beginner hunter here, what should I know?

[Warlike]

this is going to be my first monster hunter game (didn't participate in the open beta), and I've got some questions:

how's mouse and keyboard compared to a controller?

would one-hour sessions work for this type of game?

singleplayer or multiplayer with randoms?

how was the beta for you?
Thanks in advance.

[ominumi]

The first thing to do is once you get the chance, go straight into the Training Area. Try out all 14 weapons extensively until you're comfortable with one. Not just attacking with it but as well as dodging, moving around with it, and it's strengths and weaknesses.
Go to Options. There's tons of settings. Make them all work for you not work around them. This will take upwards to hour or two just to get right. Adjust as you play the game until you settle with the settings you enjoy playing the game with.
Every weapon is viable. It depends on the player to determine how long the quest is. If you take upwards of 30 minutes to complete the quest, don't worry about it. That just means you have room for improvement. Use OBS to record yourself playing the game just so you can review mistakes if need be.
Go at your own pace. Just because your friends are already at High Rank, that doesn't mean you should be there too. Not everybody is on the same page and even then not everyone reads at the same rate.
Hit it until it dies. And don't get hit. If you're getting hit, you're doing something wrong. If you're not hitting the monster, you're doing something wrong.
Observer. Predict. React. Observe what the monster attacks are. Predict the next attack is. React accordingly to those attacks.

[KingOfFriedChicken]

Pointy end? Yeah point at monster!

Also just in case:
Shooty end? Point, then shooty at monster!
Blunt end? Smash at monster!
Buggy end? Buggy at monster!

[zero]

in order:
my personal choice is KBM, i might need to rebind some keeps but it feels a lot better for controller then me
the longest hunt in past games could be no longer then 50 minutes, realistically not longer then 30 if things are going bad
this one is personal prefrence, but these games are fun with others, if thats your poison, i like it sometimes, and sometimes i get frustrated, like all things its a mixed bag.

beta was fun, it had its issue but i enjoyed what i played, not having to constantly return to the hub was nice.

[Warlike]

Thanks for the advice, I haven't been this excited for a new release in a while.

[Flip_Light]

Originally posted by Warlike:

Thanks for the advice, I haven't been this excited for a new release in a while.

I recommend SP for the most learning but multiplayer is suuuuper fun even with randoms.
Big thing to remember is that this is a very deliberate genre. There's animation lock, there's punishments for doing things wrong, expect to struggle at first.

The good news is if you can get through the opening hours there's SO MUCH CONTENT and SO MANY COOL THINGS in EVERY mh game that I'm of the opinion everyone is a MH fan even if they just don't know it yet.

[Xaelon]

Originally posted by Warlike:

this is going to be my first monster hunter game (didn't participate in the open beta), and I've got some questions:

Originally posted by Warlike:

how's mouse and keyboard compared to a controller?

Controls are always a matter of preference. The default keybindings will probably be awkward, but that's nothing you can't fix. Just don't expect the KB/M controls to be amazing without some adjustment on your part.

Originally posted by Warlike:

would one-hour sessions work for this type of game?

Probably. You should be able to hunt a few monsters in an hour.

Originally posted by Warlike:

singleplayer or multiplayer with randoms?

Probably singleplayer until you feel like you have a handle on the game. It's just that hunts can end much faster in multiplayer so they aren't exactly the best learning environment. Multiplayer is fun though and Wilds has made joining/hosting hunts much more seamless.

Originally posted by Warlike:

how was the beta for you?

Very good. The default settings selected by the game ran great.

One thing you should know about MH is that it's going to feel clunky and awkward at first. When you use an attack you're pretty much committed to it. A lot of action games will let you dodge to cancel your attacks early, but not MH. If you button mash, you're probably getting hit.

Something else is that the weapons have a lot of depth to them and the game doesn't do a great job of explaining how they work. Don't be afraid to look up info online about your weapon's moveset. Most weapons have branching combo paths and/or faster ways to reach your weapon's finisher.

