Release Date: 26th March 2021
Developer/Publisher: Capcom
Platform(s): Nintendo Switch, PC (OT here)
Price:
- 8789¥ (physical), 7990¥ (digital)
- €59.99
- $59.99
- £39.99 (Amazon/Game), £49.99 (eShop)
Into every generation, there is a chosen one. One girl in all the world. She alone will wield the strength and skill to stand against the vampires, the demons, and the forces of darkness; To stop the spread of their evil and the swell of their numbers. She is the Slayer Hunter.
Monster Hunter Rise is the latest entry in Monster Hunter's portable series, which originally debuted on PSP, then moved to 3DS and now Switch.
Portable series games tend to be a little more stylised and out there than their console equivalents, and Rise is no different. With a faux-medieval Japanese aesthetic, seamless maps and nifty new wirebug traversal, this game is like Portable 3rd, World and Spider-Man somehow had a baby.
Standard/Deluxe
Collector's Edition
Switch + Pro Controller
amiibo
Each amiibo gives you a different set of Magnamalo layered armor.
Magnamalo outfits your hunter, Palico outfits your kitties, Palamute outfits your puppers.
Wirebug
The wirebug is Rise's biggest and most exciting new feature. With it, you can web-sling and run on walls like Spider-Man himself!
To use it, hold ZL and press X to aim for the air, or A to aim for the ground:
Alternatively, you can freely aim and press ZR to target your bug.
While in combat, you can use ZL+X/A to unleash Silkbind Attacks, special wirebug-based moves which differ depending on the weapon.
You can also use ZL+B in any direction to have your wirebug yank you out of a knockdown - but make sure you don't dive straight back into an attack!
Palamute
Since the second generation, you've been able to take a
This game adds Palamutes to the mix, which are
You can take any combination of two buddies with you for each hunt, depending on your needs. In multiplayer, only the buddy in your first slot will come along.
Skill Switch
The team's last game, Generations, changed up the gameplay with "styles" that added a layer of customisation to each weapon.
In Rise, the customisation is even more in-depth - you can freely swap out one major, one minor and one silkbind attack.
This adds a huge amount of flexibility, letting you really bend the game to fit your playstyle.
You can check out each weapon's switchable skills here.
Rampage
Siege quests are no stranger to the series, from MH1's Lao-Shan Lung and MH2's Shen Gaoren to World's Zorah Magdaros.
However, the difference in a Rampage is that the monsters are sieging you.
You have to set up armaments (manned by villagers or players) and defend Kamura Village against timed waves of monsters.
When the monsters attack, you can either use the armaments or get stuck in with your weapon - the goal is to find a balance between both.
After you've repelled and/or slayed two waves, a Major Threat (AKA the leader) shows up as part of the third wave.
If you're (un)lucky, this might even be an Apex monster, which yields special rewards but hits like a tank on steroids.
Repelling the third wave or defeating the major threat ends the Rampage and gets you that sweet sweet loot.
FAQ
Q: Is this a good first game to get into the series?
Yes! The last Switch game, Generations Ultimate, was an anniversary special, so it was super inaccessible to newcomers.
Rise has none of that and is designed to bring in new players, so go for it!
Q: The demo was super hard, is this too much for me?
No! Don't worry, MH demos are there so veterans can get a grip on weapon changes and the new game mechanics; there hasn't been a beginner-friendly demo since the first game.
The actual game will introduce everything to you in a much more organic way. Most importantly, it won't give you just 15 minutes to beat a tough-as-nails flagship.
Q: How do I choose a weapon?
Try them all in the training area to narrow down your choices, then take the best ones out against an early quest to see which works best for you.
There's no wrong choice here - the game is balanced so that no weapon is inherently worse than the others. Just pick what works for you.
Q: How do I level up?
You don't. Monster Hunter games don't have a traditional RPG levelling system - your character is only as strong as their weapons and armour.
What you should aim to level up is your skill at the game. MH is grindy, but rather than grinding levels, you're playing over and over to improve your own skill. It can be a long journey, but it's very rewarding when you finally slay a monster that's been ruining your life.
Q: Will this game have DLC and/or a G version?
The G expansion, Sunbreak, is due in Summer 2022.
There will be no more title updates before that, but new event quests will continue to release until then.
Q: Does this game have cross-save/cross-play with the PC version?Sadly not. It seems Capcom underestimated the demand for these features, so they didn't develop Rise in a way that would allow this.
Q: Why isn't this on PS4/PS5/Xbox?
Because they're not portable. For the Japanese audience, Monster Hunter is a social game where you hunt in local co-op with your friends - the portable series is designed to cater to this specific demand.
Usually there's also a HD uprezzed port of the portable game released later, which this time around is coming to PC.
Q: Can we still mount monsters?
Mounting is old news. It's all about COWBOY RIDING now, baby.
Q: Does this game have slinger/clutch claw/mantles?
No, these are exclusive to World/Iceborne. No idea if they'll make an appearance in future generations.
Q: How about scoutflies/paintballs?
Nope. The monsters will appear on your map from the start, but they'll be question marks until you actually sight them.
Additionally, the minimap will be obscured by clouds at the start of the game; the clouds will clear as you explore each area.
Q: Can I get the deluxe stuff after buying the standard edition?Doesn't matter if you have physical or digital edition, but you can get the Deluxe Upgrade Kit digitally through the eShop page for Rise (scroll down and you'll see the add-on section)
In addition, you can also check out what each content looks like below. There's a handy video clip that cycles through each item.
MONSTER HUNTER RISE | CAPCOM
MONSTER HUNTER RISE arrives on Nintendo Switch, breathing new life into the genre!www.monsterhunter.com
Resources
Switch Skill Overview
Weapon Guide Wiki
Official Weapon Videos
Gaijinhunter on YouTube
Arekkz on YouTube
Open spoilers except for information coming via leaks.
Anything leaked (mainly for Sunbreak at this point) must be spoiler tagged until it appears in official marketing.
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