Exclusive Preview: Monster Hunter Rise – New Gameplay Details!

Monster Hunter Rise is an action role-playing game developed and published by Capcom, initially released for Nintendo Switch in March 2021, with subsequent ports to Windows, PlayStation, and Xbox platforms. It's part of the popular Monster Hunter series and introduces several new features and gameplay mechanics.

Key Features

1. Wirebug: This versatile tool allows hunters to grapple and swing across gaps, scale vertical surfaces, and perform new weapon-specific moves and combos.
2. Palamute: A new canine companion that players can ride to traverse maps quickly or engage in battle alongside them.
3. Seamless Maps: The game features large, open areas with no loading times between zones, allowing for continuous gameplay.
4. Rampage Quests: A new type of mission that combines tower defense elements with traditional monster hunting, where players repel waves of monsters using various installations.
5. Enhanced Mobility: The game emphasizes vertical movement and exploration, with maps designed to take advantage of the new traversal options.
6. Sunbreak Expansion: A major paid DLC that adds new monsters, quests, weapons, armor, and story elements, including more difficult Master Rank hunts.

Gameplay and Combat

Monster Hunter Rise retains the core loop of hunting monsters, gathering materials, and crafting better gear to take on stronger creatures. The combat system is skill-based, requiring players to strategize and adapt to each monster's unique behaviors and weaknesses.

The game offers 14 different weapon types, each with its own playstyle and mechanics. The addition of the Wirebug and new "Switch Skills" adds depth to the combat, allowing for more dynamic and acrobatic fights.

Multiplayer and Scaling

Monster Hunter Rise supports up to four players in online multiplayer hunts. The game features dynamic difficulty scaling based on the number of players, adjusting monster health and behavior for solo, duo, trio, and full party hunts.

Setting and Story

The game is set in Kamura Village, a setting inspired by feudal Japan and its folklore. The story revolves around the player character becoming a hunter and facing the threat of "The Rampage," a calamity where hordes of frenzied monsters attack the village.

Monster Hunter Rise has received positive reviews for its accessibility to newcomers while maintaining depth for series veterans. It has sold over 15 million copies worldwide, making it the second best-selling game in the franchise.