Monster Hunter Rise

The Switch continues its next-gen fightback by releasing new versions of all my favourite games. Following a new Hyrule Warriors and with a new Disgaea also on the way, we've also got this coming up:

Looks awesome, frankly. A brand new portable Monster Hunter incorporating a lot of the features from Monster Hunter World (including single interconnected zones) but with new monsters, grappling hooks and a dog you can ride.

The last Switch game in this series was Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate and that was brilliant even if it was years out of date by the time it hit the Switch. A full game built for the platform from the ground up could be amazing.

Spring 2021.

The Switch is the ultimate companion console, and all that mini-Direct with Disgaea, MH, etc, did was reinforce that. If they keep making interesting curios for it, and publishing indies, it'll be wonderful.

(Says the man who's now playing his 3DS again too.)

I've bought (a version) of every MH game since MH4U (which I suppose is "just" Generations and World besides), but have never "finished" one, despite really enjoying them. I really do need to rectify that.

Very much looking forward to playing a MH game without the clutch claw and hopefully mmo raids

The demo for this is out now, apparently. Will be checking it out later on.

OK, yes, this is definitely a Monster Hunter game.

It's basically old-style portable MH but with some features from World - the game world is no longer divided into zones and large monsters can now fight each other. Insects called Wirebugs help you zip around the game world and enable new moves for your weapons. Monsters can even be wrapped up in wire, then mounted (not like that) which lets you control them, attack other monsters with them and even run them head-first into walls.

Graphically it looks about three generations ahead of MHGU and performance is solid. Like a lot of Switch games it looks more impressive on the handheld screen than it does on a big TV. (I really should go back to Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamitous Performance to see if that's more bearable in handheld mode, actually). There's no real indication of how multiplayer will work but I'm expecting the traditional lobby system rather than the drop-in/drop-out multiplayer from World.

It's good. I'm slightly wary because it does feel extremely familiar, it doesn't really deviate from the formula that much and after several very similar games I'm wondering if I really want to jump straight into this one (especially as there will no doubt be an Ultimate version in a year's time with loads of extra content). Maybe I was hoping for something more like World? Maybe I should just get Iceborne. I dunno.

Monsters can even be wrapped up in wire, then mounted (not like that)

Not in the demo, no. They're saving that for the After Dark edition.

This is like MHGU fused with World with a sprinkle of new QoL and features.

It looks worse than World, obviously, but I think the map we have got looks fantastic from a design perspective (abandoned Japanese shrines, waterfalls, etc) and less 'organic' than World's stages that looked nice but sometimes made fights a bit of a pain in the ass (I'm looking at you, Ancient Forest from MHW, you perhaps overly ambitious super stuffed nightmre) which means fights are less of a pain in the ass in the demo!

The QoL of the doggo can't really be overstated, it's like a more manual version of Iceborne's mount system, it can literally run up Vines. Who liked climbing Vines? Fuck Vines!!!!!!! You can eat stamina increasing meat or sharpen your weapon while galloping down a field on it, it can hop huge-ish heights so you basically cut your own path, it's great. (also, maps are still no longer zones, which would have made the doggy rides feel really disjointed)

The Wirebug thing will take some getting used to, when I saw trailers they made it seem like you will be going full Spider-Man around the map at will….in the demo at least you can't do this. The universal action of the wirebug (as in, not weapon exclusive) is that if you have a charge you can do a quick zip through the air, to evade or attack or simple reach a ledge. In the demo I ran at the returning Mitzusune (A giant Fox that soaks the battlefield in soap!) on my dog, jumped off, zipped high into the air and performed a downward Hammer slam on it! Imagine the ability to dodge into the air t any time and come crashing down on the monster and who knows what else.

That's not all, Weapons all have exclusive skills that use this wirebug, I've not tried them all but Lance can attach a wire to a Monster and if the monster jumps away, instead of sheathing the Lance to run up or use stamina to Lance charge you can yank yourself TO the monster. Hammer can zip itself into the air and set up an attack that leaves an actual crater in the ground…can't wait to see more as I play more weapons!

