start the game gathering resource nodes to build up your supply of Potions and Mega Potions. Once you unlock the farm/Botanical Research facility you can generate consumable materials between hunts/expeditions. Your starting mission is to clear a pack of Jagras, a relatively simple task that’ll let get into the swing of things for killing things. With the eventual first Monster hunt being the Great Jagras, this game still sits in the typical MonHun formula as you start to move up the food chain. As you start to take on more tougher Monsters, your skills and prowess when it comes to hunting improves.

And may Desire Sensor not screw me today.

What’s new in the in game is the open-world map still areas for hunting, the semi-seamless hunting experience between hunts, and the integration of a living ecosystem in a more dynamic world, make this the pinnacle of the series. These new features help build MonHunWorld into a game that’s fit to say “this is what current gen is”. Gone are the arcadey ways of old of Monster moves and attacks having very distinct actions. In with the fluid movement that is still somehow readable, even if you’re fighting with the camera controls in the age old fight of “where did the Monster go?! Why am I locked in a corner!?!”, before being swiftly carted back to camp, as you run back to the fight, gathering any nearby resource nodes and autocrafting potions on the fly.

That’s not to say this is a tough game, being more of the opposite for seasoned Veteran/Seasoned Hunters being able to take on these new foes with relative ease. Great Jagras being a cake walk, it’s only when players are pitted against Anjanath that they’ll hit a gear check like lock. With players that haven’t bothered upgrading their armour or weapons struggling to beat it, this is possibly the first game that does this kind of check. This is as poignant as when facing previous Monsters such Tobi Kadachi, Pukie Pukie, and Kulu Yaku, as they test hunters on their situational awareness. Tobi being the player’s ability to respond, Pukie forces the player to learn distancing, with Kulu Yaku being a prime nuisance whose attacks are telegraphed so that it teaches players to have to keep an eye on openings. This all culminates into Anjanath, who isn’t only a tough and imposing adversary, but is telegraphed in ways that keeps the player on their toes as they try to use the surroundings to their advantage. But being such a strong predator, the only seemingly dominant species above it, only king of the skies Rathalos has a chance of dealing damage to it in a turf war.

And so the search begins.

An interesting mechanic and gimmick that provides a unique twist to hunts, but is never at the forefront of a fight (more discussion in follow up article), area traps like Paratoads, Flashflies, and falling boulders are nice additions that develop a sense of mastery. All comprising the theme of being a Monster Hunter, that none of the other games have quite achieved. To not mention killings through turf wars, traps, or surprising turn of events that turn the tide of battle would be remiss. A personal favourite of Low Rank was decimating Rathalos in his nest, flashpod-ing him out of the sky and exploding the dam that forced it to the bottom of the tree. Crashing down, I dropped down with my Lance. Swinging Attack of Titan style, I thrusted my Lance at his nape and mounted it. With the Rathalos grounded again, Anjanath appeared and helped keep him grounded for longer as I landed the finishing blow. Diablos gave me a run for my money though as I kept Power Guarding his ground charges, to not mention my struggle of underpowered gear would be an understatement.

Like previous games, once your first major predator is dealt with, this being Anjanath, the game opens up quite a bit. Unlocking the Wildspire Waste, Coral Highlands, and Rotten Vale in quick succession, the game quickly ramps up the “things to do” list in Low Rank. With the dreaded return of optional hunting quests such egg deliveries, the game manages to make them at the very least less dreadful of a experience. With other optionals being gather X number of Y items and killing a pack of small monsters. With most mundane generic quests behind discovering investigations, that are unlocked on the side. It’s this locking of content in Low Rank that leaves a somewhat dull experience. Whilst there are optional hunts to upgrade facilities in and around Asterea, including your arsenary of mantles, the game doesn’t feature hunts that are mindless, being a highly concentrated focus of being a hunter. Tracking, finding, and fighting, the game almost tries to leave you in a high of defeating the Large Monsters. The game tries to break this growing monotony of hunting, by forcing the player to explore and run expeditions to progress the game. That all just keep the experience relatively fresh, and never too repetitive that previous games suffered from.

Exuuuu-

The mainline games and their continuing trend of improving the games story is truly showcased here. With the last MonHun game being on the Wii U, it would be apt to make several points of comparison in terms of performance and experience jumps. Played on the original PS4, the game’s load time of quests when in Astera and Research Base is lengthy at best. But narratively, World has a much stronger tale to tell. The story being focused more so on the Monsters rather than hunters, or anyone from the Fifth Fleet. With the core focus being around Zorah Magdalos, as a hunter you’re tasked with exploring this new world. Much like 3U, you’re pitted against an Elder Dragon to break into High Rank. However unlike its predecessor, the adventure only continues as once you break Low Rank. Stay tuned for the follow up review piece of Monster Hunter World as we review High Rank and beyond.