The #MonsterHunterMovie crossover comes to #Iceborne on Dec 4th! Travel to the New World and play as Artemis (voiced by Milla Jovovich) in two special quests with unique rewards! https://bit.ly/IceborneMovie
Unless you have been hiding underneath a rock, you have heard the news that a Monster Hunter live action movie, starring Milla Jovovich, is coming out at the end of the calendar year. The early American trailers for this can be best described as comical at best, but I thought this Japanese trailer (see below) was a LOT better. Capcom was so wrong for letting them use "Proof of a Hero" as the main theme for this though. If anything, I'll watch this for a good laugh. I'm not expecting much out of this, especially with Ron Perlman cast as the Admiral. The casting for the Handler looks spot on though.
As for the collaboration quest(s) in Monster Hunter World: Iceborne, I'm fine with this, especially since it's probably going to be one of the last strings of new content we are going to get for this game before Monster Hunter: Rise drops for the Nintendo Switch next year. I'm guessing it would get the same treatment as The Witcher III collaboration for the base game that I'm sure a lot of people glossed over at the time.
Monster Hunter: World is an action role-playing game developed and published by Capcom. A part of the Monster Hunter series, it was released worldwide for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in January 2018, with a Microsoft Windows version being scheduled later in the year. In the game, the player takes the role of a Hunter, tasked to hunt down and either kill or trap monsters that roam in one of several environmental spaces. If successful, the player is rewarded through loot consisting of parts from the monster and other elements that are used to craft weapons and armor, among other equipment. The game's core loop has the player crafting appropriate gear to be able to hunt down more difficult monsters, which in turn provide parts that lead to more powerful gear. Players may hunt alone, or can hunt in cooperative groups of up to four players via the game's online services.
Synopsis
In an unnamed high fantasy setting, humans and other sentient races have set their eyes on the New World, a separate continent from the populated Old World. The New World is an untamed wilderness where many powerful monsters roam, and where researchers have been drawn to uncover new mysteries. Several ocean-bound Fleets have been sent already to establish working bases, safe from monsters, and operations are led by the Research Commission.
Plot
The player controls a hunter that they can name, supported by an assistant handler, who are a part of the Fifth Fleet which has been summoned by the Research Commission to provide more support to the New World. A particular focus of the Expedition is to study Elder Dragons, powerful beasts that can affect entire ecosystems, and why they migrate to the New World every ten years in an event known as the Elder Crossing. While traveling to the New World, the Fifth Fleet encounters Zorah Magdaros, a massive Elder Dragon the size of a mountain. After being rescued and arriving at the base camp, known as Astera, the Hunter and their Handler undertake various tasks to explore the area and study Zorah Magdaros at the behest of the Commander of the Expedition. The Expedition determines that Zorah Magdaros is dying and is migrating to a massive graveyard, known as the Rotten Vale. An Expedition-led capture mission against Zorah Magdaros is foiled by Nergigante, an Elder Dragon that feeds on other Elder Dragons, and is protecting Zorah Magdaros as its future meal. After escaping the ambush, Zorah Magdaros unexpectedly enters the Everstream rather than traveling to the Rotten Vale. After further investigations, the Expedition learns that if Zorah Magdaros dies within the Everstream, its released bio-energy will destroy the New World. With no time to evacuate, the Expedition develops an emergency plan to intercept Zorah Magdaros and drive it to the ocean, where its released bio-energy will form a new aquatic ecosystem. Nergigante once again interferes, but this time is driven off by the Hunters, and Zorah Magdaros is successfully driven into the ocean.
However, when Nergigante flees to the Elder's Recess, an area in the Everstream with massive amounts of stored bio-energy, the presence of Nergigante drives away its Elder Dragon prey toward neighboring locations, upsetting each individual ecosystem. With the help of the Admiral, the true leader of the Expedition, the Hunter is able to track down and kill Nergigante. With Nergigante dead, the Elder Dragons calm down and return to the Recess. After their defeat by the Hunter, the source of energy within the Elder’s Recess is discovered: Xeno'jiiva, an infant Elder Dragon, which had been incubating within the Elder's Recess, and was feeding on the bio-energy of dead Elder Dragons. Xeno'jiiva hatches upon being discovered, and at the behest of the Admiral, the Hunter defeats it before it can wreak havoc on the world. With the Elder Crossing now fully understood, the Expedition is considered finished, but members are offered the chance to stay in the New World to continue their research.
