I didn’t know what to expect when I popped in Monster Hunter Tri for the first time. I had never heard of the franchise, and quite frankly I thought it was going to be an average third-person combat action game. Now if you have already played any of the Monster Hunter games previous to this title, you are probably chuckling at my initial thoughts. I am pleased to say that I was very wrong because Monster Hunter Tri is so much more than just a combat action game.
This game could be described better as a fantasy hunting sim. You will spend more time preparing for the hunt than actually hunting. From hunting, gathering, farming, sending convoys, and managing a very deep inventory system, you will find a very rewarding outcome if you take the time to understand the various ways to give yourself an edge over your quarry. That is not to say that your prey is a pushover.
In fact, once the game really started to heat up, I found it to be quite difficult. Some tasks are easy like gathering certain crops, but after a short while you will be tasked with capturing large creatures, protecting allies, gathering resources while under attack, and fighting to the death against colossal beasts. However with some forethought, observation, and a little luck, you can overcome the odds.
You have to have patience and perseverance to really advance in this game. You will not level up exactly, because you only advance once in the offline mode: from a level one hunter to a level two hunter; and this change only affects the items you find when foraging, not your power. The only real way to get stronger is to forge and upgrade your weapon sets and combine items to buff up your character before charging into battle. You have to know a little about the creature you are going to face-off with, and you have prepare your inventory properly so you aren’t fumbling around with menus when you need to be carving up the enemy. Your character wields each weapon in the game uniquely, so your strategy will strongly depend on your chosen weapon set.
You have several weapon options. You may choose a sword and shield, great sword, longsword, lance, hammer, bowgun, and later on you may also purchase a switch-axe. The sword and shield is fast but weak, the hammer is slow but strong, the lance offers a bit of protection while attacking, and the bowgun allows you to attack from a distance. The switch-axe is a pretty cool all-in-one weapon, but it takes skill and timing to use effectively. There is a very complex upgrade tree for each type of weapon that unlocks as you progress through the various challenges. Some of these weapons have the ability to do elemental damage, or you may be able to attach “decorations” that have special abilities when on a weapon. As you upgrade your weapons, you will find that the items you need to upgrade your weapons come from creatures that are a perfect challenge for your current set, but can be pushovers later as you apply upgrades to both your weapons and armor.
Armor, as with the weapons, has a complex upgrading system. You can also attach “decorations” to some armor. The armor you can forge is dependent on the spoils you collect in battle. As you take down creatures with awesome natural armor, you can collect their scales and claws to create new armor. This makes it necessary to kill creatures several times over. This may seem repetitive, but it really isn’t. As you learn each creatures tactics and behavior, you will learn to predict what they will do next, like a real hunter. However, you don’t get anywhere in the game if you just keep killing the same creature over and over again. You have to move through the various guild quests that are sent your way.
A typical hunting quest can take some time, especially if you are not used to a game like this. First you will probably visit your farm to reap any herbs, fungus, honey, or bugs you have sown. Then its off to the trader to trade any spoils for unique items. Then to check on your convoys with the fishmonger to see if you found any exciting fish or treasures, then you will talk to the village elder’s son to collect any resources from your convoy or previous hunt. You can also check the monster forecast to see if the creature you are looking for has been spotted in the area. Then you may spend time with a trader, then off to the blacksmith to make a game plan for your next weapon and armor upgrades. After checking your equipment one last time, you may find you are short on something. You may choose to replay an earlier quest to collect additional resources, or you may opt to just wander around Moga Woods, the area just outside your village, for the simple items you may need. Then you will check out what quest you would like to take on and once you have decided, you will go to your hut to put together all the items you need. Figuring out the best way to use your resources to concoct tools, potions, bombs, and traps is the first step towards victory. You will then take a nap (save), have a bite to eat, accept your quest, and then it’s time to head off to the hunt. The fight itself could take a bit of time as well. And if you fail, the game is kind of brutal on you.
Failing doesn’t just mean losing all your health. In fact, if you lose all your health, you simply pass out. Passing out simply puts you back at your base camp with your pay for the mission reduced and your ego bruised. You have three chances to fulfill the mission objectives before you fail however, there are other ways to fail depending on the mission. If time runs out, you kill something you were supposed to capture, or if you let another character that you were supposed to protect die, you will also fail a mission, and lose all the items that you used in the battle. Of course, using items in battle is a task itself. Since the character animation is so drawn out when you sharpen your sword or drink a potion, you really run the risk of getting hit while your character is flexing from his/her newfound strength. This adds an element of strategy as you have to plan the right time to heal yourself or set a trap. No one can say that Nintendo doesn’t have any exclusive hardcore titles anymore, because this game is pretty tough.
It is extremely rewarding, though. Each time you take down a creature it’s a huge thrill. After a while, a creature you struggled with at the beginning starts to become kind of a pushover because your equipment is so much better. It’s a great feeling, and once you get the feel for the game, those moments come more frequently. Once you take down your first Barroth, the game truly starts to take off.
Another amazing aspect of the game is its online mode. While the single player campaign takes place in a village, the online mode is in a city. It’s extremely easy to create or find a quest, and it has been my experience so far that other players are both friendly and helpful. You can find many experienced players that are more than happy to jump into an easier quest with a less experienced player just to help out. Monster Hunter Tri supports Wii speak, or you can use a USB keyboard to chat with others. It takes just a short time to set up your account, and the game contains its own friends list, so friend codes are not necessary. You can search for friends and warp directly to them and you can look up other players stats to see how experienced they are, so you can pair yourself up with stronger characters if need be. The City also has its own shops which may have items that are not available in your village shop.
If that isn’t enough for you, there is also an Arena mode where you can face off with some of the creatures you have hunted. Defeating these creatures under a specific time limit nets you special rewards. There is also a gallery where you can view the various cut-scenes you view throughout the game. There is so much to this game, that it has its own full-fledged wiki that you can visit that will help you learn everything you need to know about the game from weapon and armor upgrade trees, to tips on hunting down that elusive enemy you are struggling with.
Now, this game isn’t perfect. There are some strange graphic glitches that come up from time-to-time. You will probably fight with the camera a bit during battles, as it doesn’t feature full-motion camera control. From left to right, it works great; when looking up and down, it isn’t free-flowing and has only four perspectives it switches to. When you are trying to speak to someone, trying to climb up an obstacle, or trying to carve a victim, you have to watch for a prompt before you can perform the action. This makes it so the slightly clunky control can get in the way. For example, when you turn around, it’s easy to take a few steps as well, making it hard to line up your character to get the prompt to come up. A second issue is that this game can get very frustrating as you watch your wounded prey skip away into some cave that you can’t enter. I don’t understand why I can’t take the same path they do, since I’m half their size! Also, make sure you have a good internet connection before wasting your time in a quest because if your connection drops, you will lose everything you collected in that mission. These are truly just nit-picks that I’m sure you will notice, but don’t let it ruin the overall experience.
There is so much to this game, that it took me two weeks to write this review. However, I’m glad that I spent the extra time to really get into this game. I will continue to play this game long after this review, and I highly recommend this to any Wii owner that is looking for a real challenge. With so many ways to collect items, combine them, make weapons and armor, it’s easy to see fans of sims games getting something out of this as well. If you are not ready for a commitment though, you may find it hard to get into.
Monster Hunter Tri is rated T for Teen and is available exclusively for the Wii. You can purchase the game itself or a special bundle with the new Classic Controller Pro.
A review copy was provided and did not affect the outcome of this review.
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