'Souls-like'

[Adikavita]

I've seen this term be thrown around. Gotta say I sorta it does not fit in the context of monster hunter.

>Game has dodging with i-frames =/= dark souls
>game needs you to time dodges and/or attacks =/= dark souls
>game has monsters or big bosses =/= dark souls

Dark souls fans, this game is not going to be for you if you expect a 1 to 1 experience. And as a dark souls fan myself (having played all three games), I can say that Monster Hunter is a lot more different.

Dark souls is great, it is also a game where the bosses matter just as much as the journey and exploration itself, and it overall has a relatively smaller scope than monster hunter.

Monster hunter is in no way a 'Souls-like', it is a unique and brilliant experience all by itself, with the wonder of hunting these large, powerful, and somewhat-grounded monsters with all unique concepts and designs, with a comparably underwhelming storyline yet intricate gameplay and mechanics that allow the player to actually feel like a 'hunter'. A franchise spanning 12 games (frontier and spinoffs not included) that started in 2004.

Few of the dragons and monsters in dark souls were partly confirmed to be inspired by the creatures of Monster Hunter, but this doesn't mean the games have any further relation to each other. Dark souls is a different RPG, and dark fantasy experience that has a reason to why it is a critically acclaimed, genre-defining series.

Just because both games need you to have good hand-eye-coordination and sense of timing doesn't mean they are inherently similar. You could say the same for... literally every other action game.

Monster hunter came first, it is not dark fantasy, it has an overall different experience. Both games in my opinion are absolutely wonderful, but if you're going into Monster hunter expecting a souls-like experience, I feel you will be sort of disappointed.

damn... a dark souls crossover similar to the final fantasy one could've been cool though...

[DaBa]

People misuse genre names because they don't understand what they mean. What else is new though? Your average "gamer" has no idea what they mean. For evidence of that look no further than every game's Steam store page. ALL of them have user tags that make no sense, MH is no exception.

This is just another one of those lessons you learn when using Steam: don't look at the tags, they are at best inaccurate and at worst straight up misleading.

[Emerald Lance]

With the exception of direct derivatives like God Eater, Monster Hunter's combat loop is more similar to Dark Souls than any other series. While it isn't a Souls-like per se, I can't think of any other series with combat so similar.

[DaBa]

Originally posted by Emerald Lance:

With the exception of direct derivatives like God Eater, Monster Hunter's combat loop is more similar to Dark Souls than any other series. While it isn't a Souls-like per se, I can't think of any other series with combat so similar.

No it's not even remotely similar at all. Stop comparing everything to Dark Souls... Also, Monster Hunter is a very old franchise, saying something in it is similar to Dark Souls makes no sense at all in the first place. If anything it's the other way around.

[CourtesyFlush09]

Originally posted by Emerald Lance:

With the exception of direct derivatives like God Eater, Monster Hunter's combat loop is more similar to Dark Souls than any other series. While it isn't a Souls-like per se, I can't think of any other series with combat so similar.

You've never played Nioh or The Surge.

[Definively Not Alchman]

as a shmup player that cringes every time that a "normie" describes every single shmup as a bullet hell, i do get where you coming from...

but why?

[Adikavita]

Originally posted by ★ Moonlight ★:

Originally posted by CourtesyFlush90:

What inspiration do you think Souls took from MH?

Miyazaki took inspiration from the addicting difficulty of early Monster Hunter, the way it throws you in without tutorials, as well as the idea slow but methodical combat. Also things like elements of creature design. Of course, these ideas were presented and done entirely differently in the Souls games. Thats how games are made, they take a little inspiration here and there from other games and create something entirely new.

The games are not inherently similar. Just the two being difficult theoretically means nothing much from an inspiration point of view, Miyazaki derived that difficulty, sense of timing and methodical combat, which was pretty present in the 1st person and VERY old setting from his first Fromsoftware series, Kingsfield 1-4, which came out in 1994-2001, he stated this in a little interview concerning demons' souls around the time the remake was getting popular.