Finally, Wyvern Riding! I wasn't too sure on this at first but I think I really like it now, it's basically mounting like Gar said, using Rathian's signature Poison Tailflip to slap Mizu upside his soapy, vulpine chin actually feels great!

Also, don't feel too bad if Mizu kicks your ass, he basically can two shot you if you're not careful. It's like someone harassing you by pelting you with Dove and Imperial Leather. (Mizu wasn't in World or Iceborne, so people are extremely happy to see him back)

Do we know yet how much stuff is going to be in this game? I'm not expecting a MHGU-style content splurge but I hope it's fairly sizeable at least. I am concerned that I'm going to buy it then a year later there's going to be Monster Hunter Rise Ultimate with three times the amount of stuff to do…

I also haven't seen any confirmation on how multiplayer is going to work. I'm really not a fan of the old lobby-style system, it's too easy to waste entire evenings hanging around doing the same quests repeatedly hoping someone will help you with the one key quest you need to progress… then watching everyone leave the lobby as soon as you post it. But I am pretty much resigned to this being the case as it's only Monster Hunter World that's used any kind of different (i.e. better) system.

People are datamining the demo but I haven't bothered to look for everything honestly. I dunno' how much more but you might want to keep in mind this will be as ever, probably the version without G-Rank, literally every game including MHW re-released an expansion over the original game to add that new mode, although Iceborne was super buff for added content. G-Rank is usually new monsters/variants, MHGU had a lot from MHGen but Iceborne added shit loads.

So you're not really far off, but I can't wait that long.

I'm going to be different and say I prefer MHGU's lobby system to World's. World had a lot of lobbies and you could jump in/out, but…it felt really impersonal, I talked to people all the time in MHGU, if Nintendo weren't complete fuckheads I'd probably have messaged them online now to do co-op on the demo but alas…I think at least they're going the solo/multiplayer questlines again, whereas World was just the ne questline.

I may just have ended up doing all the important quests but I found it was very much alive when I played, though if not, I'm always up to help. :p

Did you play Iceborne, Alastor? By the time it came out it had been so long since I played World that I skipped it. But I think I probably missed out.

Monster Hunter World runs so well on the Series X it's like a different game. I'm actually tempted to go through that again (it's on GamePass) and go straight into Iceborne, while waiting for Rise to show up in a sale a few months down the line.

Yes I did, when it first dropped and you enter the new Ice Region it's an amazing moment, new (better) hub, then for free they added monsters like Tigrex, Glavenus and fucking FATALIS. (Whose nova attack you have to hide behind a siege door as he slowly melts through it) Nargacuga is back!

They added an armour set to help people speed through to the expansion called 'Defender'. If you don't mind rushing you should definitely get it then see how long it lasts in Iceborne until Barioth makes you make stronger gear.

How much new stuff is in there? If it's as big as the original game then I'll probably give it a go. If it's just a little piece of DLC then I'm not going to replay the whole thing…

Just checked for a Monster count and no site seems to count the latest tally as of Fatalis (the last free dlc) but it's something like

New main quest (if you care)
30+ monsters
New 'Master Rank' aka G Rank where monsters hit harder and have new moves, actually hard at times and pretty frustrating too.
New Ice region
New Gameplay mechanic thing called a Clutch Claw (you mileage may vary massively on this)
New moves for weapons (Longsword literally gets the 'unsheathes so fast you can't see the blade' attack)
There's a new eternal hunt thing called 'Guiding Lands' which is a big map comprised of every zone in the game amalgamated into one. This is kinda' the endgame where you 'level up' each region by hunting down specific monsters for materials you can only get there.
And all the new bits and bobs like the new gear sets, weapons and new Level 4 Decorations that can add two stats in one.

Monster Hunter noob question. I've just started Monster Hunter World, taken down the first few big ones.

Is the general idea: kill a big monster for a quest, kill it a couple more times on expeditions, use its bits to craft its armor set, kill bigger monster? It seems fun so far, it's just crap at explaining most of its systems.

