MONSTER HUNTER WORLD!

The wait is finally over! On January 26th, I got my copy of MONSTER HUNTER World for my PS4. I was super excited to play this game because 1, DRAGONS and DINOSAUR-type monsters! The photos that had been released, along with beta game play showed amazing graphics and gorgeous monsters. Reason 2- the armor and weapons. There are multiple styles that you can choose from, but you can only get said armor or weapons by building them. AND, you can only build them when you get specific drops from kills.

So say I wanted to build the Negrigante Alpha Armor. I would need to have the following:

•  80,000 coins
• Nergigante Horn + x 3
• Immortal Dragonscale x 18
• Nergigante Carapace x 22
• Nergigante Gem x1
• Nergigante Talon x2
• Elder Dragon Bone x3
• Nergigante Tail x 2
• Firecell Stone x 1
• Nergigante Regrowth Plate x6
• Novacrystal x1
• Elder Dragon Blood x3

That is one overwhelming list and you can’t really start this armor until you are well into the game. But I don’t care. I will have this armor! What can I say? I am a sucker for pretty things.

Back to monsters. There are many sizes to the beasts and every single one of them has strengths and weaknesses. You must pay attention to those and choose armor and weapons wisely when deciding to fight them. Example:

Anjanath- Quite the large beasty. They have a resistance to fire, which means their weakness is water/ice. They also are weak against lightning. Having bone armor will make killing these guys easy. Also, go for the throat. They shoot fire, so wounding them there will making killings easier.

Then you have the teeny tiny Jagras. They hunt in packs and will attack when you are fairly close. But kill one of them and and they’ll freak out and run. No resistance or weaknesses… because they are weak.

Finally and I think this is the best part of the game. You get to be friends with a CAT!!! They help you out of missions and you can build armor and weapons for them as well!

The game itself is pretty complex in the sense that you have to pay close attention to what you are fighting. Also, the game play is a bit rough. With most games you are able to stop your movements and block or dodge. When you fight in MONSTER HUNTER, it finishes the move, which more often than not, leads you to getting smacked by a tail and thrown across the room. Once you get the hang of it, the fighting does get a bit easier, but in the end, you still get annoyed with how often you cannot dodge an attack. At least you don’t have to worry about complex controls like past games.

But with all the frustration, the game does have benefits as well. They do a lot of quests and you can get super cool armor based on other CAPCOM games. I was so excited when I was able to try for Dante’s gear from DMC. I love me some Dante! There was also Aloy from Horizon Zero Dawn (LOVE) and even Mega Man. The definitely keep the game interesting.

Play on your own, with friends, or even with strangers from around the world. Have fun exploring, but be aware that you will have to go down the same path A LOT…

In the end, aside from some of the aforementioned items, I really do enjoy the game. When I get in grind mode, I can get a bunch of stuff I need to make some armor and weapons. The problem is that I get bored easily and need to move on. The problem with that is I need to do the same thing over and over in order to get items to build and upgrade weapons and armor… It’s a vicious cycle, but I will continue to do it until I get what I want.

Most big sites are giving it a 9.5 out of 10, but I would give it a solid 8. It’s a fun game, but too much repeated running around makes Raven a dull girl. If this is your first rodeo with a MONSTER HUNTER game, just be aware. But overall I think you will have a great time. Just don’t lose hope when trying to get all the items for gear. Grind through it!!!