Gameplay:
Monster Hunter: World is an open-world action role-playing game played from a third-person perspective. Similar to previous games in the series, the player takes the role of a player-created character who travels to the "New World", an unpopulated land mass filled with monsters, to join the Research Commission that study the land from their central command base of Astera. The Research Commission tasks the Hunter to hunt down and either kill or capture large monsters that roam outside Astera to both protect the Commission and to study the monsters there. The player's character does not have any intrinsic attributes, but instead these are determined by what equipment the character is equipped with. This includes a weapon, selected from the series' fourteen archetypes (such as long sword, bow, or hammer), which then further defines the types of combat moves and abilities the player can use, and pieces of armor, which can lead to beneficial or detrimental combat skills if matched properly. While some basic equipment can be purchased using in-game money, most equipment is built from loot obtained by slaying or trapping monsters, rewards from completing quests, or items gathered while in the field. This creates a core loop of gameplay that has the player fight monsters they can beat to obtain the right loot to craft improved weapons and armor to allow them to face more powerful monsters and the potential for even better equipment.
Don't forget to upgrade and level up your Palico. There will be times where your partner in crime will be your only lifeline. Not to mention, your cat buddy here gets to wear some awesome costumes to boot.
After taking a quest in Astera, or after choosing to simply go on an open-ended expedition, the player is taken to a base camp in one of six large regions that make up the New World. Each region is made up of numbered zones, but unlike previous Monster Hunter games, these zones are seamlessly connected, and there are no loading screens when moving between zones. The player must traverse zone to zone, though they can quick-travel to any of the base camps in that particular region when outside of combat. From camp, the player can acquire limited provisions, rest to restore their health, and new to World, have a meal that provides limited-time buffs to the player. The player sets out to track down monsters, which in World is aided with the use of Scout flies, which hover near tracks and other signs of large monsters, or highlight resources that the player can collect such as flora, ores, bones, and insects. Investigate the traces of the monster leads to improving the Scout flies' abilities for the quest, eventually enabling them to lead the player via their glowing flight path towards the monster they seek; further, investigating these help the player to gain research towards the monster that helps them gain insight on its strengths, weaknesses, and behavior.
Once a monster is located, the player can take several approaches to either slay or capture it using traps once sufficiently weakened, using a combination of their weapons and items they are carrying. As a monster is weakened, its tactics will often change, frequently becoming more aggressive, or fleeing to a lair to rest or find food to recover. The player has additional tools within World for combat. Each player has a Slinger, a tool that can be used to fire small projectiles like rocks at the monster to damage it or cause other debuffs, or can be used as a grappling hook to reach higher elevations or pull down objects onto a monster. A new type of tool called a Mantle can be used for a limited amount of time; these cloak-like objects provide a buff to the player, such as acting like a ghillie suit to reduce the chances of monsters detecting the player. Furthermore, the player has opportunities to use the environment strategically against the monster, such as bursting a natural dam to flood out a monster, or leading a monster into another monster's den to cause them to fight each other. The game includes a dynamic weather system and day-night cycle, which can affect the behavior of some monsters mid-quest.
In combat, the player must watch their health — if it falls to zero, they faint and are taken back to camp but then can set out again at a reduced reward; however, fainting three times will cause the quest to fail. Further, the player must watch their stamina, which is consumed for nearly all attacks, dodges, and other actions; stamina will recover quickly but the player must not take other aggressive actions for this to happen, which can be tricky in the heat of battle. The player can carry various restorative items for health and stamina; unlike previous games where the player was forced to stand still to take these, World allows the player to take these while walking, though the player must not be interrupted for a few moments to gain the full effects of the restorative item. The player must also be aware of various debuffs that monsters can inflict on them, the sharpness of their weapon or the quantity of ammo for certain weapon types, and the limitations of items they can bring on a quest that restrict how much they can recover while in the field. If the player successfully completes the quest, they gain reward resources, often consisting of parts from that monster along with zenny, the in-game currency. The distribution of rewards from a quest are determined by rarity, so obtaining certain rare parts may require repeating a quest several times to get a desired part.
If you ever need a break, you can always crash at your room in Astera for a breather...