And I can't see any new weapons to craft, is that correct? I've settled on sword and shield, crafted a bone version, and there's nothing more powerful now.

Yes, pretty much. Some craft trees wont even show until you first get parts from other monsters so don't worry about that. You also don't have to re-hunt at all if you see the skills and think they're not important (like 'critical draw' or whatever).

Thanks!

For some reason, new players now start MHW with high-level weapons and armour already in their inventory. Which, as far as I can tell, breaks the main gameplay loop. So I'm just ignoring it and using weaker stuff.

The high level stuff was introduced to help people speed through to Iceborne, I think.

I’m intending to start it again at some point (it was my most anticipated game a few years back, but I never really got far in it; I forget why) and think I’ll probably leave it alone too.

Also if anyone feels the need to try another more safe weapon I heartily recommend the Lance. All you do on a basic level is poke-poke-poke and block, but you can hold a counter if you see you're going to get attacked and its a nice long window and this counter resets the three poke count and no one, especially stupid Diablos can do shit to you.

Played a fair amount of World over Xmas. Obviously amazed that MPH hasn't railed against the presence of Monsters and Hunting.

It's a shame the actual combat is so sluggish and crappy as I quite like other aspects of it. And yes, I know "play X weapon and it's super fun!!!11"…. no. It isn't ever snappy and entertaining in combat. I'd call it "technical" at best. That Vita title really nailed MH systems and great combat. But I've forgotten its name again. Ragnarok was it?

Back to World. It needs a scandalously powerful PC to deliver graphics that even match the PS4 version. It was clearly optimised by a work experience student. The obtuse systems and terrible design choices (as a result of legacy games informing the design) are actually largely quite charming - and it was fun to unpick some of them. My 12 year old has played every game in the series, so we were just firing long lists of "how do you….?" and "what does this mean…?" style questions at him for most of the play sessions. That said, whoever at Capcom thought the cutscenes should be unskippable and a barrier to players of different levels questing together (if one hasn't yet watched the cutscenes on a quest) should be fired into the sun. Nobody gives a shit about the crappy story, just bowgunning T-rexes in the ass with mates. Baffling. We were tempted to see if it could be modded out on PC as it's actively stopping us from playing more.

MPH - make sure you at least try out every weapon in the training area. You'll definitely have a favourite and it probably won't be sword and shield. I always seem to go back to the hammer - it's nice and simple, not as slow as it looks, and you always feel like you're smacking things really hard. It's quite cathartic.

cav - even on the PS4 Pro this ran like shit. It's taken the horsepower of the Series X (and presumably the PS5) to actually run it at a decent speed and resolution, and it's amazing what a difference it makes. It's still a weirdly garish game, it's certainly no looker, but it's a lot more playable now.

Going to have to disagree that MH combat is 'crappy', it's just a more considered approach than most games I've played that follow the same formula, which also let you get away with murder whereas Monste Hunter is asking you to commit. (some weapons get to utilise their various tricks and stuff of course)

A good example to use here I think would be the Greatsword. It's big and slow to swing, you can't run with it and Monsters are WAY too fast to chase them and cut them down with it. If you try to just mash it out you're not going to hit anything, it's all about learning when you can charge an attack and release in time and I think it's super satisfying when you nail it, especially when you interrupt an attack that would have sent you flying.(like this scoop attempt from Banbaros)

I think I played Dauntless (free to play, closest I think MH ever got to a competitor?) last year and while it had some slow charging weapons, I don't think a single swing felt like it meant as much as that one in that clip.

It's definitely slow combat, but I'm quite liking it so far. Some of the weapons are a bit TOO clunky (I love the reach of the lance but getting it lined up is like trying to steer an oil tanker). But I'm all over the katana at the minute, that seems like a good compromise between big hits and speed.

The only thing really hampering my enjoyment right now is the killing part. The monsters are so well animated, so lovingly realised, that when they start limping away my heart goes out to them. Then I chase after them and carry on dismembering them.

