The last beta for Monster Hunter: World has ended and the real meat of the game will happen in a few days time. For the gamers who tried Monster Hunter for the first time on the PlayStation console, how was your game experience? Found Nergigante to be a tad bit on the tough side?
Well aside from the fact that the flagship monster really is hard, its not all that gloomy once the full game rolls out, as there are really some noticeable differences from the beta and the final version. So for the newcomers out there let me breakdown some changes that you need to know when going about the game.
This is intended for all the new players out there, seasoned vets might want to stick around and read up, as you still might learn something. So without further ado, here we go!
1.) Lives are a precious commodity
Not to throw you on the deep end right from the start, but when you battled Nergigante remember that you can be knocked-out/carted for a total number of 5 times? That is actually a very generous amount given by the devs in the beta, because in the full game (and for just about any Monster Hunter title) you can only be carted a maximum amount of 3 times, when you reach your 3rd KO then its “quest failed” for yah! So make sure to prepare ahead of time and stock up on those mega potions and life powders, which leads me to my second point…
2.) Be prepared and stock up
You probably noticed that at the beggining of each quest, your character is reasonably, nay, generously stocked up with restoratives and consumable buffs. Now that may be true in the beta, its a whole different story when it comes to World. Like I mentioned before, a good chunk of the game is all about making the right preparations before tackling the quests. What this means is it is entirely up to you on what stuff you need to bring, which is very dependent to the mission. For example, when you know that you are battling a Rathalos, it is a good idea to bring some antidote with you, as the monster has an attack that can give you a poisoned status. Don’t worry, once you played enough of the full game and learned the intricacies of each beast, this will become second nature to you in no time.
And speaking of time…
3.) You have all the time in the world
Going back to the Nergigante, part of which this quest became exceedingly tough is because in the beta, the time was shortened from 20 minutes to 15 minutes. And based on the feedback from the players, most of them had a hard time finishing the mission because they always ran out of time…
This is not the case in retail, it is good to note that in the full version of the game, the quest timer is generously extended to a maximum of 50 minutes. Now aside from hunting a specific monster, you can now use a good part of your time to gather some materials that you might need, or just explore the lay of the land. Neat huh? Talking about the lay of the land, here’s another segway…
4.) You will be given a chance to fully explore the map
It is not called Monster Hunter World without a bit of exploring right? In MHW, the franchise sees the return of an expedition mode. It works a bit differently this time though, you see, in the full game, at the end of every quest you make you can now choose between to things:
a. Return to Camp
b. Return to HQ
If you choose the first option, you will fast-travel to the nearest discovered camp and from there on, freely roam the lay of the land as you so wish. At that point the quest timer will become static, giving the player all the time he needs to gather, explore other areas of the map, find new base camps and even fight monsters that roam the land! Why would you do that? Well in expedition mode there are no fixed lives, so this provides a good venue to practice and hone your skills. Just remember that, while you can still carve a defeated monster, you will not get post-quest rewards/loot from it (after all you are not in a quest). I still say that’s a good trade-off… Huzzah!
Now on to my final say, which is the most important part.
5.) The best and most important aspect of Monster Hunter: World was removed from the beta.
Sure, you defeated Nergigante, heck you even solo’ed it right? Good for you! Since one great aspect of the game is that overwhelming sense of accomplishment when you defeat a monster for the first time…
So you downed an elder dragon, pat yourself on the back… So what’s next? Well the next part is actually battling that monster for a second, third time… even more! Why you ask? Well aside from fighting and learning more from these awesome beasts, the very reason why you are playing the game is to build your weapon skills, getting specific materials and to craft that bad-ass set of armor or weapon that you’ve been eyeing from the smithy.
And how do you get those materials? Well you guessed it… From the defeated monsters themselves! Ok it might sound weird at first, wearing the dead carcass of your defeated foe… But this is the only reason why you are playing in the first place, and believe me, it will be one heck of a ride especially when experienced with a group of friends. Really, the best part of the Monster Hunter: World is definitely the grind! And no, you can’t pay your way out of this, as there are no lootboxes here… THE MONSTERS ARE THE LOOTBOX!
And with that, welcome to the world of Monster Hunter! I hope you enjoy the game as much as I enjoyed it way back on the PlayStation 2. Till next time, and see you on the hunt!