Monster Hunter Freedom Unite
That's quite the lengthy name for a game, isn't it? I've borrowed this PSP title from the generous drdeleto knowing two things: first, that I've never played a single MH title (this is the 6th in a series of 14 games) and second, this is crazy popular in Japan and every kid I saw with a PSP during my time there was playing some version of this game with their friends. In short, yeah, I had no idea what I was getting into.
The nature of the game is at its core that of hunting-gathering. You take on quests to acquire items or kill monsters as needed, during which you'll gain valuable resources and rewards used to upgrade/strengthen your armory. More quests give you better guild rep, a higher rep gives you better quests in new locales with new monsters, and the cycle repeats. Grinding is, by nature, tedious, but the gains of often bizarre looking powerful weapons makes the effort a bit less painless.
Despite the underlying repetitive act of scrounging for items which ultimately ensure your survival, the mix of quests do give you some variety of play, and the 11 different weapon templates are different enough to fit a variety of gaming styles. While I really loathed using the offensively slow 2 handed broadsword, I found that the light bowgun offered the range and speed of movement that I tend to use in my games. However, since not every enemy is weak to one weapon, I'll need to learn to use them all.
The game features multiplayer via built in ad-hoc, offering a hunting party of up to 4 players. This is clearly the way to succeed at the game as having each person take on necessary roles (tank, ranged, support, healer, etc.) makes the large battles quite manageable. For those of us who lack 3 friends equipped to play the game, MHFU offers Felyne companions you can hire and level up. The Felynes, a race of child-sized, bipedal, intelligent cats, all have unique personalities and skills to help you in battle, though their use at first is a bit questionable. Helga, my Felyne assistant, has been spending more time goofing off during our hunts than she does attacking enemies, so I'm a bit cross with her right now and I'm hoping to come across the Spray Bottle +3. X(
The starting town is the central hub that leads off to a variety of hunting grounds. Snowy mountains, tropical islands, blistering deserts, swamps, and more, but you can also develop the Felyne town which offers easy access to resources without having to head out on dangerous quests. Though it lacks the necessary animal components needed for weapon creation, it does save tons of time and you get to watch the silly cat animations.
My bad kitty aside, my major complaints lie in the item use mechanics and cheap monster tactics. Item use requires sheathing your weapon, waiting through an animation, and then re-equipping your weapon before you get back into the fight. Large monsters generally don't give you the time for the preceding acts, especially when they perform cheap hits or a series of attacks that knock you down. Furthermore, the camera is controlled manually (another time-consuming factor in a fight) and acts poorly when put in a corner. Thus, you can see how combat, a necessary function of a HUNTING game, is not as smooth as it should be.
Now, I do want to say there's a charming draw to the game. It hits my dungeon delver desire, my obsessive collecting of items/weapons, and lets me impact my community in a positive fashion in ways that other titles (PokeMon and Animal Crossing, specifically) disappoint. Sure, the end result is flawed, but it's not one that ruins the delivery.
The nature of the game is at its core that of hunting-gathering. You take on quests to acquire items or kill monsters as needed, during which you'll gain valuable resources and rewards used to upgrade/strengthen your armory. More quests give you better guild rep, a higher rep gives you better quests in new locales with new monsters, and the cycle repeats. Grinding is, by nature, tedious, but the gains of often bizarre looking powerful weapons makes the effort a bit less painless.
Despite the underlying repetitive act of scrounging for items which ultimately ensure your survival, the mix of quests do give you some variety of play, and the 11 different weapon templates are different enough to fit a variety of gaming styles. While I really loathed using the offensively slow 2 handed broadsword, I found that the light bowgun offered the range and speed of movement that I tend to use in my games. However, since not every enemy is weak to one weapon, I'll need to learn to use them all.
The game features multiplayer via built in ad-hoc, offering a hunting party of up to 4 players. This is clearly the way to succeed at the game as having each person take on necessary roles (tank, ranged, support, healer, etc.) makes the large battles quite manageable. For those of us who lack 3 friends equipped to play the game, MHFU offers Felyne companions you can hire and level up. The Felynes, a race of child-sized, bipedal, intelligent cats, all have unique personalities and skills to help you in battle, though their use at first is a bit questionable. Helga, my Felyne assistant, has been spending more time goofing off during our hunts than she does attacking enemies, so I'm a bit cross with her right now and I'm hoping to come across the Spray Bottle +3. X(
The starting town is the central hub that leads off to a variety of hunting grounds. Snowy mountains, tropical islands, blistering deserts, swamps, and more, but you can also develop the Felyne town which offers easy access to resources without having to head out on dangerous quests. Though it lacks the necessary animal components needed for weapon creation, it does save tons of time and you get to watch the silly cat animations.
My bad kitty aside, my major complaints lie in the item use mechanics and cheap monster tactics. Item use requires sheathing your weapon, waiting through an animation, and then re-equipping your weapon before you get back into the fight. Large monsters generally don't give you the time for the preceding acts, especially when they perform cheap hits or a series of attacks that knock you down. Furthermore, the camera is controlled manually (another time-consuming factor in a fight) and acts poorly when put in a corner. Thus, you can see how combat, a necessary function of a HUNTING game, is not as smooth as it should be.
Now, I do want to say there's a charming draw to the game. It hits my dungeon delver desire, my obsessive collecting of items/weapons, and lets me impact my community in a positive fashion in ways that other titles (PokeMon and Animal Crossing, specifically) disappoint. Sure, the end result is flawed, but it's not one that ruins the delivery.