In Monster Hunter World (PC, PS4, Xbox) as a hunter, you have no magical abilities or assigned role. You must think like a normal human to succeed in the hunt. Skillfully use the tools at your disposal and be resourceful.
From role-playing games like Final Fantasy or World of Warcraft, we are used to magical races: Wizards, Summoners, and Elves often heat things up for their opponents with enchantments. Even in online shooters like Destiny, players possess the power of light and can summon special powers.
In the action RPG Monster Hunter World, the situation is different. The only race available for you to play is human. You will not have special and magical abilities. Typical roles like tank and healer are also absent.
As a player in Monster Hunter World, you are human. Only knowledge and handling of equipment make you successful hunters.
The hunt for monsters should feel realistic
Although Monster Hunter World consists of a surreal fantasy universe, the developers want to create as realistic a feeling as possible for monster hunting. There should be no special skills that only require pressing one button to make the whole area explode.
For things like explosions, there are items and weapons that hunters craft and build in the forge. If you want to poison a behemoth, you can grab a light crossbow and use poison ammunition.
A crucial core of the gameplay is to think about the best equipment to take down certain monsters. Then you must also learn how to handle that equipment. The weapons are so huge that they are unwieldy to use. But that makes sense, as the monsters are often armored with thick scales or spikes. A tiny dagger would likely do nothing.
Imagine that someone takes you and drops you into the world of Monster Hunter World. You are the hunter fighting against huge beasts that see you as prey. What would you need to turn the tables?
Learn the behavior of monsters and know your equipment
Since you have no magical powers as humans, there is only one thing left for you: Learn the behavior of the monsters, know their weak points, and be aware of what your equipment can do.
There are 14 weapon classes that can all be turned into different weapons with new properties. The same goes for armors. If you have collected enough monster bones, you will soon be able to craft a bone weapon and bone armor. They provide additional protection against elements like fire or electricity. Monsters are often aligned to different elements, which can be strong or weak against others.
You must consider how to balance these strengths and weaknesses with your equipment and what resistances you need.
Additionally, every monster behaves like an MMORPG boss. The animals have attack patterns that you must carefully observe and learn. For instance, the Anjanath is particularly aggressive and dangerous when it flares its nostrils. The Barroth charges at you with a massive bone plate on its head, but you can tell when it is about to charge based on its movements.
Each monster also has body parts that are sensitive. For some, it’s the tail; for others, it could be the wings or even the belly. Here you need to “tap” the whole monster and learn where you deal the most damage.
You always need to strategize and plan.
As humans, you must be hunters, gatherers, and inventors
There will always be that one monster you simply can’t conquer. That is part of the learning process.
- But that is also the point at which you need to start developing strategies. Ask yourselves questions like:
- Should the monster be lured away first?
- Would stun arrows help, or does the monster have a resistance to them?
- Do I need to farm a specific equipment set first to take down the monster?
Humans mastered the development of weapons like spears and the art of ambushing long ago. Likewise, you must become inventors in Monster Hunter World. Gather the necessary resources and refine your equipment. Meanwhile, you will learn how to handle your weapon.
In an interview with Metro the producer of Monster Hunter World described this process.
Ryozo Tsujimoto: “This is not a game where your character collects XP. You are the one who becomes better. […] So when you progress in the game and master the various challenges, one day you will look at your character with that cool equipment. Then you will realize that you have earned the right to own all that stuff. Because YOU have become so good at the game that you are now this damn strong hunter!”
Hunting is especially fun in a group: This is how multiplayer works in Monster Hunter World, explained in the video guide
