A while back, I dropped by GameStop to see if they had the Monster Hunter Tri demo. After a quick search, I found the display box loaded with demos tucked in a corner on the far side of their counter. I guess they were afraid that if they made the box too visible, they'd be overrun with Monster Hunter fanatics...or something. At least they didn't demand I pre-order anything. With disc in hand, I hurried home to squeeze every last bit of juice out of this brief preview of the game that I could.
Monster Hunter Tri is a big game in a blockbuster series that I'd never heard of. This state of ignorance holds true for most gamers outside of Japan, as the Monster Hunter series has thus far failed to take root in the Western world. Tri hopes to change all this and the demo disc is but one part of a big media push to raise awareness of the game. I wish Capcom the best of luck, because after getting a taste of this game I'm ready for more.
Once the demo loads, it gives you the choice of which monster you want to take down and what weapon you want to take it down with. I've always preferred quickness over power, so I started off with the sword and shield and picked the lesser of the two monsters to tackle first. So began the Great Jaggi Hunt.
The demo gives you the run of a mountainous island environment. Your character appears at a campsite, complete with tent and supply crates. I fiddled briefly with the controls (started with the Remote/Nunchuk setup) to figure out what button did what, and adjusted the camera settings before heading off. The demo does come with a pamphlet illustrating control schemes for each weapon, but I like to see what I can figure out without prompting.
Pretty much every button is used and after experimenting with both the Remote setup and the Classic Controller, it's hard to say which I prefer. For most people, the Classic Controller will be the way to go, as having the camera mapped to an analog stick (as opposed to the Remote's d-pad) and all of the buttons within easy reach is very nice. The main benefit of the Remote setup is getting a variety of swings out of certain weapons through tilt control. You simply hold the Remote at different angles while pressing the attack button to chain together different strikes. It may not sound like much, but I really liked using the Great Sword this way.
Once I had the controls down (including the all important panic run button, or as I prefer, the Oh Shit! Button), I tracked down the Great Jaggi and its pack. The demo only gives you 20 minutes to finish a hunt, so I wasted no time tearing into the big brute. Needless to say, this Monster Hunter rookie failed on her first few tries. The beast itself wasn't really tough, but it moved around a lot, had a nasty hip slam attack, and it had help. The pack of lesser jaggi were very good at annoying me when I'd try to back off for a quick sip of healing potion. Eventually it fell to my blade and, flushed with confidence, I jumped right into a hunt of the demo's other monster: the Qurupeco.
Alas, the Great Jaggi was merely a warm-up as the Qurupeco quickly put me back in my place. This pterosaur critter had quite a few more tricks in its bag than the Jaggi did. In addition to striking with its beak, creating fiery bursts with its wings, and spewing acidic projectile vomit, it also mimicked the roars of other monsters. Thus, what would begin as a one-on-one duel quickly escalated to a chaotic brawl as the Jaggi pack, boss and all, showed up to harass me.
Worse by far, however, were the rare occasions that it would summon a large dragon. The Jaggi I could safely ignore for the most part but I soon learned the dragon was something to run away from. Of course, when I was feeling daring I'd carefully position myself with the Qurupeco between me and the dragon and let it absorb the dragon's attacks instead. Monsters can hurt each other and will even attack each other. The Qurupeco put up quite a fight, but eventually it too went down, felled by the devastating switchaxe.
The weapon selection in the game offers a nice variety, with each one feeling quite distinct, from the speedy sword and shield, to the long range bowgun, to the massively powerful and slow great sword. I actually surprised myself by leaning towards favoring the heavy weapons. The Great Sword, which I initially wrote off an nigh unusable grew on me after I gave it second and third tries. However, it was the switchaxe, a transformable blade that switches from axe to sword mode, that quickly became my favorite. After trying out every weapon and successfully killing both monsters, I set out yet again to do a little sightseeing.
If you've been paying any attention to coverage of this game at all, you'll have heard that it is a visual stunner. The environments are filled with gorgeous vistas of towering cliffs, gaping caves, and magnificent waterfalls. The only areas I found lackluster were underwater. I swear, it is epidemic among video games to leave underwater environments extremely plain, as though the bottoms of seas and lakes were as featureless as your average swimming pool.
The wildlife was also wonderfully rendered. The monsters I fought were finely detailed and possessed a great deal of personality in their animations. Even the more placid creatures that wandered the environments held a sense of life within them as they romped about or grazed with bovine complacency.
The splendor of landscape and animal life invited me to explore every inch of the island—and so I did. I swam with benign sea serpents and dove deep to chase after sharks. In the depths of a cave I struck a torch to light my way and keep predatory leeches at bay, only to stumble upon a hidden felyne shrine where the little cat people seemed inclined to dance around me. I explored my camp site, took a nap in the tent, fished off the dock, and burnt a bunch of meat as I ineptly tried to roast a few steaks on my portable cook fire. Truly, even in this brief sampling of the game, there's a lot more to do than simply hunt monsters. Speaking of which, I had one final goal to accomplish before writing this piece.