The different weapon types in MH are like character classes in other games. If your first choice doesn't fit your playstyle why not head to the training area and try out some different ones? The game will be a lot more fun once you find your preferred weapon.

And lastly. Don't give up. MH can feel pretty unforgiving as a new player.

I failed the tutorial hunt a few times in my first MH game but when I finally did clear it? It felt REALLY good. I've been hooked ever since.

You just can't beat the satisfaction of finally beating a Monster that's been bullying you for the last few hunts.

[Warlike]

Originally posted by Xaelon:

Originally posted by Warlike:

this is going to be my first monster hunter game (didn't participate in the open beta), and I've got some questions:

Originally posted by Warlike:

how's mouse and keyboard compared to a controller?

Controls are always a matter of preference. The default keybindings will probably be awkward, but that's nothing you can't fix. Just don't expect the KB/M controls to be amazing without some adjustment on your part.

Originally posted by Warlike:

would one-hour sessions work for this type of game?

Probably. You should be able to hunt a few monsters in an hour.

Originally posted by Warlike:

singleplayer or multiplayer with randoms?

Probably singleplayer until you feel like you have a handle on the game. It's just that hunts can end much faster in multiplayer so they aren't exactly the best learning environment. Multiplayer is fun though and Wilds has made joining/hosting hunts much more seamless.

Originally posted by Warlike:

how was the beta for you?

Very good. The default settings selected by the game ran great.

One thing you should know about MH is that it's going to feel clunky and awkward at first. When you use an attack you're pretty much committed to it. A lot of action games will let you dodge to cancel your attacks early, but not MH. If you button mash, you're probably getting hit.

Something else is that the weapons have a lot of depth to them and the game doesn't do a great job of explaining how they work. Don't be afraid to look up info online about your weapon's moveset. Most weapons have branching combo paths and/or faster ways to reach your weapon's finisher.

The different weapon types in MH are like character classes in other games. If your first choice doesn't fit your playstyle why not head to the training area and try out some different ones? The game will be a lot more fun once you find your preferred weapon.

And lastly. Don't give up. MH can feel pretty unforgiving as a new player.

I failed the tutorial hunt a few times in my first MH game but when I finally did clear it? It felt REALLY good. I've been hooked ever since.

You just can't beat the satisfaction of finally beating a Monster that's been bullying you for the last few hunts.

Thank you so much, all my concerns have vanished. Now we wait for February.

[Sai]

There's also no harm in trying another game in the mean time, the weapon inputs are basically identical, so you could start get used to what you want to use.

[KingOfFriedChicken]

Originally posted by Sai:

There's also no harm in trying another game in the mean time, the weapon inputs are basically identical, so you could start get used to what you want to use.

Honestly cuz they all play so similar either world or rise would allow you to learn the weapons. Generally speaking you can go into a new title and only have to get use to whatever new mechanics it has but otherwise you'll have the general gist of that weapon.

You can either pick one of the weapons styles that fits your style best, or what I do cuz I've played the series so long I just pick 1 I haven't played in awhile and force myself to learn it fully 🤣 all weapons are viable for sure

[Turican76]

- outdated gfx
- bad frames
- bad interface

[SlyCoop]

The answer to this thread failed to mention that it did not run great for everybody by making a bold claim the demo ran great ( for Their own context only )

They should have given you a disclaimer to make sure you have a good computer to run it. Check your system requirements. Wait for capcoms benchmark tool and test the game before release.

This particular MH game will be the most demanding one hardware wise to date. If you think your system is not high enough. Try MH world and MH rise instead. Both still very active, very affordable priced games and a really good for a starting point into Modern MH playable now ofc.

Poor answer to the end of your questions by going off on a tangent.

[Keldric Usugi]

Originally posted by Turican76:

- outdated gfx
- bad frames
- bad interface

The most important thing to learn is that not everyone in here is a Hunter.

Seriously though, I highly recommend you to give World/Iceborne or Rise/Sunbreak a try. Sunbreak has a demo, but be warned that Rise/Sunbreak isn't the usual speed for Monster Hunter. Wilds will be a slower, more grounded experience closer to World.