Wait till you meet Bazelgeuse. That fucker deserves to die. You'll chase after it, limping away, and stab it repeatedly while cheering.

If you want fast-paced combat, dual blades are pretty button-mashy and bow is basically pew-pew.

Longsword is ridiculous, and the helmsplitter attack is (was, until Iceborne added that Samurai style of drawing so fast you don't see the blade…) weeb heaven.

You can run with the Hammer too btw (not sprint) and it's basically about hit and run until the Monster gets knocked out then you start repeatedly bashing its brains out.

EDIT- Yeah. Fuck these Monsters, especially Rathalos, fucking shithead. Did you see what Diablos did to that poor Barrioth? D:

Just killed the T-Rex (Anjath?) and I'm fully onboard now. This game is excellent, and goes on the pile of 'Games I never in a million years thought I'd like'.

Although I haven't died yet (cos I'm such a leet gamer like). I imagine dying and wasting 45 minutes of progress might sour the mood somewhat.

We have another convert! Welcome, Mr Party Hat.

Top tip: don't be afraid of the multiplayer in Monster Hunter World. It's not a separate mode or anything. It's as simple as sending up an SOS Flare and watching three other random players drop in and help kill your monster with you. It's great fun.

Anjanath is a great new monster, they aded a few good debuts this game, I also like the one who bludgeons you to death with a big rock.

I imagine dying and wasting 45 minutes of progress might sour the mood somewhat.

Dying after getting stun locked by a roar makes me very angry.

I don't think World has Lagombi, does it? (Maybe it came back with Iceborne). That's the one that always makes me feel terrible for killing it. It's basically a big bunny wabbit that skids about in an ungainly fashion on the ice and it's the least threatening thing ever, I always want to make friends with it rather than smashing its brains in with a hammer.

Nah, and not Iceborne either which is sad come to think of it since the Lagombi gear was amazing. If you get a dual Lagombi hunt request in Rise you can always race them around the map with the new riding feature lol

Rise is looking better and better with every preview - it's looking like the proper follow-up to Monster Hunter World, rather than the side project I was perhaps expecting it to be.

Base roster so far is 29 monsters - more than base World - with probably a few still to be announced and maybe sub-species too?

QoL improvements from World plus more. AND SOS FLARES ARE IN THERE! That's a massive game-changer for me because I've always burned out on the multiplayer side for all the older games that rely on the lobby system. On the other hand, the multiplayer and single-player quests are separated once again, so it looks like they have the best of all worlds in there.

It's also looking really nice, I'll be honest and say I wish it was on the Xbox because the Switch is always going to feel underpowered in comparison but what they've done is very impressive. Definitely one of the nicest-looking games on the platform.

I'm back on the hype train for this, choo choo.

I'll probably get Rise once it gets its PC release, which they're saying is 2022. I've not even finished standard World yet…

I'm currently (two or three years behind everyone else and) about 120 hours deep into a Monster Hunter World obsession, having finally restarted it in January. Possibly my favourite game ever, to be honest. I tried (and loved) MH4, but having the "new" QoL stuff and the big screen (and a bit more time on my hands) has meant I'm finally fully onboard, and a paid up member of the fanclub.

I've tended to dick around, frequently switch "main" weapons, and generally do all the side stuff, so I think I'm probably only about 70% through the story of MHW, much less the endgame and Iceborne though, so I fully anticipate trying to juggle two MH games, soon, which will probably end in disaster, and frankly I can't wait.

(At least I think I finally know what weapon I'll be using - I went something like Longsword, Greatsword, Insect Glaive, Greatsword, Longsword, Insect Glaive, Greatsword, and now back to the Longsword, with the odd dabble with the Hammer, Dual Blades and especially Bow in between. If trying to use the Longsword in two different games gets confusing then I might end up busting out the GS again in Rise, as I know the moveset well, and using it in the conjunction with the Wirebug looks like it could be hilarious.)