Armed with the switchaxe, I again hunted the Qurupeco. As soon as it summoned the Great Jaggi to its aid I turned my full attention upon the lesser beast, slaying it first. Then with little time remaining I chased down the Qurupeco and managed to kill it too. Both monsters slain in a single run, yeah, I'm ready. Bring on Monster Hunter Tri!
Monster Hunter Tri is a big game in a blockbuster series that I'd never heard of. This state of ignorance holds true for most gamers outside of Japan, as the Monster Hunter series has thus far failed to take root in the Western world. Tri hopes to change all this and the demo disc is but one part of a big media push to raise awareness of the game. I wish Capcom the best of luck, because after getting a taste of this game I'm ready for more.
Once the demo loads, it gives you the choice of which monster you want to take down and what weapon you want to take it down with. I've always preferred quickness over power, so I started off with the sword and shield and picked the lesser of the two monsters to tackle first. So began the Great Jaggi Hunt.
The demo gives you the run of a mountainous island environment. Your character appears at a campsite, complete with tent and supply crates. I fiddled briefly with the controls (started with the Remote/Nunchuk setup) to figure out what button did what, and adjusted the camera settings before heading off. The demo does come with a pamphlet illustrating control schemes for each weapon, but I like to see what I can figure out without prompting.
Pretty much every button is used and after experimenting with both the Remote setup and the Classic Controller, it's hard to say which I prefer. For most people, the Classic Controller will be the way to go, as having the camera mapped to an analog stick (as opposed to the Remote's d-pad) and all of the buttons within easy reach is very nice. The main benefit of the Remote setup is getting a variety of swings out of certain weapons through tilt control. You simply hold the Remote at different angles while pressing the attack button to chain together different strikes. It may not sound like much, but I really liked using the Great Sword this way.
Once I had the controls down (including the all important panic run button, or as I prefer, the Oh Shit! Button), I tracked down the Great Jaggi and its pack. The demo only gives you 20 minutes to finish a hunt, so I wasted no time tearing into the big brute. Needless to say, this Monster Hunter rookie failed on her first few tries. The beast itself wasn't really tough, but it moved around a lot, had a nasty hip slam attack, and it had help. The pack of lesser jaggi were very good at annoying me when I'd try to back off for a quick sip of healing potion. Eventually it fell to my blade and, flushed with confidence, I jumped right into a hunt of the demo's other monster: the Qurupeco.
Alas, the Great Jaggi was merely a warm-up as the Qurupeco quickly put me back in my place. This pterosaur critter had quite a few more tricks in its bag than the Jaggi did. In addition to striking with its beak, creating fiery bursts with its wings, and spewing acidic projectile vomit, it also mimicked the roars of other monsters. Thus, what would begin as a one-on-one duel quickly escalated to a chaotic brawl as the Jaggi pack, boss and all, showed up to harass me.
Worse by far, however, were the rare occasions that it would summon a large dragon. The Jaggi I could safely ignore for the most part but I soon learned the dragon was something to run away from. Of course, when I was feeling daring I'd carefully position myself with the Qurupeco between me and the dragon and let it absorb the dragon's attacks instead. Monsters can hurt each other and will even attack each other. The Qurupeco put up quite a fight, but eventually it too went down, felled by the devastating switchaxe.
The weapon selection in the game offers a nice variety, with each one feeling quite distinct, from the speedy sword and shield, to the long range bowgun, to the massively powerful and slow great sword. I actually surprised myself by leaning towards favoring the heavy weapons. The Great Sword, which I initially wrote off an nigh unusable grew on me after I gave it second and third tries. However, it was the switchaxe, a transformable blade that switches from axe to sword mode, that quickly became my favorite. After trying out every weapon and successfully killing both monsters, I set out yet again to do a little sightseeing.
If you've been paying any attention to coverage of this game at all, you'll have heard that it is a visual stunner. The environments are filled with gorgeous vistas of towering cliffs, gaping caves, and magnificent waterfalls. The only areas I found lackluster were underwater. I swear, it is epidemic among video games to leave underwater environments extremely plain, as though the bottoms of seas and lakes were as featureless as your average swimming pool.
The wildlife was also wonderfully rendered. The monsters I fought were finely detailed and possessed a great deal of personality in their animations. Even the more placid creatures that wandered the environments held a sense of life within them as they romped about or grazed with bovine complacency.
The splendor of landscape and animal life invited me to explore every inch of the island—and so I did. I swam with benign sea serpents and dove deep to chase after sharks. In the depths of a cave I struck a torch to light my way and keep predatory leeches at bay, only to stumble upon a hidden felyne shrine where the little cat people seemed inclined to dance around me. I explored my camp site, took a nap in the tent, fished off the dock, and burnt a bunch of meat as I ineptly tried to roast a few steaks on my portable cook fire. Truly, even in this brief sampling of the game, there's a lot more to do than simply hunt monsters. Speaking of which, I had one final goal to accomplish before writing this piece.
Armed with the switchaxe, I again hunted the Qurupeco. As soon as it summoned the Great Jaggi to its aid I turned my full attention upon the lesser beast, slaying it first. Then with little time remaining I chased down the Qurupeco and managed to kill it too. Both monsters slain in a single run, yeah, I'm ready. Bring on Monster Hunter Tri!