Positives

+ The game loop consists of hunting monsters, using their materials to craft gear to hunt stronger monsters. The gradual progression from being a rookie who has no clue to becoming the Sapphire Star is one hell of a journey. It's particularly satisfying.
+ Environment design in terms of visual, sound and layout is top-notch. Even the base and hub areas are designed plausibly and decorated properly. The atmosphere and the ecosystem feels alive. Things still happen without you being there to witness it or interfere.
+ The music is stellar and dynamic, and really adds to the immersion.
+ The combat feels clunky at first, especially if you got used to dodging/parrying in soulslike titles. However, it's possibly one of the most fluid, immersive and diverse combat system I've ever had the pleasure of interacting with ever. All 14 weapons are unique and fun to use. Some feel complicated at first, but once you learn how to do infinite combos and the burst damage combos, you are pretty much set.
+ The High Resolution Texture Pack really enhances the textures, especially for resolutions at or higher than 2K.

Neutral/Informative

+/- Assignment Quests are a chore to play with other people, unless both/all parties see the cutscene and join up afterwards. You also can't skip cutscenes, but it's only an issue for these specific quests. Other quests that have cutscenes can be skipped if everyone in the quest skip it. It's not a huge deal, considering Assignment Quests are practically glorified tutorials. Just play them alone to learn better.
+/- Wonky AI across the board, for both monsters and your Palico. Not one of the major issues, but still noteworthy. Palico AI is worthless due to it only checking up on you half of the time, while monster AI is wack due to random target-switching logic. The Palico AI can be fixed by a mod, so the damn cat will at least try to save you all the time, even if it fails in the process.
+/- Mouse acceleration is pretty damn cringe, until you fix it with the methods in this post.
+/- The story is basically set dressing. All of it is fluff that's there so your "you hunt, collect and slay" goals for the entire game have a bit more flavor.

Negatives

- Connection and multiplayer issues, along the "region lock". You also can't tab out of the game if you are using Fullscreen mode, because it WILL disconnect you half of the time. The game's online logic is pretty robust, however. When it works properly. Fortunately, the region lock can be dealt with via a mod.
- Chat censorship list is too extreme, and the chat character limit is too low. The former one can be disabled via a mod, but there is no solution for the latter. The chat system is also convoluted and hard to use for no reason.
- The Handler as a whole, from her design to behaviour, is unacceptable considering this is a game from a Japanese company. How she passed all quality checks and made it into the final product is beyond all reason and logic. If this isn't "ugly design choices copied from Western developers", I'd be surprised.
- Performance issues and other unpolished "console design choices" that translate badly to PC. One example is how mouse movement is handled. Another is the menu structure.
- Guiding Lands, from how it works and how it locks cosmetics behind DLC progression and the extremely convoluted grind. The idea is good on paper. Sadly, it's butchered by details like monsters leaving mid-combat and not being able to level all regions to 7 unless you grind several thousands of certain monsters or straight up cheat.

- Shoddy expansion integration that "required" retroactive changes that permanently altered the base game experience. The Clutch Claw feels like it's stuck to the game via sticky tape and bubble gum. Some weapons straight up don't have any unique moves related to the claw. They nerfed Weakness Exploit and changed a lot of Hitzone Values which made things objectively worse for non-IB owners in the base game. "Claw Stagger" mechanic messes up the good combat pacing that was perfect before.
- Lack of proper endgame. Possibly the biggest issue in this game. Getting full Fatalis and AT Velkhana gear means nothing, because you don't have challenging quests after you get the said armors. No rehashing of older content with adjusted stats. As usual, this is solved by mods. Again. Custom quests are the real endgame.
- Stupid amount of cosmetic DLCs with some functional "DLC"s mixed in. The cosmetics are mostly uninteresting, with only a few of them being worth buying for regular use. At least you can cheat the editing vouchers in.
- You can lose your save randomly if the game crashes and/or if the Steam Cloud Saves sh*t themselves. This is regardless of you having mods or not. It's rare, but not rare enough. The only viable solution is manually backing up your save file once in a while.
- Legacy mechanics that are no longer relevant due to AI design and better options. Like how a monster can still do tail swipes without a tail.
- Player slots get locked if someone disconnects, leaves or gets kicked from a quest. This prevents anyone new from joining, and the person who disconnected also can't rejoin.
- The Defender/Guardian gear messed up the base game and the overall experience for a lot of people who didn't know any better.