You'll love Longsworg in Iceborne and Rise, it's ridiculous. With the introduction of the new Iai draw from Iceborne and the Wire move in Rise you now have three counters in MH Rise . (Though I imagine you're getting a lot of mileage out of Foresight Slash already.)

Hey Jdub, dying in Rise doesnt reset the spirit gauge. :)

I've been using almost entirely Hammer for several games in a row now (MH3U, MH4U, MHGen, MHW) so it's definitely time to diversify. I've dabbled a little in Dual Blades and Light Bowgun but only really to deal with specific scenarios rather than as "go to" weapons.

I tried out the Bow in the recent Rise demo a bit and it was fun but I definitely didn't feel like I was doing much damage - monsters took forever to go down.

I might try Hunting Horn, that's always looked like a lot of fun, not too dissimilar to Hammer and I think they've simplified its mechanics a bit in Rise too.

It's almost a new weapon in Rise. To play a song now you just play the attacks in order, no recital necessary. It had two good Wirebug moves in the demo, one where it played every song at once while absolutely crushing the monster or something like that, and a gapcloser. Everyone agreed it was OP in the demo.

You'll love Longsworg in Iceborne and Rise, it's ridiculous. With the introduction of the new Iai draw from Iceborne and the Wire move in Rise you now have three counters in MH Rise . (Though I imagine you're getting a lot of mileage out of Foresight Slash already.)

I'm just getting my head properly around Foresight Slash, and occasionally somehow pull off a "proper" Iai Spirit Slash (as I already have Iceborne, so am playing the base game with the Iceborne moveset, effectively), at which point I have to remember to keep playing rather than get hype and jump around the room.

I've got a lot of fairly effective combos and stuff down, I just need to get better at dealing with the quicker monsters; with the Greatsword I'm actually okay against them, because it's more hit-and-run than people assume, and has genuine stopping power, so you just wear them down (or literally "break" them), and with the IG I'm basically just an attack helicopter, dictating the fight and staying out of the way until they slow down and I can get up close and personal.

With the Longsword it's tricky sometimes, especially as I'm still learning to counter, as I lose a little mobility and/or stopping power, but when it comes together with the LS it's just beautiful, in a way the others aren't

(I also fucking hate fighting Bazelgeuse with the LS still.)

Hey Jdub, dying in Rise doesnt reset the spirit gauge. :)

This is excellent news.

I've been using almost entirely Hammer for several games in a row now (MH3U, MH4U, MHGen, MHW) so it's definitely time to diversify. I've dabbled a little in Dual Blades and Light Bowgun but only really to deal with specific scenarios rather than as "go to" weapons.

I liked the idea of the Hammer, but because of the obvious overlap I found I missed the shoulder charge (and extra range) from the Greatsword too much. I can see why it's so popular/has such a devoted following though. Bonk.

I tried out the Bow in the recent Rise demo a bit and it was fun but I definitely didn't feel like I was doing much damage - monsters took forever to go down.

It's feast or famine for me with it - stuff either goes down insanely quickly, or it's a massive slog, with almost no in-between. It's the only one of the ranged weapons I've even properly tried, though - attempting to aim on MH4 put me off all of them, and (other than with the Bow) it just doesn't really feel like MH when you use them.

I might try Hunting Horn, that's always looked like a lot of fun, not too dissimilar to Hammer and I think they've simplified its mechanics a bit in Rise too.

I didn't try it during the demo, but from what I've heard it sounds like it's amazing in Rise. You'll be absurdly popular in lobbies if you get good with it too.

A good thing to practice with Foresight Slash is the Monster's opening roar since they'll always do it (I think at least the bigger ones at least), work out how many opening attacks you can get in, maybe one or to depending on the monster then go into Foresight to counter the Roar then followup the Foresight counter attack with the move that instantly upgrades your spirit gauge one level. Then you'll basically end up opening every fight one step closer to Red. (also, it can pretty janky, but god damn is Helmbreaker the most satisfying attack to pull off)

Iai Draw is some next level shit though, too hard for me. Tigrex is probably a good training dummy for it though, since he's just an agry charge boi.

