Last week we got a chance to get hands-on with Nintendo Wii exclusive title, Monster Hunter Tri. Read on for our early impressions…

Monster Hunter is a huge franchise in Japan, in fact Monster Hunter Tri became the highest selling third-party game on the Wii in that region. Ever since the franchise first came into existence on the PS2 back in 2005 it has always had a bit of a cult following. But it has never managed to take off and sell as well here in the west as it has managed to do in Japan. Having said that, the franchise getting more popular, and so now CAPCOM have decided to bring Monster Hunter Tri to the UK with all new features unique to this new version.

We gathered at the Monster Hunter School, better known as the Directors Suit of the Science Museum in London, for a preview of the game and a chance to play it. Proceedings kicked off with a funny and entertaining talk from the game’s producer, Ryozo Tsujomoto, and Director, Kaname Fujioka. They covered the basic concept of what the Monster Hunter series is all about, some of the new weapons, armour, character customisation, monster ecology, and the online modes of play. So lets start at the beginning with what Monster Hunter Tri is all about.

The game places you in the role of a rookie hunter based in Moga Village, which acts as a central hub for your missions. Moga Village has been troubled recently by frequent earth quakes, which legend has it are caused by a huge monster. This is where your path to become a Monster Hunter begins. Working your way up, improving your skills and weapons, and uncovering the truth as to just what is causing these deadly earth quakes. The citizens of Moga Village will recruit you to help in gathering resources, slay monsters, and various other tasks. Completing each task will net you rewards and items that you can use to upgrade your weapons, improve your armour, and help on future quests.

During the single player side of the game you will be aided by a rather cute looking little chap called Cha Cha, a tiny Acorn headed type dude. Cha Cha will assist in all sorts of ways through each of the many quests that you will need to take on. Changing his mask will make him change his characteristics and personality, which will be essential for success when fighting different monsters. As you progress through the game, so Cha Cha learns and grows over time, getting stronger and more helpful. With some of the larger monsters being a tough challenge you’re going to need all the help you can get, so Cha Cha is going to be a companion to rely on throughout the game.

The Monster Hunter games are huge, filled with quests, weapons, and a unique ecology of Monsters. The same can be said for Monster Hunter Tri, and for those of you new to the game it can be some what daunting. The recent PSP Monster Hunter Freedom Unite got criticised for not being very friendly to newcomers. However, CAPCOM have listened and have improved on that with a clever tutorial system that rather than tell you what to do and what buttons to press, gently guides you through the early stages offering hints and tips. Knowing your monsters is another key to success, with each monster having unique behavior patterns. Some will call for help, others will rely on pack hunting, and one beast will even resort to mimicking the distress calls of other monsters to call for their help.

As you battle monsters, so they will become fatigued which in turn makes life much easier for you in slaying the beast. However, when a monster runs low on stamina they will seek out the nearest food to regain some much needed energy. So knowing about the monster you’re facing and what their favoured food source is will be a massive advantage. Cutting a monster off from eating will certainly higher the chances of you completing your quest. As you can probably see, knowing your enemy is certainly another key factor, not only in terms of ecology but also what weapons and items are the most effective in your current hunt.

Weapons come in different forms, for example heavy types will cause high damage but have a slow attack rate, light will cause less damage but have faster attacks. As well as the standard style swords, hammers, axes, and lances, a few new weapons were shown for the first time. These come as Switch weapons, basically two weapon forms in one like the Switch Axe, a combination of an axe and sword. Both forms can be combined in a single attack combo to cause massive damage and also look pretty spectacular when pulled off too.

Then came the news of more new features, like how monsters can now be hunted underwater with the controls remaining the same as land based, causing less issues in adapting to this new style of combat. A unique addition to the UK version of the game is the ability to use Wii Speak to communicate online with fellow hunters. In the Japanese version, communication has to be done through text based messages, something that isn’t very user friendly when trying to coordinate an attack on a large monster. Monster Hunter Tri will also use the new Classic Controller Pro, a new controller designed to give Monster Hunter veterans the best possible experience. Although the game can be played with the standard Wii Remote and Nunchuk setup, the new Pro controller is certainly the way to play the game.

So, after the presentation it was time to give the game a go. I have only played Monster Hunter very briefly in the past, so this was pretty much an all new experience for me. One thing I will point out, don’t pass it off as simply a hack-and-slash game because it certainly isn’t. The combat is very tactical indeed. knowing when to charge up the special attacks, timing it just right as a monster charges, certainly takes some practice. Charging in and button bashing will just result in death time and time again. I got straight onto some split-screen multiplayer, teaming up with a guy who was a bit of a Monster Hunter veteran lucky enough. During local multiplayer the game plays as an arena style challenge in which you both team up to slay a number of various monsters in order to earn cash and items.

The first thing that stood out is how impressive the game looks. For a Wii game it is probably one of the most visually impressive I have seen, even more so when the game is played in full-screen rather than split-screen. After a couple of attempts I was beginning to get the hang of combat, and was working with my fellow hunter on some solid tactics. The combat feels suitably epic and certainly challenging, and working as a team to cut the huge beast down to size felt great. Once the monster does topple the sense of satisfaction at a job well done is immense.

Another of Monster Hunter’s strong points is the online multiplayer, and Monster Hunter Tri is the first Wii game to allow online play without the need for having other players’ friend codes. Meeting up in a hub-town called Loc-Lac, here you can get together to chat, share items, and even buy each other meals. Once you have teamed up with up to three other players, you take on a quest from the Gathering Hall and work as a team in hunting those monsters. Once completed, resources and items are shared out along with experience and money. All items collected carry across into your single player adventure. If you’re new to the series however, I certainly recommend that you spend a fair amount of time in the single player to build those skills that you’re going to need when hunting with friends.

Monster Hunter Tri is certainly an impressive and unique experience on the Wii. The only thing that confuses me slightly is why CAPCOM decided to make the game a Wii exclusive title. Given the nature of the PS3 and Xbox 360 online services then they seem a much better and more obvious choice. Although a Monster Hunter game has been announced for the Xbox 360 in the form of Monster Hunter Frontier. That isn’t to say the power of the Wii has limited proceedings because is certainly hasn’t. I was stunned by just how good the game looks and plays. It’s deep, engrossing, and addictive stuff. I just can’t wait to get my own Monster Hunter Tri career going when the full game launches in April here in the UK.

Written by: Stephen Butler