God Eater 3 (same formula, but the pacing goes at breakneck speeds, and the theme involves more tech)
Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen (uses the same engine, has a similar gameplay loop, and is epic as hell)

Guide to Modding and Recommended Mods (because you'll most likely want some mods to polish a few rough edges Capcom didn't, and add content)

3060 Ti, Ryzen 7 5800X, 32 GB RAM

The game runs at 144 FPS at most times, unless a lot is going on in terms of effects. All graphical options are maxed-out except Volumetic Rendering, which looks like ass and tanks performance anyway.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It's so bad that I have to mention this in detail, by itself. We have some abysmally outdated RNG systems that would make some Korean MMOs blush with embarrassment, in this game.

Firstly, there are no failsafes for the RNG systems. You can't trade for or craft anything that truly matters in the endgame, regardless of progress. The Elder Melder can't meld, like, half of the crap in the entire game.

Secondly, the multi-layer RNG logic is even in places where it's completely unwarranted, like rare critters not spawning even if all requirements are met. The Feystones are also one of the main examples, which works with the logic of "rare drops from rare items".

The final nail in the coffin is the extremely diluted loot pools for one of the more important objectives of the endgame. A lot of the "good" decorations are locked not only behind a 0.2% drop rate, they're also locked behind the multi-layer RNG and a weighted loot pool.

All the issues regarding the excessively anti-player grind would have been solved if we could trade in lesser materials/decorations to create ANY rare item.