I've only ever used the SwitchAxe in World, I think that was introduced in Tri and its been my go-to in the games that I've played since then.

I've always wanted to try the Switch Axe and Charge Blade but they're too complicated for me. I'm OK in training and then in actual battle I just completely lose the combos and forget what mode I'm supposed to be in.

It's the sign of a great series that everyone has their favourite, though. With the greater emphasis on aerial combat in this one I can see the Insect Glaive getting some much needed attention, too.

Wirebug is a great feature, universal on demand aerial attacks, quick slingshot back on your feet after a monster knocks you out, evasion, the many weapon skills, it goes on and on..

As mentioned in the other thread, over the weekend I "finished" World (not Iceborne - not even started that yet).

I realised at some point that the Longsword wasn't for me (yet). I couldn't get myself in the right mindset for the whole thing, using the counters, concentrating on organically being in the fight (rather than forcing meter build), etc, and while I'm semi-competent with it I could tell it wasn't 'my' weapon. I was sure as soon as I realised that I'm not at all comfortable using it as soon as there's multiple monsters in the same place. (I realise you're really supposed to use dung pods to persuade one or two to leave, but I'm more of an 'embrace the chaos' kinda guy.) All of a sudden I'd just feel like I was just waving a pointy stick around while all hell was breaking loose around me.

I tried out/went back to a few others, but only the Switch Axe nearly stuck, so I'm keeping that in mind for later/Rise. I do see something there with the lances, too, though I'd need to really work on the movement, as it's so different that I was struggling to stay with the monsters/stay aggressive.

I also had an afternoon where I went insane (again) with the Insect Glaive. That appears to be a weapon I am apparently genuinely decent with - the aforementioned insanity included four monsters going down in about 40 minutes on one Investigation in the Elder's Recess, including the first Bazelgeuse I'd ever taken down solo - but sometimes I just don't seem to be doing enough damage. Maybe I'm distracted by the kinsect, or by flying around the map like a deranged spider monkey, but sometimes it just feels a little slow in terms of hunt times. It'll probably stay my backup weapon, and in a weird way it shares some similarities with my (re)new(ed) "main", it just isn't going to displace it, I don't think.

Can we guess what I've gone back to yet?

(also, it can pretty janky, but god damn is Helmbreaker the most satisfying attack to pull off)

Respectfully disagree.

Spoiler - click to showTrue. Charged. Slash.

I am a simple man, and I like big numbers (or, on odd occasions, pretending to be an attack helicopter, apparently), so I'm back to the hit-and-run king, that hits like a train.

(Oh, and I think I like the Greatsword weapon designs best too, which probably has something to do with it - they're not all interesting, by any stretch, and the Longsword and Glaive get some really good ones too, but when a Greatsword looks good, it looks best - I have a Nergigante GS and a Wyvern Ignition now, and they're so, so good, with their little bespoke animations.)

Well I'm planning to try main GS in Rise so I won't disagree! (And the Wyvern GS is amazing)

As for Lance, sometimes you need to chase a monster down (but they do have an amazing Lance charge for that!) sometimes you can walk at them and they'll slingshot back to try and kill you anyway. All you're really doing is triple poking and going into counter (or power guard) if they're going to try stopping that. Any flying enemies…yeah it's a good job you can switch to Insect Glaive instead right?

The Witcher 3 crossover was amazingly well done but the best they ever did was the FFXIV one!

I prefer fighting Deviljho with the Insect Glaive too, really, as most of the time the stubby-legged, pickle-looking bastard can be tricky to hit (well) from the ground, his legs aren't that weak, and it's dangerous to run around/under him. That said, I did make a point of farming him last night with the Greatsword, just to try and get better (and to get the parts for the Deviljho GS).

The Witcher crossover was excellent, yes, even if I did die on it the first attempt (on my last continue I was bleeding and got stunlocked by the Jagras he was controlling - just one of those (infuriating) hunts). In fact, I think it was that hunt that made me sure I was right about my weapon choice, as I tried to do it first with the LS, and it should be fine (his close-up I would think would be easy to counter if I was in the right mindset/not shit), but it just doesn't click with me (yet). Went back with a Greatsword and cleared it without carting at all, and in considerably less time than it'd taken me to fail the first attempt.