Astera acts as a central hub where the player can buy and sell goods, manage their inventory, craft new equipment, and gain new quests. A core facet of Monster Hunter games is the construction and upgrading of armor and weapons at a forge using the monster parts and resources the player has gained from combat. As the player defeats tougher monsters, they can make armor with more defensive value or particular elemental resistance, or can improve weapons to be more lethal and deal elemental or debuffing damage. Weapons and armor also carry various skills which have a number of different effects for the player; World introduces a new streamlined skill system compared to previous games, where each weapon or armor piece has one or more ranks in at least one skill, and the total effect of a skill on the player is determined by adding up all ranks of that skill from all equipped items the player carries. Additional services in Astera include a farm to grow quantities of flora while the player is out on quests, training areas to practice weapons, a gathering hub to take on special Arena challenges against one or more monsters, and a canteen which the player can order a meal from specific ingredients to provide buffs and special conditions while out on the field.
World features a story mode offered through the quest system. Unlike previous games, where the story mode led the player through and to complete the "Low Rank" quests, before opening the game to more difficult "High Rank" quests without a story driver, World will have a narrative that continues into the "High Rank" quests. The game's complete story mode is estimated to take between 40 and 50 hours, according to director Yuya Tokuda. Instead of quests that required the player to slay a number of smaller monsters or collect resources, World will offer these as Bounties that can be achieved alongside the main quests, or provided as Optional quests that generally lead to improving some facet of the resources in Astera. A player can have up to six different Bounties active, and which provide rewards when they are completed. The player can gain Investigation quests as well, which come from investigating the trail of monsters with Scout flies or by breaking off parts of monsters in combat. Each Investigation offers a quest that may have unique limitations or goals compared to main story quests, such as time limits or reduced fainting limits but also provide additional rewards; Investigations can only be attempted, successfully or not, a limited number of times before they are exhausted and removed.
Assemble your crew...
The game supports both single-player and up to four player cooperative mode while being online; there is no local online multiplayer. The game's quest system is the same in both modes. Players gather in multiplayer servers supporting up to sixteen players, during which they can post quests to invite others to join, or join other existing quests as long as they have progressed far enough in the game's storyline. If there are only one or two hunters on a quest, each brings with them a Palico (an anthropomorphic sentient cat species) to assist them in combat; these Palico can be equipped with weapons and armor crafted in the same manner as the hunter themselves. If there are less than four players in a party, a party member can launch a red SOS flare, which other players, while in their instance of Astera, can opt to join to help out, creating a drop-in/drop-out system. The game also supports Squads, the equivalent of clans or guilds in typical massive multiplayer online games. The game allows players in different release regions to work together; the game will use a pre-determined set of common greetings and commands that are translated to the various languages so that players can effectively communicate with each other. However, players are limited to cooperating with those on the same platform, and will not feature cross-platform play. Players also need to register with their console's service (PlayStation Network or Xbox Live) to use multiplayer features. With an aim to reach a wider audience than past games, Monster Hunter: World also provides more information to players, such as a companion that will warn the player when they are running low on health, and more details on the advantages and disadvantages of weapons and armors against specific monsters.
In addition to quests shipped with the game, Capcom plans to offer free downloadable content quests, similarly featured in the handheld versions. However, with the greater degree of connectivity offered by modern consoles/computers compared to handheld systems, Capcom anticipates offering time-limited Event quests that players can easily jump in on through the new matchmaking system. Capcom also anticipates on adding new monsters to hunt through free downloadable content; the first such update, adding in the Deviljho monster from previous games was released alongside other quality-of-life updates in March 2018. Capcom also expected to provide paid post-content material as well; however, Capcom does not see World as a type of service, as they do not expect players to continue playing the game five to ten years after release. The game will not include any type of microtransactions; Tsujimoto said that as Monster Hunter is meant as a cooperative game, they did not want to create any type of "friction" between players due to some having simply purchased better equipment with real-world funds compared to those that spent the time to work through challenges to acquire the equipment.
The Verdict:
Before I start this review, I repeat that I have not played any of the prior Monster Hunter games in this series. I tried out the beta back in December on a whim and enjoyed what I played for the most part after getting some friends who are series veterans to give me an idea of what the jest of everything was in terms of the basics. That being said, this review isn't for the veterans. This is the humble opinion of someone coming in brand spanking new to this series.
