Monster Hunter World received a large add-on with Iceborne, which brought many new monsters into the game. For MeinMMO editor Nikolas Hernes, it was his first encounter with a monkey that still haunts him in his nightmares.
I love Monster Hunter. Although I played a few of the older games in the past, my first real
entry was, like many others, Monster Hunter World. Together with Monster Hunter Rise and other titles, I spent over 1000 hours as a hunter.
I managed quite well with the main game and most parts of the add-on Iceborne
. I coped well even with large bosses like Shara Ishvalda. But then, after the main story of Iceborne, I encountered a giant monkey that strongly reminded me of a Super Saiyan from Dragon Ball: Rajang.
In a mission, you are tasked with hunting the Rajang. Right from the first cutscene, the monkey shows that he is of the tough kind. In the sequence, he fights against the Kirin, another difficult monster. But he doesn’t just defeat it; he tears off its horn and gnaws on it like a carrot.
Just that alone made me feel a lot of respect, but the fight that followed was personally the worst in my Monster Hunter career.
You can see the intro of Rajang from Monster Hunter World here in the YouTube video from Boss Fight Database:
Small, but mighty
What makes Rajang so difficult for me? At first glance, Rajang isn’t that big at all. Many monsters before were significantly larger. But that’s one of the strengths of the monkey.
As always, I faced the fight directly. With my beloved energy blade, I wanted to hunt the monster as usual. But he completely wiped the floor with me.
He jumps around like Sonic and causes a lot of damage, and his laser isn’t to be underestimated. But the worst part is when he grabs you, shoots the laser in your face, and then throws you into the lava.
At least as bad is his rage form, in which he looks like a Super Saiyan from Dragon Ball. Everything becomes even stronger, and he becomes even more unpredictable.
I couldn’t handle it at all. I just couldn’t predict his attacks to find the perfect moment for a counterattack. After countless attempts, I switched to sword and shield, my other favorite weapon, which is a bit more defensive. But that didn’t help either. Even in co-op with others, I had no chance and became a burden to my teammates, who couldn’t finish the quest.
The only way I could think of to progress and finally defeat the Rajang was to fight like a coward.
A less terrifying monkey returns in Monster Hunter Wilds:
Hiding behind a big shield
What was my last option? The Rajang from World is my personal nemesis. I just couldn’t defeat him, even though I had no problems with other heavy monsters.
I had only one idea left. I took the lance, but didn’t use the cool moveset properly; instead, I hid like a coward behind my shield.
During his attack sequences, I blocked, and every now and then I poked him with the lance. Other players, who were much better against him, dealt damage, and I mimicked the tank. However, my fear of dying with every one of his blows remained, which could lead to the quest being aborted.
In the end, I completed the mission, and the other monsters were no big problems anymore. But to be honest, I avoided the Rajang afterward. The fear of having to submit to the monkey again was too great.
To this day, I have respect and indeed fear of the Rajang. Even in Monster Hunter Rise, where he is significantly easier to defeat, I constantly had memories of my past failures while fighting. And that will probably always remain.
Later when I saw how Rajang was in Monster Hunter 4, I was shocked, but my desire to face this version was awakened.
One day, I’ll dare to tackle Monster Hunter 4, and then I will likely fail again against the Super Monkey in G-Rank. But until then, a similar monster awaits me in Wilds: Monster Hunter Wilds shows gameplay of two new monsters: One of them is guaranteed to be a fan favorite
