Monster Hunter World Review – Overview, Storyline, Pros, Cons, And More

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Based on console editions of the game.

As mentioned earlier in this Monster Hunter World review, the story is the generic monster-hunting framework: you’re a hunter/slayer trying to tame a feral land and collect all the loot it has to offer, just so you can craft more weapons and tame wilder, more dangerous creatures.

This title is available on the current generation consoles, Playstation 4 and Xbox One, and Windows-based computers. As with most Sony products, the PS4 does not offer cross-platform play. This hardly hindered the game play as it is one of the more popular titles on the Playstation Plus network.

The end-game grind of this one is well known amongst the initiated Monster Hunters. The main campaign seems to blow by (if twenty hours is considered “swift game play”) and acts as a ramp to the big beasts in the New World. The developers promise more monsters in future DLCs, so there's no limit to what you can build up your character to fight.

Even though the story and basic mechanics are fairly vanilla, especially for a game of this size, the design and execution of the fights really make it a standout in the genre. Some of the best (and longest) battles we’ve ever had came out of playing for this Monster Hunter World review.

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Based on Playstation editions of the game.

Though it sounds derivative, as another game with “Slayers” as lead characters, Toukiden 2 gets a four out of five stars for the sheer effort put into telling an engaging story. We weren’t completely up to date on the overall storyline, so this sequel eases into the world and reintroduces the base game mechanics.

This one is a little different because it's available for Windows-based PC and the Playstation family; no Xbox love for this one. The unusual pairing makes for slightly imbalanced experiences for the game. Playing on the previous generation of Playstation, or even the Vita, robs it of some of the sparkle seen on the newest console or super gaming computer.

We had to grind for each game in this Monster Hunter World review, but this one seemed to be less of a grind and more of a fly-through. The narrative drives the Slayer to new and exciting areas, slowly ramping up the difficulty and introducing the new mechanics at a fair pace.

This is a solid sequel to a popular game, and just the fact it’s even on all edges gives it a solid, medium rating. There’s nothing really spectacular to call out for Toukiden 2, except to say it feels engaging and fun while you’re on the hunt for monsters.

(FREE in OPEN BETA) $                     

This game is still in development and is now open to play for free. There are several “Supporter Packs” available for purchase, but they are unnecessary for the base game.

There’s not much to say about the story for Dauntless. You are a Slayer, one of the chosen few that can take down the massive monsters that have taken over your world. The formula for these games is matched at every step: slay monsters, collect loot, upgrade and forge more power weapons and armor, kill even bigger monsters. Lather. Rinse. Repeat.

This will be a PC-only game for the foreseeable future. Though Phoenix Labs, the developer, has expressed some interest in expanding to consoles, they are still in open beta testing and trying to lock down the Windows-based model of the game.

Compared to the other options in this Monster Hunter World review, this is the most consistent time-killer of all. Each hunt for the behemoths can take anywhere from twenty to thirty minutes, with little variation. Of course, much of this depends on whether you’re playing solo or in the four-player cooperative mode.

The base game could be considered plain and vanilla, which is the standard for an in-development game. Be warned, the price is right, but the game is still being worked through. The price is free to encourage testing and the reporting of bugs. Though we didn’t experience any game-breaker bugs, the average player might grind themselves into the more sketchy areas of the world.

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Price range is for the console edition with base game and Forsaken expansion.

CYDE-6, the fan favorite hunter originally voiced by Nathan Fillion, has been killed by the Prince of the Reef. He is hell bent on revenge for the death of his sister in the first Destiny game. The story hits a more personal note for the characters and has more depth than we’re used to seeing from this series. Of all the games played for this Monster Hunter World review, this was by far the most engaging from a story perspective.

Designed as an add-on extension, Forsaken can be upgraded from the standard game on Xbox One, Playstation 4, and Windows-based computers. Unfortunately, this is yet another franchise that Sony refuses to share online with its competitors, restricting you to play with only those on the same console.

Destiny has always been a grind for the top light level, but Forsaken takes it to a literal “new level” by upping the top-out at six-hundred light points. It’s easy enough to get to the five-hundred level, maybe even five-fifty with lots of work, but that last notch to get to the top is a grind most players might shy away from. The introduction of the Gambit system help the casual gamer that only has twenty or thirty minutes at a time to slow grind to the top.

One of the biggest complaints before Forsaken, and before Destiny 2 in whole, came from the uneven distribution of loot, especially some rare power weapons. Forsaken came on the heels of Season Two, which marked a return to the original gun and weapon system from the first game. For all the games we played for this Monster Hunter World review, this shift in weapon mechanics had the biggest impact on the enjoyment of the game.