IT IS TIME. Well, in a little less than two days, anyway. We've kind of been dicking around with Nintendo Land and New Super Mario Bros, maybe ZombiU, and that's it. But now it's time. The hunt begins, and you may have some questions.

What?



While it's starting to finally make its name over here, you would be forgiven for not really knowing about the series if you don't live in Japan.

Monster Hunter is an absurdly popular Japanese action series (and nowadays, MMO) that started on the PS2. You may remember it; it was fucking awful. I mean, come on, the right analog controlled your attacks rather than the camera, for Christ's sake. A few entries were skipped over after it flopped here, but once it picked up steam in Japan, Capcom has made a concerted effort to get the series to catch on here. Whereas Japan has subscription fees for most entries, we still get to play this shit for free. Might as well enjoy it while the series remains that way in the west, right?

Why?

When I zone into Deserted Island I feel like Hulk Hogan
I feel that crowd roaring, the lights flashin
Fireworks go off and I shake the ropes
I rip my shirt off and felynes go crazy
I stroke my mustache and they wish my hands were theirs
I wanna run wild all over some monsters
Whatcha gonna do, brother?
That's what I said to Plesioth


Then I leg dropped him


Heck yeah brother, this is why I play Monster Hunter



Also, be sure to check out Tritoch's entry of Monster Hunter 3 in Gamer's Month 2011. Any other questions?

I'm told there's no lock-on. How is that even tolerable?

Let me be honest with you. Yes, it does take some getting used to.

But there are reasons for this design choice. For starters, monsters do not stay still. They are mobile, aggressive, jumpy (in the sense that they will jump a fucking lot), and spastic. They will attack you mercilessly, all the while moving in and out of your field of vision.





Yes, you do have to move the camera around to follow them. But I can't even imagine how spastic the camera would be if it were following the monster and not my own commands to move.

The game is pretty lenient with how you want to set your camera up to make it as painless a transition as possible-- besides being able to flip the X- and Y-axes, you can choose a default starting position for the camera, what direction you move if you press forward after shifting the camera around, and so forth.

It can still be a pain, but it's almost liberating when you break your lock addiction. Tritoch mentioned that he wasn't even aware of the lock-on feature in Ragnarok Odyssey, and I played through three-quarters of Metal Gear Rising before realizing there was lock-on. You instantly grow some hair on that chest when you discover you play other games just fine without locking on anymore.

Be a man, give it a chance. Once you adjust, it's hardly a big deal.

I've heard the servers are region-locked, the GamePad can't be used for off-screen play, and the 3DS version can't play with Wii U players online. Is that true?
It was, before Capcom announced that all of those nuisances are being patched in April. The 3DS online play will require a Wii U unfortunately, which kind of defeats the purpose if you wanted to play the game online without having to buy a Wii U. But it could be useful if you and a friend would both like to play online with one Wii U, I suppose.

Japan will still be locked to its own region, but North America and Europe will be able to play together come next month. And for those of you who have the drive to go hunting while shitting, rejoice! The GamePad will be able to stream gameplay in addition to being a shortcut menu.

What's new in Ultimate?
This is where it's pretty exciting. Capcom says regardless of what you've played in the past, there's going to be a surprisingly large amount of new content. Since much of it has been brought over from the Japan-only Monster Hunter Portable 3rd, you've probably never seen most of it.

Starting with some of the most exciting aspects, there are a total of 73 different (both small and large) monsters, including all of the monsters from Monster Hunter Tri, most of the ones introduced in the Japan-only Monster Hunter Portable 3rd, and the fan favorite hip-checkin' Plesioth (and the Green Plesioth). On top of that, they added a couple of new subspecies and rare species and the brand new Brachydios!

So if the last MH game you've played was Monster Hunter Freedom Unite (PSP), brace yourself because this game is pretty much all new content for you. If you've been playing Monster Hunter Tri, however, here's the list of new targets you can expect to hunt:

from Monster Hunter Freedom Unite

Anteka (small)
Bullfango (small)
Azure Rathalos (subspecies)
Silver Rathalos
Pink Rathian (subspecies)
Gold Rathian
Plesioth
Green Plesioth (subspecies)
Black Diablos
Nargacuga

from Monster Hunter Portable 3rd

Gargwa (small)
Slagtoth (small)
Wroggi (small)
Arzuros
Great Wroggi
Lagombi
Volvidon
Nibelsnarf
Duramboros
Zinogre
Crimson Qurupeco (subspecies)
Purple Ludroth (subspecies)
Jade Barroth (subspecies)
Baleful Gigginox (subspecies)
Sand Barioth (subspecies)
Steel Uragaan (subspecies)
Glacial Agnaktor (subspecies)
Green Nargacuga (subspecies)

new to Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate

Brachydios
Rust Duramboros (subspecies)
Stygian Zinogre (subspecies)
Lucent Nargacuga (subspecies)
Ivory Lagiacrus (subspecies)
Abyssal Lagiacrus (subspecies)
Savage Deviljho (subspecies)
Hallowed Jhen Mohran (subspecies)
Goldbeard Ceadeus (subspecies)
... and a brand new final boss!

211 new quests (being 63 from the Village High-rank, 136 from the Port Tanzia G-rank and 12 Arena quests). New total is 339, not even counting the free DLC quests!!!

2042 new pieces of equipment broken down as follows:
- 59 Great Swords, 83 Long Swords, 71 Sword & Shields, 122 Dual Blades, 73 Hammers, 99 Hunting Horns, 78 Lances, 108 Gunlances, 76 Switch Axex, 91 Heavy Bowguns, 96 Light Bowguns, 115 Bows; Total number of weapons is now 1398!
- 1028 new Armor pieces; Total number of amor pieces is now 1663!
Now the total number of equipment is 3061! Can you believe it?

And there are also 3 new areas: The Tower, Misty Peaks and the Tainted Sea

It's really a lot of content! So next time someone tells you this is just a port of MHTri, please prove them wrong with the stats above. I think by the time you get to the 15th new monster, they'll get the idea.