(I should really have learnt this about myself by now - part of me wants to play the graceful weapons, but I really like (and am better with) the harder hitting, more visceral ones. It's like Bloodborne - I like the Threaded Cane, but I love (and am actually good with) the Kirkhammer and Ludwig's Holy Blade.)

Oh, and the FFXIV can get in the bin (for now) - I walked into the Behemoth fight solo with no idea what I was getting into, and am now fairly confident it will forever sit incomplete in my Special Assignments, which is mildly irritating.

As I'm just tidying up odds and sods now before I head into Iceborne, I also decided to respond to some SOS's last night, and that was a bit lovely too. One guy appeared to have been having a nightmare with Deviljho, and their reaction after I'd dropped in and we'd taken him out was great.

I do think the SOS flares are implemented brilliantly in World. There's no feeling quite like calling in the cavalry when you're on your last legs. I'm so glad the system is returning in Rise, it's the main thing that's convinced me to get the game.

Yeah, it seems like a great system. Fighting the Behemoth last night was the first time I'd actually tried to use it myself (and I think that particular ship has sailed, based on the lack of response), but that did remind me that it existed, hence spending the next hour or two jumping into other people's games, which was really good fun.

Unless I start going back and trying to capture things and unlock more Optional/Arena quests it seems I'm running low on "structured" fun in the base game now. My next Assignment is to fight two 'unusually powerful' Bazelgeuse, so I think I might try that later, see what it unlocks in terms of endgame, and then maybe move onto Iceborne…

(Also, despite having a similar reaction to Bazelgeuse as Gar initially, I actually sort of love him now - he's a great design, his music is fantastic, the turf wars between him and Devijho are amazing… He's basically an event unto himself, and I actually like fighting him now - I hate/hated fighting him with a Longsword, but if I've got a Greatsword or Insect Glaive I always feel like I can take him, and enjoy the chaos his arrival causes.)

I actually have the week of the 22nd off, happily, so I might be able to make real headway on anything I have left with MHW/Iceborne, and then get a good start on Rise on Friday (as well as, you know, maybe doing something else with the time off too).

Apologies that our staff shop is still shut and I haven't been able to facilitate you all with discounts on MHR.

Yeah you're gonna need a friend or three for Behemoth since he uses MMO mechnics like aggro and 'using aoes certain players who need to run out so the tornados spawn away from everyone'. Before we. got the raid in Iceborne and the Fatalis hunt his meteor was one of the more impressive enemy attacks in the game.

BUT, and I know it won't matter much to you at this point but his armor set is by far the best in the base MHW game:

Master's Touch (4 piece set bonus)
Critical Eye Lv 6
Attack Boost Lv 3
Critical Boost Lv 3
Power Prolonger Lv 1
Airborne Lv 1

Slots.
3 x3
2 x3
1 x1

So it's entirely possible to get Weakness Exploit on there and more Attack if you want (Though…I dunno if you're allowed to use the Clutch Claw yet but it almost completely changed how it works). If it makes you feel better it's basically paper armour in IB's Master Rank.

Apologies that our staff shop is still shut and I haven't been able to facilitate you all with discounts on MHR.

That's hardly your fault!

I'm just going to go ahead and preorder this now I think, there are some very insignificant cosmetic bonuses for doing so but might as well get the free stuff while it's available.

I think there's a deluxe edition too but that's another tenner for what looks like more cosmetic tat, I think I'll pass on that. The physical steelbook edition looks nice but I cannot be done with physical cartridges for the Switch any more.

So to no surprise this is fucking amazing. I just killed a big fat monster playtypus thing last night that does sumo stomps to hit you with ground waves, it's like a cross between Psyduck and a Zamtrios as he can also inflate his body like a balloon, he was so big that he basically became Greatsword fodder for me, fun!