The only inspiration the souls series mostly took is the ability to cut a dragon's tail and get its weapon, and marginally deriving the creature designs (most prominently seen in black dragon kalameet, and most of the wyverns). The public Wikipedia of Dark souls moreso mentions Berserk, and other dark fantasy media, and doesn't directly mention monster hunter as a source of inspiration, either.

I agree with you, but at the same time disagree. :)

[CourtesyFlush09]

Originally posted by Adikavita:

Originally posted by ★ Moonlight ★:

Miyazaki took inspiration from the addicting difficulty of early Monster Hunter, the way it throws you in without tutorials, as well as the idea slow but methodical combat. Also things like elements of creature design. Of course, these ideas were presented and done entirely differently in the Souls games. Thats how games are made, they take a little inspiration here and there from other games and create something entirely new.

The games are not inherently similar. Just the two being difficult theoretically means nothing much from an inspiration point of view, Miyazaki derived that difficulty, sense of timing and methodical combat, which was pretty present in the 1st person and VERY old setting from his first Fromsoftware series, Kingsfield 1-4, which came out in 1994-2001, he stated this in a little interview concerning demons' souls around the time the remake was getting popular.

The only inspiration the souls series mostly took is the ability to cut a dragon's tail and get its weapon, and marginally deriving the creature designs (most prominently seen in black dragon kalameet, and most of the wyverns). The public Wikipedia of Dark souls moreso mentions Berserk, and other dark fantasy media, and doesn't directly mention monster hunter as a source of inspiration, either.

I agree with you, but at the same time disagree. :)

Yeah the Souls series is genre-defining. Can't say the same for MH.

[RuDoKa]

there are souls-like (Nioh)

and MH-like (Toukiden)

Two schools

[shit owl]

Originally posted by Adikavita:

I've seen this term be thrown around. Gotta say I sorta it does not fit in the context of monster hunter.

>Game has dodging with i-frames =/= dark souls
>game needs you to time dodges and/or attacks =/= dark souls
>game has monsters or big bosses =/= dark souls

Dark souls fans, this game is not going to be for you if you expect a 1 to 1 experience. And as a dark souls fan myself (having played all three games), I can say that Monster Hunter is a lot more different.

Dark souls is great, it is also a game where the bosses matter just as much as the journey and exploration itself, and it overall has a relatively smaller scope than monster hunter.

Monster hunter is in no way a 'Souls-like', it is a unique and brilliant experience all by itself, with the wonder of hunting these large, powerful, and somewhat-grounded monsters with all unique concepts and designs, with a comparably underwhelming storyline yet intricate gameplay and mechanics that allow the player to actually feel like a 'hunter'. A franchise spanning 12 games (frontier and spinoffs not included) that started in 2004.

Few of the dragons and monsters in dark souls were partly confirmed to be inspired by the creatures of Monster Hunter, but this doesn't mean the games have any further relation to each other. Dark souls is a different RPG, and dark fantasy experience that has a reason to why it is a critically acclaimed, genre-defining series.

Just because both games need you to have good hand-eye-coordination and sense of timing doesn't mean they are inherently similar. You could say the same for... literally every other action game.

Monster hunter came first, it is not dark fantasy, it has an overall different experience. Both games in my opinion are absolutely wonderful, but if you're going into Monster hunter expecting a souls-like experience, I feel you will be sort of disappointed.

damn... a dark souls crossover similar to the final fantasy one could've been cool though...

in dark souls 3 unlike 1 and 2 you have 9mil i-frames when you roll but regardless you never have nearly as many i-frames in mhw as in any souls-like games

[shit owl]

Originally posted by immortal1ze:

This game is nowhere near similar to the dark souls franchise. Don't get me wrong, I love dark souls. But I do have to say that playing this game solo once you get to a certain point in iceborne, it's way more difficult than dark souls could hope to be. Just my 2 cents.