If I could recommend anything to any newcomer is to hit up the Training Area in your avatar's room at Astera and literally try out EVERY weapon in the game until you find one you like and feel comfortable with. Most hardcore players end up using every weapon in the game in some fashion, but for the bulk of my 150+ hours with the game, I've stuck with primarily one weapon type and I have another that I might fall back on but I haven't used it since low rank so I'd need to practice it quite a bit before I even dare trying it for high rank and tempered hunts. The training area is pretty much this game's equivalent of a practice/training room in most fighting games, but without the extra bells and whistles. It's just merely a space for players to try out various weapons before taking them out into the field on missions. During the beta, I spent the bulk of one afternoon feeling out each weapon type until I settled on one I liked. Every weapon in this game has a particular weight and feel to them and it takes a bit of a mental adjustment if you've played other action/adventure games and think they would operate in the same fashion. Some weapons allow you to block, others give you more options in terms of jumping into the air and doing acrobatics to evade attacks in the air, others give you the means to charge/build up energy to deal even more massive damage with their attacks. Then last but not least, you have firearms and bows that attack from a distance while simultaneously inflicting various status ailments to your enemies. For passive players, there's the hunting horn too that plays melodies to buff everyone in a party of hunters. The latter I didn't use much but I found it to be invaluable in single player when directing my Palico (your cat-like partner that acts as your sidekick in single player missions) to use his gadget to buff my avatar to deal more damage or to protect against various status ailments/blights.
One thing that newcomers should be aware of that this is a pretty grind-heavy game. Not so much in low rank, but once you hit high rank it's more beneficial for you to play with friends or randoms in online multiplayer because the rewards multiply (the reward money is divided by the number of players participating in hunts, so keep that in mind too) for how many players complete any given quest (thanks to increased difficulty as enemies have higher health pools to accommodate the number of players in a session). I wouldn't say the low rank stuff being as grind-heavy as the early portion of Horizon Zero Dawn, nor as unforgiving with drop rates on rare items/spoils/craves, but that's just from my own experience. I've heard from my friends who are veteran players of the series say that drops would require them to farm for an entire day/weekend, only for it to come up for me after a few attempts. This is regarded to many as one of many "walls" in this game to hinder your progress as you find yourself extremely outclassed in terms of gear (armor, weapons, and consumables) then find yourself grinding for hours end (at least until you get all of the upgrades to the farm consumables for crafting items) for better equipment or to study that particular monster's behavior to best it in combat. In that regard, I urge newcomers to play this game at their own pace. Don't feel like you need to rush to keep up with everyone else. Trust me, everyone in high rank/post-game hell would kill to have the simple days back instead of the can of worms that opens up once you hit a particular threshold in the story. There's that certain sect of players who thoroughly enjoy that challenge and welcome it while others just enjoy the simplicity of the gameplay that this game brings to the table. It's easy to allow other higher ranked players "rush" you through the game's story/narrative quests (dubbed Assigned Quests), but where's the fun in that when you don't really learn how to endure everything that this game throws at you on your own. Ultimately, you will end up being more of a burden on teams than an asset at high rank and especially in post-game tempered hunts when the game really kicks up a notch in terms of difficulty in monsters' behavioral AI.
There's a lot to take in here and the game gives you the bare minimum in terms of explaining it. Starting out in low rank, don't get too attached to your armor sets as it's going to be near useless the second you hit high rank, but you can clear the story missions with armor barely as good as the high rank Bone, Metal, or Aloy (reward from the PS4 exclusive Horizon Zero Dawn dedicated event quests) armor sets. I'm in post-game and still managing to survive wearing that gear, so don't put too much stock into your gear until endgame. Keep an eye on your defense and attack power, but other than that, don't worry too much about skills and affinity early on. After you get past the bulk of low rank and start getting your feet with wet with high rank is when you should start caring about your skills. When you've invested enough time into this game to at least hold your own in high rank (without having other higher ranked players online carrying you through the game...), you will discover that there's a wealth of resources online (Reddit and the Monster Hunter World wiki's are great resources) to help you become knowledgeable on the game then there is a lot of nice veteran (at least from my experience) players who will answer any questions you may have and steer you into the right direction instead of telling you something that would wind up getting you killed until you know better.
