Monster Hunter Generations Review: A Blast From The Past
The Wycademy - a monster surveying group, conducts research and looks for unidentified species in the area surrounding an alpine meadow. A monster hunter recruit is hired by the Wycademy (and occasionally borrowed by the village) to secure the area and assist with research, supply gathering, and specimen capture.
Monster Hunter is a fantasy hunting series that relies on the raw stats of gear, coupled with player skill and perseverance to bring down massive monsters. The first few games in the series are known for being quite punishing, but newer releases have become more forgiving, Generations included. The player has a set amount of health and stamina that does not change throughout the game, although, it can be boosted temporarily with food and potions. The player's gear is what really matters. It determines damage output, defense, active abilities, elemental strengths and weaknesses - everything stat wise about the player character. For those individuals dedicated enough, there are formulas and apps for calculating the best weapon and armor builds. The Generation's formula for weapon damage:
(ATK x MV x Sharp x Hitzone) + (Element x Sharp x Elmzone / 10) = Total Damage
- ATK - Raw weapon damage.
- MV - Motion value. The slower the animation the more damage.
- Sharp - The sharpness of the blade (a value of .50 to 1.50).
- Hitzone - Damage for where the monster was hit (different body parts are effected differently).
- Element - The raw elemental damage of a weapon (if any).
- Elmzone - Elemental damage for where the monster was hit (different body parts are effected differently).
There is also an Affinity stat, the probability of doing critical damage, expressed as a percentage ranging from -100% to +100%. Strong hits (positive Affinity) do 25% more damage and weak hits (negative Affinity) do 25% less. There are instances where negative affinity can actually do more damage than positive affinity, but I'm not going to get into that here. The formula for calculating Affinity:
(ATK) x 1 + (.25 x Affinity) = Average Damage
There are thirteen weapons to choose from: Greatsword, Sword & Shield, Hammer, Lance, Gunlance, Switch Axe, Long Sword, Dual Blades, Insect Glaive, Hunting Horn, Charge Blade or Bowgun and Bow (the only two ranged weapons). The type of weapon being used will greatly impact play style. The Greatsword for example, has the highest damage output but is slow and heavy, impacting how quickly the player can move or draw the weapon. It dulls fast, making it an impractical weapon for monsters with an especially tough hide. The hammer's blunt damage on the other-hand, is amazing for making the armored monsters see stars. Each hit (other than on the head) will drain the monster's stamina, putting a stop to its more dangerous attacks by exhausting it. But without cutting damage it becomes impossible to sever tails.
A system unique to Generations is the introduction of hunter "Styles" and "Arts". Styles determine how a weapon is used, buffs and perks basically, and Arts are the special moves and abilities attached to specific Styles. There are six Styles the player can swap between, each one offering unique advantages and disadvantages:
- Guild Style (defense / two Art abilities)
- Striker Style (attack / three Art abilities)
- Aerial Style (monster mounting / one Art ability)
- Adept Style (counter attack / one Art ability)
- Valor Style (combos / one Art ability)
- Alchemy Style (support / three Art abilities)
The core gameplay loop of the Monster Hunter franchise is simple: kill beasts, craft gear with their skins, kill even bigger beasts, craft better gear, repeat. The player will need to master their chosen weapon's abilities and take full advantage of a monster's openings to succeed. Every beast has a tell or windup to their attacks. These tells are easy to spot early on but become shorter and less broadcasted with the late game monsters. Anticipating these attacks and dodging or striking at the right moment is key to avoiding raw damage and status ailments. A mission will fail if the player faints three times or runs out of time - usually 50mins.
For a game with such tight design there are a few flaws, like monsters with hit-boxes that precede the animation; cephadrome and ceanataur being two offenders. It is most noticeable with the Adept style and certain weapon types. There is also one monster I can't stand - Yian Garuga. Garuga is a fast weakling with short windups to his attacks. He inflicts fireblight, poison, and screams constantly. Supposedly, Garuga was one of the strongest monsters when it was initially introduced to the series, but has since been downgraded in terms of durability and status - except for its moveset, which has been left mostly untouched. The early monsters are typically meant to teach the player a lesson, or how to use a specific mechanic. Kecha Wacha for example, was meant to teach players about vertical combat. Garuga's purpose is to teach players about flinching, hitzones, and taking advantage of brief windows of opportunity. However, I feel it does a poor, or at least unfair, job of it.
Bherna village (hub area) is where the player character resides until a mission is accepted - either an open-ended mission (no goal) or a timed mission in one of several distinct biomes. Most of the maps are returning locations from previous games, although there is one original location added into the mix:
- Monster Hunter - Verdant Hills
- Monster Hunter 2 - Marshlands, Arctic Ridge, Volcano, Moat Arena
- Monster Hunter Tri - Deserted Island, Misty Peaks, Sacred Pinnacle, Forlorn Arena, Polar Field
- Monster Hunter 4 - Ancestral Steppe, Primal Forest, Frozen Seaway, Volcanic Hollow, Sanctuary, Dunes, Ingle Isle, Arena, Slayground
- Monster Hunter Generations - Jurassic Frontier
The player can take a limited number of provisions with them, anything from nutrients to boost the health gauge, food to extend the stamina bar, whetstones for sharpening blades, cold/hot drinks for the desert/tundra, attack and defense boosters, bug nets and pickaxes for resource gathering, et cetera, et cetera. The map itself is made up of several small interconnected areas linked together by loading screens, and it is not uncommon to spend the first few minutes jumping between areas in search of the target monster, which is not tracked on the map until the player hits it with a paintball - a provision you must make in the field or bring along.
Generations Ultimate is like a "greatest hits" release in the franchise that is jam packed with content! No other game has this many monsters (100+), maps (15 distinct areas), or armor sets (100+). It isn't as accessible to new players as World, but neither is Generations as punishing as past Monster Hunter titles. There is a good balance between new and old. It gives new comers the chance to experience most of the monsters from past titles and veterans the opportunity to face any they may have missed out on. In a way, Generations could be seen as a farewell to the traditional Monster Hunter games. Going forward they've modernized a lot.
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