Amusing note: I called this the same thing I called my last Monster Hunter post. I thought to myself as I was typing the title, “Hm, I’ve probably used something similar before, or even the same.” I went to the last post so I could reread what I had written. Lo and behold, there was the exact same title.
I’ve put in several more hours into Monster Hunter Rise (Capcom), which is how I play games. I pick one big one at a time and then get well and truly stuck in. There are things I like. better about MHR than MHW and things I like about the same. There are very few things I like less, but that’s because the games are pretty similar. It’s hard not to compare the two as they are the only Mon Hun games I’ve played (well, I tired an earlier iteration on the 3DS for a few hours and hated it, but I don’t really count that. I put well over 300 hours into MHW and really enjoyed it until the Tempered Elder Dragons. That’s when it zoomed out of my capability zone and while I was able to kill the Tempered Eldered Dragons, I didn’t have any fun doing it and it didn’t feel like skill at all. I had a Switch-Axe that was made from Nergigante material. It greatly negated other Elder Dragons’ ultimates. Until I got to Tempered Elder Dragons and then it didn’t. At that point, I was no longer adept at dodging the ultimates and I didn’t want to relearn how to do it.
That and Iceborne killed all interest I had in that game and it made me wary in picking up MHR. Really, it was Ian’s positive response to the game that pushed me to giving it a try. As is my wont, I jumped in with both feet once I bought it. I am a weirdo in that I do all the gathering quests first and then the slaying small monsters quests before doing the hunt the big monster quests. I don’t know how I got in that habit, but it’s stuck from MHW.
One thing frustrating about the Mon Hun games is that they throw so much at you in the beginning without differentiate between what’s important and what isn’t. For example, it’s nice that you can talk to so many villagers, but I would like to know which are important and which aren’t. It’s not hard to figure out, but it is a bit frustrating. Knowing how to use the camera? It that really necessary? Knowing how to use the wirebugs? Very important! The candy girl is cute and all, but she’s not giving me anything that helps with my questing. The blacksmith who smiths armor/weapons for my pals? VERY important! Also, the scrap system for said armor/weapons, also important. Fish merchant who doesn’t sell me anything? Not so important.