My friends who are veterans to the series say this is a minor gripe and something that has been part of the series for a long time, but I absolutely hate this game's idea of camera control and targeting. Capcom thought it was a brilliant idea to tie sprinting to two different buttons (this can be changed in the Options BTW) but not a dedicated lock-on button? I hated it with the original version of DmC (Devil May Cry) until the Definitive Edition dropped (along with Remember Me too) and I hate it here as Capcom rarely knows how to do a targeting and/or camera system right in these action/adventure games. I guess the sadists who like to torture themselves playing Dark Souls-like games don't care about a handicap in that fashion, but it just annoys me when you play other games that do something so simple like that VERY well then you go back and play something like this (that's a triple A big budget release title no less) and it's mediocre in comparison. There's means to adjust the camera/targeting in the Options menu as well, but I still haven't found a setting that doesn't have my character clipping through the enemy at times when I'm trying to land hits in. Just give me a wide angle shot that follows the damn thing I'm trying to kill around without unsyncing my target lock whenever he gets more than a few steps away from me. I've lost count at how many times I would get carted (this game's means of getting killed when your health drops to zero) mainly because I couldn't see the damn thing that was attacking me or running into me to trample me to death for being in it's hitbox. It's stuff like that in which makes me feel like I'm playing a re-release of a PlayStation 2 game than a PlayStation 4/Xbox One current-gen title. I've gotten to the point where I have gotten used to just manually panning and adjusting the camera around during gameplay, but it's nowhere as convenient as I would have liked.
In terms of visuals, there's times where this game is absolutely gorgeous to look at (Coral Highlands immediately comes to mind) and others where the environments (there's only FIVE key areas on the World Map - that's it... Like wow). look so damn boring that I was wondering where did the budget go into in terms of level design. Monster designs could have used some more creativity too if I'm perfectly honest too as there's FAR too many "dragon-type" designs in this game for my taste. It was cool during the first half of the game where there was a lot more variety in terms of what kind of monsters that you ran across in the various story missions. Then high rank happens and 80-90% of everything you fight for the rest of the story missions in the game falls into dragon-type territory. Despite the fact that I enjoyed most of the "gimmicks" revolving around the 3 Elder Dragons (One fight is against wind pressure bouncing you around everywhere if you get trapped within it while said dragon's has extremely high defense save for a few sections on his head and torso. Another is a fight against extreme heat/fire with this dragon enraging to leave timed explosions in his wake while having the ability for a massive AoE (area of effect) supernova attack that will more likely cart you if you're caught up in the explosion. Finally, the Elder Dragon that you encounter in Rotten Vale is the weakest of the three, but the entire fight revolves around him exploiting the hazardous poisons in that environment/locale while adding the ability to cut your max health points in half no matter whether or not you've buffed them up prior to the quest.), it left me longing for more variety that every "boss" type comes down to another big dragon you have to topple. That was cool during the open beta where Rathalos and Diablos were the top of the food chain in terms of what you could encounter in those quests, but getting the full retail release of the game and see that it hasn't changed much let me down a little. I have heard that there's going to be more monsters added down the road as downloadable content (DLC), so I guess that's something to look forward in terms of extending the shelf life of this game. Sue me, as a gamer who spent the majority of 2017 playing Horizon Zero Dawn, it's hard to look at another open-world action/adventure game and NOT be nit-picky when that game did everything so well in terms of gameplay and variety in terms of enemies that you ran across.
I'm writing this portion of this review after the first update to the game dropped with Deviljho, the first DLC add-on monster has been added to the game and I'm honestly not impressed. He behaves like a jacked up Anjanath on steroids with a few extra bells and whistles (laser breath, can use other monsters as a club has he holds them in his mouth, and dishes out massive damage on physical damage, due to dragonblight and defense down at higher levels). The limited timed event over the past weekend that allowed players to hunt a Tempered Deviljho was downright insane as I've seen HR100-200 hunters get one-shot KO'ed by that fool with ease. I wasn't fortunate enough to slay that mighty beast in that event myself, but I heard it is supposed to be making a return down the road for players who want another kick in the balls.
