Reviews - All

Story

The story behind Monster Hunter is, to put it nicely, simplistic. You are, as the name of the game implies, a Monster Hunter, a warrior who guards and supplies the local village by hunting down creatures that threaten it and collecting supplies from the various surrounding areas.

The story is vague and sparse, but done so intentionally to help keep the game from being too linear. The story that is present is generally told through the various quests you receive from the Village Elder and the Gathering Hall. It basically follows the formula of “A big monster has attacked us, and we need you to go out and hit it until it stops moving.”

An important thing to note here is that if you’re playing a Monster Hunter game for the story, you are playing it for all the wrong reasons. This doesn’t mean the game shouldn’t have a story by any means. I would loved to have seen some more involved story based quests, or some form of character development, but that doesn’t mean this game is bad by any means. The story does the job it’s meant to: You’re a monster hunter. There are monsters. HUNT THEM.

Visuals

This game looks gorgeous on the PSP and is far from an eyesore. From the light that filters through the tree tops in the forests and jungles to the white-capped fields of the snowy mountains the different areas of the game are varied and vibrant. As you traverse the various terrains you’ll notice how each area is filled with just the right amount of detail to make it feel alive, but not too cluttered.

The creature models are excellent. The first time I saw a Rathian I was impressed with the level of detail they put into it. You can actually see the various scales and markings that creatures have on them, and some even show battle damage when you’ve “broken” various body parts (more on that in gameplay).

Character creation gives you a limited, although nice, number of visual adjustments to make your character unique. You can choose gender, aesthetic clothing, facial appearance, skin tone, hair and hair colour. But the real joy of the character models come from the nigh countless equipment you can make to put on them. This game boasts thousands of weapons and pieces of armour, and it is not exaggerating in the least. The weapons and armour are very diverse and most of them are incredibly detailed. You will find yourself wandering through your list of possible combinations going “Oh wow, that sword looks so cool!” whether you want to or not.

The only real visual problems are that some monsters are palette swapped (the act of changing a creatures colour and then calling it something else), and that on occasion if you stand too close to some wyverns you will actually see right through them (more of a camera issue than a graphical one, though). Overall, though, the graphics in this game are incredibly pleasing to the eye.

Sound

The sound in this game is very nicely done and the musical score matches every situation quite well. Town music is friendly and soothing, while the different areas of the game have varying music to match them. The combat music played while facing one of the various colossal monsters that wander the landscape is charged with adrenaline and definitely gets you into the mindset of the game.

The sound effects are fantastic, with the variety of ambient sound like birds singing or the waves crashing onto the beach done beautifully. Your various weapons all make relatively realistic noises as they strike against various surfaces and even things like throwing your fishing lure in the water makes a splashing sound to be proud of.

The various sound effects for the monsters and other animals are done in a way that makes them almost sound real, which is due in part to the assistance of one Frank Welker. You read that right, the original freakin’ Megatron himself did a lot of the monster vocal effect work for the Monster Hunter series, thus lending that real feeling you just can’t get from a computer generated noise.

All the sounds and songs in this game mesh well together and lend themselves into making this game a good audio experience overall, but the score can get repetitive as that when you combat most monsters the same combat music plays, and as you revisit the same areas, the same ambient music plays as well. A bit more variety in the musical department would have been welcome, seeing as many people could (and have!) spent several hundred hours on this game.

Gameplay

Ah, Gameplay! The crux, the nub, the very meat of the series! Now, there is a lot to cover in this section, so I suggest getting something to eat and drink, and prepare to hunker down for what could take a while.

The best friend and worst enemy of Monster Hunter is the complexity of the game. On the back cover of the game it boasts a whopping 500 hours of gameplay. I am here to tell you that is a lie. I have been playing Monster Hunter Freedom Unite since its Japanese release, where it is called Monster Hunter Portable 2nd G, since it was initially released and I have sunk way more than 500 hours into it. This game is, to put it simply, ridiculously massive.

You have somewhere around 100 single player “Elder” quests to go through, and then you can do all of those and more in either single or multiplayer modes of the “Gathering Hall” quests. Add into this the ultra hard “G rank” and the so-hard-my-eyes-are-bleeding “G+ Rank” quests, and just playing the game alone is going to take a while. Now, factor in all the neat items you can make and it just compounds the fact.

The main premise of the game is hunting monsters and collecting items from them by skinning or trapping them, and then making various weapons, armours, and supplements from those parts to hunt bigger and badder monsters to make bigger and badder gear. Now, this may sound terribly repetitive but trust me when I say far from it. The sheer number of monsters out there to track and fight and the complexity of the combat make this a challenging and enjoyable experience.