[h3]Despite a wide variety of issues it still has, Monster Hunter: World is still one of the most immersive games I have ever played, while also being my most played game of all time. While the combat flow takes a while to get used to, it's a fluid and immersive experience once you're accustomed to the pacing. Recommended with mods to enhance the the experience further. Overall score: 7.5/10.[/h3] [u][b]Positives[/b][/u] + The game loop consists of hunting monsters, using their materials to craft gear to hunt stronger monsters. The gradual progression from being a rookie who has no clue to becoming the Sapphire Star is one hell of a journey. It's particularly satisfying. + Environment design in terms of visual, sound and layout is top-notch. Even the base and hub areas are designed plausibly and decorated properly. The atmosphere and the ecosystem feels alive. Things still happen without you being there to witness it or interfere. + The music is stellar and dynamic, and really adds to the immersion. + The combat feels clunky at first, especially if you got used to dodging/parrying in soulslike titles. However, it's possibly one of the most fluid, immersive and diverse combat system I've ever had the pleasure of interacting with ever. All 14 weapons are unique and fun to use. Some feel complicated at first, but once you learn how to do infinite combos and the burst damage combos, you are pretty much set. + The High Resolution Texture Pack really enhances the textures, especially for resolutions at or higher than 2K. [u][b]Neutral/Informative[/b][/u] +/- Assignment Quests are a chore to play with other people, unless both/all parties see the cutscene and join up afterwards. You also can't skip cutscenes, but it's only an issue for these specific quests. Other quests that have cutscenes can be skipped if everyone in the quest skip it. It's not a huge deal, considering Assignment Quests are practically glorified tutorials. Just play them alone to learn better. +/- Wonky AI across the board, for both monsters and your Palico. Not one of the major issues, but still noteworthy. Palico AI is worthless due to it only checking up on you half of the time, while monster AI is wack due to random target-switching logic. The Palico AI can be fixed by a mod, so the damn cat will at least try to save you all the time, even if it fails in the process. +/- Mouse acceleration is pretty damn cringe, until you fix it with the methods in [url=https://gtm.you1.cn/app/582010/discussions/0/1745594817433995121/]this post[/url]. +/- The story is basically set dressing. All of it is fluff that's there so your "you hunt, collect and slay" goals for the entire game have a bit more flavor. [u][b]Negatives[/b][/u] - Connection and multiplayer issues, along the "region lock". You also can't tab out of the game if you are using Fullscreen mode, because it WILL disconnect you half of the time. The game's online logic is pretty robust, however. When it works properly. Fortunately, the region lock can be dealt with via a mod. - Chat censorship list is too extreme, and the chat character limit is too low. The former one can be disabled via a mod, but there is no solution for the latter. The chat system is also convoluted and hard to use for no reason. - The Handler as a whole, from her design to behaviour, is unacceptable considering this is a game from a Japanese company. How she passed all quality checks and made it into the final product is beyond all reason and logic. If this isn't "ugly design choices copied from Western developers", I'd be surprised. - Performance issues and other unpolished "console design choices" that translate badly to PC. One example is how mouse movement is handled. Another is the menu structure. - Guiding Lands, from how it works and how it locks cosmetics behind DLC progression and the extremely convoluted grind. The idea is good on paper. Sadly, it's butchered by details like monsters leaving mid-combat and not being able to level all regions to 7 unless you grind several thousands of certain monsters or straight up cheat. - Shoddy expansion integration that "required" retroactive changes that permanently altered the base game experience. The Clutch Claw feels like it's stuck to the game via sticky tape and bubble gum. Some weapons straight up don't have any unique moves related to the claw. They nerfed Weakness Exploit and changed a lot of Hitzone Values which made things objectively worse for non-IB owners in the base game. "Claw Stagger" mechanic messes up the good combat pacing that was perfect before. - Lack of proper endgame. Possibly the biggest issue in this game. Getting full Fatalis and AT Velkhana gear means nothing, because you don't have challenging quests after you get the said armors. No rehashing of older content with adjusted stats. As usual, this is solved by mods. Again. Custom quests are the real endgame. - Stupid amount of cosmetic DLCs with some functional "DLC"s mixed in. The cosmetics are mostly uninteresting, with only a few of them being worth buying for regular use. At least you can cheat the editing vouchers in. - You can lose your save randomly if the game crashes and/or if the Steam Cloud Saves sh*t themselves. This is regardless of you having mods or not. It's rare, but not rare enough. The only viable solution is manually backing up your save file once in a while. - Legacy mechanics that are no longer relevant due to AI design and better options. Like how a monster can still do tail swipes without a tail. - Player slots get locked if someone disconnects, leaves or gets kicked from a quest. This prevents anyone new from joining, and the person who disconnected also can't rejoin. - The Defender/Guardian gear messed up the base game and the overall experience for a lot of people who didn't know any better. [h2]Other Notes:[/h2] [h3]Alternatives/Similar Titles:[/h3] God Eater 3 (same formula, but the pacing goes at breakneck speeds, and the theme involves more tech) Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen (uses the same engine, has a similar gameplay loop, and is epic as hell) [h3]Links:[/h3] [url=https://gtm.you1.cn/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2359218616]Guide to Modding and Recommended Mods[/url] (because you'll most likely want some mods to polish a few rough edges Capcom didn't, and add content) [h3]Specs for reference:[/h3] 3060 Ti, Ryzen 7 5800X, 32 GB RAM The game runs at 144 FPS at most times, unless a lot is going on in terms of effects. All graphical options are maxed-out except Volumetic Rendering, which looks like ass and tanks performance anyway. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- It's so bad that I have to mention this in detail, by itself. We have some abysmally outdated RNG systems that would make some Korean MMOs blush with embarrassment, in this game. Firstly, there are no failsafes for the RNG systems. You can't trade for or craft anything that truly matters in the endgame, regardless of progress. The Elder Melder can't meld, like, half of the crap in the entire game. Secondly, the multi-layer RNG logic is even in places where it's completely unwarranted, like rare critters not spawning even if all requirements are met. The Feystones are also one of the main examples, which works with the logic of "rare drops from rare items". The final nail in the coffin is the extremely diluted loot pools for one of the more important objectives of the endgame. A lot of the "good" decorations are locked not only behind a 0.2% drop rate, they're also locked behind the multi-layer RNG and a weighted loot pool. All the issues regarding the excessively anti-player grind would have been solved if we could trade in lesser materials/decorations to create ANY rare item.