I don't see everyone else getting to this point, but I'm close to HR85 and I'm starting to feel bored with the game, even after the inclusion of Deviljho. It's not that the game is bad, it's just that it's feeling redundant at this point. That crawl of grinding between HR50 to 100 seems like the worst as you're back hunting stuff you've seen at least a couple hundred times, while others (tempered hunts especially) seem like more trouble than they are worth. Sadly, you can't just ignore these types of hunts as after HR50, you unlock augment stones to be dropped from Elder Dragons that can unlock even higher potential with further upgrades for maxed out weapons and armor. You would be crazy to ignore this feature when there's tempered monsters, like Tempered Nergigante, that will shred whatever armor set you're rocking in post-game thinking you're hot shit into a shredded cheese unless you're loaded up with the best skills to give you an added edge over the opposition and make the most of out of your gear and resources.
Cheers! Drinks are on me for all of the awesome people I have had the pleasure of fighting alongside with in this game online.
Last but not least, I want to comment about the community for this game. The older I get, the more I play video games as a palate cleanser and to get away from people after a long day of work and what not. That's just how I am. With this game though? I've found myself actually liking to play multiplayer with randoms. There's no shit talking or putting people down for making mistakes - at least not from what I've seen/encountered and everyone is just out to help each other. Of course, you have a few asshats that were trying to stun/stagger lock players into not getting carves after the kill, but Capcom removed that after the recent update. From the majority of posts that I've seen on Reddit, IGN, and GameFAQs to even the Monster Hunter wiki pages, there's a lot of genuinely nice veteran players who are eager to answer questions and help everyone out, regardless of skill level and that's just awesome. As someone who came from the fighting game community that would feel downright toxic at times, this is a welcome breath of fresh air. I haven't felt this much at ease and without any anxiety nor dread to play with people online in this game than I've EVER played online before with randoms. I'm happy to say that answering SOS flares has become my staple thing to do to unwind after a long day of work. That being said, this is the best gaming community that I'm proud to be a part of - even though there are days when I want to reach into my television and choke some players who shoot flash pods at the monster during mounts or the long sword/dual blade/bow/heavy bow gun users who are selfish about dealing damage when they put everyone around them in stagger, but that's a different subject altogether...
Play It or Don't Bother?
Chow down and get your strength up, it's going to be a wild ride... Trust me you're going to need it.
With my few gripes as a newcomer to this game coming from other action games, I was a little skeptical jumping into the world of Monster Hunter. Monster Hunter: World has made this entry in the series the most accessible for both veterans and newcomers alike. It doesn't do everything perfectly, but the beauty of this game is joy of bringing players together to accomplish great things. In this case, that purpose is slaying monsters and harvesting parts from their corpses for better armor and weapons. Sure, it gets rather redundant rather quickly, but one cannot deny that this grind is a blast with a team of players, whether they be your friends from real life or random players that you met during your online travels.
For newcomers, I humbly suggest giving this game a shot. You might have a rocky start, run into a few brick walls, but that's the fun of this game. There's so much to learn and absorb, whether on your own or from playing with other players to the point where you're always helping yourself and your peers out as you work together. There's going to be moments where you will want to strangle your teammates for their mistakes/trolling or throw your controller in frustration from the stalker dubbed "B-52" by the community randomly party crashing on your hunts, but at the end of the day, you're going to want to jump back into the drivers' seat and come back for more until you get that satisfaction of that big victory over the fearsome beast that haunted your dreams. Eventually, you'll know everything about that creature and own him/her in their own environment like it's a cakewalk.
As a hunter, you'll take on quests to hunt monsters in a variety of habitats.
Take down these monsters and receive materials that you can use to create stronger weapons and armor in order to hunt even more dangerous monsters.
In Monster Hunter: World, the latest installment in the series, you can enjoy the ultimate hunting experience, using everything at your disposal to hunt monsters in a new world teeming with surprises and excitement.
Capcom recently held two separate beta testing events, exclusive to players on PlayStation 4.
GENERAL INFORMATION
Beta Version Download
Download available from Monday, December 18
Note:
- The download schedule is subject to change.
- No additional download is necessary for players who have already saved the Monster Hunter: World Beta to their system storage during the first beta.
Main Contents
Single Player
Play online single player by departing alone on any of the quests.
You must be online even when playing single player.
Multiplayer
Participate in multiplayer with players from around the world.
You also have the option during quest creation to set a language filter, which will match you only with players with the same language as you.
Certain online features will be unavailable in the beta, such as the ability to join quests midway through, Guild Cards, removing other players from a quest, and friend invites (these features will be available in the full retail version).