depends on what you run for switch axe and ranged weapon users its defo easier but no matter how much it tries it doesn't get overall harder than bloodborne lmao even just one of the sharks in the old hunters dlc is funnily enough almost harder than any monster i've fought in all of mhw kidding not kidding

[shit owl]

Originally posted by immortal1ze:

Originally posted by ♥♥♥♥ owl:

depends on what you run for switch axe and ranged weapon users its defo easier but no matter how much it tries it doesn't get overall harder than bloodborne

Honestly, I'm currently stuck at Rajang. Probably my own fault for trying to solo him with charge blade, but it's my favorite weapon so I guess I'll just have to keep trying.

just wait till you get to furious rajang then lol

[DaBa]

Originally posted by immortal1ze:

Originally posted by ♥♥♥♥ owl:

depends on what you run for switch axe and ranged weapon users its defo easier but no matter how much it tries it doesn't get overall harder than bloodborne

Honestly, I'm currently stuck at Rajang. Probably my own fault for trying to solo him with charge blade, but it's my favorite weapon so I guess I'll just have to keep trying.

Charge blade is a very good match up actually, CB main here. It's just one of those fights where you will stay 90% of it in sword mode, otherwise you just can't keep up. Guard points let you get very aggressive and power through the attacks instead of running around trying to dodge everything. Charged sword prevents attack deflects if you happen to hit the arms when they're glowing red.

One of the good strats is to build up some stun when it's not enraged and keep it there, and then when it goes nuts you complete the stun and do the savage axe on the tail to knock it out of it. If you do it well, you can pretty much cancel the first two enrage phases, which should be most of the fight.

[BigCheese]

Originally posted by Emerald Lance:

With the exception of direct derivatives like God Eater, Monster Hunter's combat loop is more similar to Dark Souls than any other series. While it isn't a Souls-like per se, I can't think of any other series with combat so similar.

That's where the comparisons come from, the combat system and pacing. Not sure why some are so oblivious to this, the similarities are obvious. Anyone saying they are nothing alike at all is just being silly. I guess they are the all or nothing type where the games must be literally identical, but that's just simple minded. It isn't a "souls-like" though as you said.

[shit owl]

Originally posted by Burt Derpson:

Originally posted by Emerald Lance:

With the exception of direct derivatives like God Eater, Monster Hunter's combat loop is more similar to Dark Souls than any other series. While it isn't a Souls-like per se, I can't think of any other series with combat so similar.

That's where the comparisons come from, the combat system and pacing. Not sure why some are so oblivious to this, the similarities are obvious. Anyone saying they are nothing alike at all is just being silly. I guess they are the all or nothing type where the games must be literally identical, but that's really simple minded. It isn't a "souls-like" though as you said.

how is combat similar i mean i love both franchises but how tf is it similar in souls games you have way less combos and options for attacks and to be honest all the games are equally hard in their own rights but what mhw has going over souls games is that you aren't invincible and have 9 mil iframes during rolls like in souls games

[BigCheese]

Originally posted by ♥♥♥♥ owl:

Originally posted by Burt Derpson:

That's where the comparisons come from, the combat system and pacing. Not sure why some are so oblivious to this, the similarities are obvious. Anyone saying they are nothing alike at all is just being silly. I guess they are the all or nothing type where the games must be literally identical, but that's really simple minded. It isn't a "souls-like" though as you said.

how is combat similar i mean i love both franchises but how tf is it similar in souls games you have way less combos and options for attacks and to be honest all the games are equally hard in their own rights but what mhw has going over souls games is that you aren't invincible and have 9 mil iframes during rolls like in souls games

Pacing, stamina usage, locked into attacks, slow, telegraphed attacks, general difficulty, dodge rolling, iframe usage, getting knocked down. It goes on too. They are very similar systems. I mean if you play both it should be pretty obvious.

Souls like games and Monster Hunter games are really the only games like that. MH came first though and can take the credit.