Monster Hunter Rise etches itself in the MonHun Franchise as one of the best iterations you can experience. Some purists may not like some of it's removal of more archaic systems such as needing to paintball a monster before engaging, but I find changes such as these all the better for the hunting experience. Let's get this out of the way: Monster Hunter Rise is not World 2 nor does it try to be. It is very much it's own game.

Let's first discuss the graphics and presentation. While Rise on the Switch by all means worked with what it had there is no disputing how incredible the game looks now. Updated textures, frame-rates, lighting, anti-aliasing, the list goes on, each with their own options as well as a myriad of stylized choices such as vignette, DOF, etc... Monster Hunter has always had a beautiful art style but it is so nice to see these beautiful creatures and their armor/weapons updated to match the artists vision. While I haven't reached High Rank yet the Armor sets are already looking remarkable.

This is the big part, but the game-play loop in Rise is masterclass game design. It's addictive and rewarding. Very rarely do you find yourself fighting against the fabled "desire sensor" although I have done a few hunts for Plate's to be fair, but almost every hunt is worth is as the game allows you to supplement certain pieces and resources when upgrading your gear, a wonderful option to mitigate frustration. In fact, never once did I roll my eyes or sigh at the thought of going back in to fight a monster. I believe this is for the fact that not only are the monsters great as always, but the developers have finally figured out how to make the maps and exploration just as engaging. The wirebugs are a literal game changer and it's going to be hard to go back. Exploration is a blast and there are plenty of secrets to be found on the maps. I remember seeing early screenshots and thinking the maps looked bland at first. I was wrong. Oh, so wrong. The maps also have traps and hotspots for you to lure monsters and use the stage against them, though not as visually exciting as world, and that's okay! Rise instead focuses on your Wirebug abilities (special moves) to engage the enemies, and while I haven't tried them all, the ones I did use feel wonderful. You can also swap out your skills later to fully tailor and customize your play-style. I can't speak for late game min-maxing as I'm simply not there yet and that wouldn't be fair to you to speak of it.

So you may have heard of the Rampage which is a big new addition to Monster Hunter. So what exactly is it? It's basically Tower Defense with friends and it's an incredible addition the game-play loop of Monster Hunter. While earlier entries dabbled with defending a location from a larger monster this game goes full in on Tower Defense mechanics and it's a blast especially online with friends and strangers. There's a myriad of traps, turrets, special characters as well as stage traps to decimate the enemy and again, I'm not sure I can go back to not having this feature, it's so much fun. I also want to mention that the Buddy System is probably the least grindy out of the ones I've seen and is very intuitive and easy to learn. Actually, Rise is incredibly intuitive and easy to learn, going over tutorials, training sequences, control reminders, and Hunter Notes to ensure that you know what your'e doing at all times. I'll also mention the monster riding which allows you to control the monsters and use them against other monsters to deal massive damage and net you some extra resources. I'm kind of neutral on this addition. It's fun to use but I won't miss it if it's gone.

In closing, MH: Rise is breath of fresh air in the Monster Hunter Franchise and stands on it's own as one of the best entries you can get into. With a TON of day 1 DLC thanks to the switch, an upcoming expansion, and that fresh new game multiplayer experience, now is a great time to jump in and see what the fun is all about. I'm sure there's things I didn't mention or go into detail over, like the Palamute system but I'll just say this: It's worth your money.

Update: Several title updates, event quests, and an expansion later, and there's no reason not to buy this game. MH: Rise has everything you could possibly want in an Action RPG. Stylish Combat, epic gear to craft and collect, insane boss fights, and now, even transmog. Seriously, buy this game.