It’s not just as easy as getting the biggest weapon and beating the creature up. Picture every monster in this game like a boss fight from any number of games, Megaman being the best choice.
They have various move sets, weaknesses, and patterns. You need to learn those moves, weaknesses and patterns to effectively hunt them. An example is that when a Tigrex leaps twice through the air it almost always follows up with a short lunging bite. You have to understand strategy and be prepared for almost anything.

The control scheme for this game can be a hassle for some at the beginning, but given time you will easily pick it up. The thumb stick moves your character around while the directional pad moves the camera. The four face buttons do various actions depending on which class of weapon you use, and whether or not you have them drawn, as do the shoulder buttons, and the start button brings up the menu.

There are ten classes of weapons, each one with its own strengths and weaknesses. Examples are sword & shield which allows you quick attacks and the ability to block but has very short range and low attack power, or Greatsword which does massive amounts of damage, has a decent range, and allows you to block, but you cannot run with your weapon drawn and it has a very slow attack swing.

The various rewards you pick up through the game can be used to make armour as well as weapons. Armour comes with various defensive bonuses as well as any number of skill bonuses or penalties. They can be supportive like Hearing Plug, which negates the stun effect of a wyvern’s roar, or offensive like a bonus to attack power. You can also create various consumable items like potions or even jewels which you can hook into weapons and armour to augment your skills.

These items have various animations that go with them, and while many may complain “why does my guy flex after he eats?” or “why does it take so long to sharpen my weapon?!” You have to understand this was done for a reason: strategy. This whole game is about strategy, which means you have to drink potions or sharpen your weapon at the right time or suffer the consequences.

Another complaint people have is the lack of a “lock on” system. You don’t need one. Again, it comes down to studying your opponent and knowing when and where to hit. Makin a lock-on system for this game would defeat the purpose of trying to create a strategic action game. It would have just ended up being another Devil May Cry or God of War clone.

All of this and more easily gives this game a good score in gameplay. The only thing keeping it from a perfect is that the control scheme can be overwhelming for people when they first start out and it can be incredibly uncomfortable until you get used to it. I picked this game up something quick because of my previous experience with the franchise, and others who are Monster Hunter Veterans will as well, but first timers will have some trouble getting used to it.

Replay Value

Okay, the score given for replay value is a bit misleading because you don’t really “replay “ the game, as it is never ending. It is made in a way that the game never stops so there is no definable finish line to cross. Rest assured, my fellow gamers, that the score is accurate as this game doesn’t end, and nor do you want it to.

You can replay any quest any number of times to get the items you need, and since some items have horrid drop rates (Hello Heavenly Rathalos Scale at 2%!) you will be grinding some monsters. Whether getting Pokke Points to upgrade your gathering garden or going fishing in the snowy mountains for Knife Mackerel, you will find yourself easily sinking countless hours into this game without even realising it.

Sure, you may eventually want to start a “fresh” save for the heck of it, but most of the time you’ll find yourself too busy with your main character to bother. Also, if you have friends with this game then you’ll be too busy getting into multiplayer and hunting down some of the more powerful beasties together to even both starting a new file.

So, technically there is no reason to really restart the entire game but the score is high because you’ll easily find yourself replaying the various quests in order to acquire the necessary parts to make that awesome new weapon or suit of armour you want.

Overall

I need to end this review with one important caveat: I love Monster Hunter games. It was a bit difficult to sit there and dissect a game I have invested well over 1,000 hours of my life into. That being said, due to this exercise I have found a deeper understanding of my love for this series, but can also understand why others may not find it appealing.

Now, down to brass tacks. Overall, Monster Hunter Freedom Unite is an incredibly addictive game that can easily keep people occupied for countless hours to come. It will not be everyone’s cup of tea, though. If you are looking for a deep character-driven story-heavy RPG, look elsewhere.

Mohan, as it is affectionately referred to in Japan, is for those who want heart-pounding action and enjoy the thrill of tracking down the various monsters that inhabit this fantastic yet brutal world. It is a game for people who don’t mind spending 20+ minutes fighting a Rajang, only to have it go into rage mode and knock them out in one shot.

If you want a game that will hold your hand or that will just give you everything you need to face your next challenge instead of actually earning it yourself through virtual blood, sweat and tears, then look elsewhere because Monster Hunter is not for you.