
#Monster hunter rise vs world upgrade
In many ways, the original Monster Hunter plays just like any other game in the main series: You take on hunting quests from a village hub, head out into large arena-like maps where you bag and tag your prey, then head back to town to upgrade your gear with the bits and bob carved from the monster’s hide. The original Monster Hunter on PlayStation 2 introduced players to the series’ loot-driven, beast-slaying gameplay… but people just didn’t understand it at the time. Also, it's a great time to dive into Monster Hunter Rise on PC or Switch ahead of the big Sunbreak expansion that releases this summer. Keep in mind that we're only featuring mainline games that released in North America and Europe, and we've excluded spin-offs such as Monster Hunter Stories.

The best Monster Hunter game is probably the one you think it is. Monster Hunter has been around since 2004, but since most players outside Japan jumped on at World, there are likely many fans curious about the Monster Hunter games that came before it. The kind of game you could easily put hundreds-even thousands-of hours into (speaking from personal experience) and boasting a vibrant community of die-hard fans all over the world. We've ranked the mainline series from worst to best.įor many players, Monster Hunter is now a “forever game” akin to Pokémon, Destiny, or Final Fantasy XIV. Whether you're a newcomer or a seasoned hunter, it's worth revisiting some of the older games in the franchise, too. Longtime fans of the series undoubtedly have a soft spot for every Monster Hunter game, though.

Capcom followed up on World by releasing Monster Hunter Rise for Nintendo Switch, a stellar entry in the series that was ported to PC earlier this year. The Monster Hunter series has become ridiculously popular in North America, in large part due to the massive success of Monster Hunter World and its Iceborne expansion.