Three Different Quests
"Great Devourer, Great Jagras"
Great Jagras Hunt
Locale: Ancient Forest
"The Ancient Forest Menace"
Anjanath Hunt
Locale: Ancient Forest
Character Creation and Naming
You will be able to choose from six different presets each for male and female hunters, as well as six presets for your Palico, and give them each a name of your choosing. (The full retail version will feature much deeper customization features!)
Voice and Text Chat
Training Area
Test out any of the 14 different weapon types in a private training space!
Participation Bonuses
You can get special bonuses for participating in the beta!
Face Paint
Completing any of the three quests featured in the beta will earn you one Face Paint to customize your character with in the full retail version.
Item Sets
Completing each of the three quests for the first time will earn you item sets you can use in the full retail version. Items include lifepowder, max potions, shock traps, and lots more that will help you out on the hunt!
Important Notes About This Beta:
The beta schedule is subject to change or cancellation without notice.
This beta is online only. An internet connection is required to participate.
Data will not be saved. Once the application is closed, your character's name, appearance, equipment, and all other settings will be reset to default.
Quest completion data will be saved to the server.
To claim participation bonuses in the full retail version, you must be logged into the same Sony Entertainment Network (SEN) account that was used at the time the quests were completed in the beta.
The full retail version of Monster Hunter: World will require a PS Plus membership to enjoy online multiplayer.
Size: 5.5 GB.
Trophies are not available.
Customer Support will not be available for the beta.
This is the button layout for the DUALSHOCK®4 wireless controller.
All of the controls on this page refer to the game's default control settings. Certain controls can be adjusted by accessing Options Button: Start Menu > System > Options.
Controls in the Field
The actions you can perform differ depending on whether you have your weapon readied (drawn) or have your weapon put away (sheathed).
Readying and Sheathing Weapons
R2 Button or △ Button:
Draw your weapon (when your weapon is sheathed)
- You can attack with your weapon when it is drawn.
- Pressing Button to draw your weapon will result in a unique attack or action depending on the weapon.
□ Button or R1 Button:
Sheathe your weapon (when your weapon is drawn)
- You can gather materials or carve monsters when your weapon is sheathed.
- Certain actions and staying idle will also automatically sheathe your weapon.
Changing Controls and Interface
Confirm and Cancel Button Controls
× Button: Confirm
- Confirm actions, menu selections, etc.
- Speak to other characters
- Use facilities, interact with objects
○ Button: Cancel
- Cancel menu selections, etc. Basic Movement Controls
Left Stick
- Move character
L3 Button + R1 Button:
- Dash (weapon sheathed)
Note:
- You can also press L3 Button once with Left Stick to dash.
Hold L1 Button:
- Display health/stamina
- Enlarge minimap
- Display radial menu
- With radial menu displayed, use shortcut with Right Stick
L1 Button + ○ Button/× Button:
- Select item
L2 Button
- Display slinger aiming reticle (weapon sheathed)
- Use Right Stick to aim.
Hold L2 Button and press R2 Button:
- Use slinger (weapon sheathed)
Note:
- The slinger can be used with your weapon drawn when using the sword & shield.
R3 Button
- Toggle focus camera
Option Button
- Open the start menu
Touchpad Button
- Wildlife map
Hold Touchpad Button:
- Display chat window
Close-Range Weapon Controls
△ Button
- Normal attack (weapon drawn)
○ Button
- Special attack (weapon drawn)
R2 Button
- Guard or unique weapon action
Ranged Weapon Controls
D-Pad Up / D-Pad Down
- Select phial/ammo
Hold L2 Button
- Display weapon aiming reticle (weapon drawn)
Use Right Stick to aim.
R2 Button
Shoot/Fire
Note: Weapon must be drawn when using a bowgun.
- Hold L2 Button, use Right Stick to aim, then fire with R2 Button.
△ Button
Using a Bowgun:
- Reload
Using a Bow:
- Use/Remove coating (weapon drawn)
○ Button
Light Bowgun:
- Special attack (weapon drawn)
Heavy Bowgun:
- Load/Remove special ammo (weapon drawn)
Bow:
- Special attack (weapon drawn)
Controls when Mounting Monsters
Hitting a large monster with a jumping attack gives you a chance to mount it. Once mounted, you can attack it for as long as you stay held on.
When you're mounted, the border around your minimap will light up with different colors to indicate what actions the monster will do in its attempt to knock you off. Watch its movements and your minimap carefully to know when it's safe to attack.
You will slowly lose stamina as you continue to ride a monster. You'll be thrown off the monster if your stamina runs out, so keep an eye on your stamina gauge!
More information on the ins and outs of the game can be found here.
MY THOUGHTS
I participated in both the first beta that was limited to PlayStation Plus users as well as the recent one that was open to everyone on PlayStation Network with or without a PlayStation Plus account over the holiday weekend. In terms of content, both sessions were about the same, with the second offering a few new "rare" spawns in terms of monsters, but the elite hunts were the same with Diablos and Rathalos serving to be the creme of the crop in terms of what players could face for the greatest challenge in this beta test of the game.
As a newcomer to this series, I thought it was a pretty good crash course to this game. After the first few hunts, I felt like I had the hang of things and was learning stuff on my own the more I played the game. The in-game Training Area was a welcome asset during this beta to try out the various weapons before getting thrown in the thick of the action without any prior experience. This allowed newcomers to get a feel of what works best for their particular playstyles. I wanted to try out the firearms more in single player, but I was more inclined to use Greatsword and Hammer type weapons mainly for the high physical damage output. To say that these games have been around for so long and have accrued such a niche audience/following, I'm surprised their fanbase haven't asked for the ability to be able to swap between two weapons, but I guess that would be a bit too much to ask.
I didn't mind that just about everything in this game from wielding your weapons, dodging/evading, and even moving your character around revolved around stamina management, but I felt that the process between inputting an action via the controller to your character actually executing it could be sped up a bit. This can truly be felt when trying to use healing items or just items period, especially when monsters get really aggo (read: aggressive) when they have even the slightest inclination that you have the intent of healing yourself. I get that's the kind of Dark Souls-level developer bullshit that some gamers get off to as a "challenge" nowadays, but I've been gaming for long enough (25+ years) that I don't need clunky controls and spotty camera issues from PSX/N64 to PS2/original Xbox era gaming to test my gaming prowess thanks to pure frustration with mechanics that are inexcusable in modern day gaming. If I want that, I can easily pull out my NES for that level of controller throwing angst.
I adored when this happened in Horizon Zero Dawn in the rare instances it occurred in that game, but seeing monsters interact and engage each other in this game was downright awesome. I know this is no brainer to Monster Hunter veterans, but being in the middle of a hunt then another monster shows up and join the fight is an added layer of craziness that I wasn't expecting in this game at all. Sometimes the monsters will assist you in battle, others will team up with the target and add as another nuisance to hinder you from dispatching the monster within the time limit. I think the craziest intervention I have encountered during the beta was Diablos interrupting the battle and bringing everyone - the target we were fighting in multiplayer and all of the players in surrounding area in quicksand, only to drag us down to his lair for his own home field advantage. Interactions like this wasn't limited to just monsters either. While facing Rathalos, it's possible for him to get swept up into a tidal wave of water after he destroys a section of the canyon wall within the area during the battle. The current sweeps Rathalos off the side of the mountain and into the valley below, allowing players to deal massive damage to him. It's stuff like that is where I'm anxious to see what affect that it would have on the full retail release when the game drops later in January 2018.
Don't get me wrong. When it works right, this game is a blast to play but some of these gameplay elements come off pretty damn clunky and buggy (especially with enemies clipping through environments) to say that Capcom are trying to convince people to pre-order this game with the ad showing up every time you successfully complete or fail a quest. I understand that this is beta and the full retail version is subject to change, but I was left with enough of an impression of this game that I'm a little skeptical to put the money down if this is the product we could be potentially getting come January 26th.
Multiplayer was limited to sharing Quest IDs as if they were Nintendo Wii Friend Codes if you wanted to make private rooms and invite friends while open Multiplayer was open to anyone and everyone around the globe to join your session(s). I think they needed to work the bugs out on that one as I had chat on and I couldn't hear a damn thing from my teammates during the few times I did play in a party of randoms with their in-game text even showing up in their native language. Yeah... fix that shit, Capcom. Other than that, I didn't have many issues with online multiplayer in the second beta like I did during the first where random disconnects were abundant during that. Seemed like Capcom cleared that issue up for the open beta during the Christmas holiday weekend.
