The authentic Monster Hunter Tales didn’t actually launch underneath the perfect circumstances to make sure success. It launched for the Nintendo 3DS again in 2017 (2016 in Japan), at a time when the hand-held was very a lot within the last phases of its life. It additionally got here out at a time when Monster Hunter, although nonetheless a really profitable franchise in its personal proper (particularly in Japan) hadn’t grow to be the record-breaking, world industrial juggernaut that Monster Hunter World would flip it into upon its launch in 2018. All of which is to say that you simply wouldn’t be blamed for having fully missed out on the unique Monster Hunter Tales.
Fear not, nevertheless, as a result of Capcom is bringing the JRPG spinoff again. The corporate has remastered the sport, given it a little bit of a technical glow-up, added some nifty options, and launched it for (nearly) all fashionable platforms (sorry, Xbox), giving everybody the proper alternative to see simply what it was that the sport delivered to the desk with its Pokemon-inspired conventional turn-based JRPG choices. For essentially the most half, a variety of Monster Hunter Tales’ attraction has made it by within the remaster fully untouched, which, mixed with some legitimately participating core mechanics, make for a enjoyable RPG journey. On the identical time, nevertheless, whereas enjoying the sport, it’s additionally at instances painfully clear that what you’re enjoying is finally a 3DS sport from practically a decade in the past.
“A variety of Monster Hunter Tales’ attraction has made it by within the remaster fully untouched, which, mixed with some legitimately participating core mechanics, make for a enjoyable RPG journey. On the identical time, nevertheless, whereas enjoying the sport, it’s additionally at instances painfully clear that what you’re enjoying is finally a 3DS sport from practically a decade in the past.”
In Monster Hunter Tales, you play as a younger youngster dwelling in a distant, remoted village amidst a neighborhood of Riders, who’re mainly Pokemon Trainers within the Monster Hunter universe. Meaning, not like the mainline video games’ monster killing hunters, the Riders’ lifestyle as a substitute revolves round taming, rearing, and battling alongside Monsters, who they seek advice from as Monsties. It’s due to this lifestyle, in actual fact, that Riders select to reside in isolation, away from the remainder of the world. Nonetheless, once they and the surface world alike are threatened by the arrival of the Black Blight – a illness that turns monsters into out-of-control, rampaging nightmares – it falls to you and your mates to go out into the world and discover a solution to cease the Blight’s unfold.
Monster Hunter Tales is decidedly extra targeted on story than the collection’ mainline video games, although it’s price noting that tonally, the sport could be very a lot focused at youthful audiences. The could be be genuinely heartwarming and charming a shocking quantity of instances, and although the story that it tells is finally a fairly predictable and simple one, it’s additionally one which deserves credit score for a way successfully it manages to maintain maintain of your consideration. What helps, after all, is the addition of voice performing on this remastered launch, with the vast majority of the performances starting from serviceable at worst to legitimately good at greatest. There are some characters which are a bit annoyingly written – like a village elder who, for no matter purpose, solely ever speaks in rhymes – however by and enormous, the remaster’s voice overs do a great job of bringing the sport’s characters and story to life.
Visually, nevertheless, Monster Hunter Tales isn’t a lot of a looker. It ought to go with out saying that you simply shouldn’t be stepping into with enormously excessive expectations at any charge – this was initially a 3DS sport, in any case – besides, the sport undoubtedly reveals its age in how flat and muddy it could possibly have a look at instances. Personally, I’m not a lot of a fan of the entire chibi aesthetic both – I a lot want the look and artwork type of Monster Hunter Tales 2 – which implies, visually talking, I can’t say I’m a fan of how the sport has aged, even with the touched up graphics on this enhanced launch.
“The remaster’s voice overs do a great job of bringing the sport’s characters and story to life.”
On a gameplay entrance, the sport does equally present its age, although admittedly, it’s nonetheless fairly a little bit of enjoyable at its core, due to some legitimately effectively thought-out and pleasurable mechanics and methods, particularly for those who’re a fan of conventional JRPGs. The star of the present is the fight, which carves out a really distinct identification for itself within the turn-based area. At its core is a rock-paper-scizzors system- any time you and an enemy are concentrating on one another, each of you’ll assault one another with both an influence, pace, or technical assault, with energy being stronger towards technical, technical towards pace, and pace towards energy, with these matchups deciding the winner of every head-to-head. That easy system varieties the center and soul of the sport’s battle system, with different wrinkles thrown on prime within the type of double assaults, totally different weapon varieties, Kinship assaults between you and your Monstie companions, and what have you ever.
A fight system could make or break a JRPG, and Monster Hunter Tales, fortunately, has a stable one. It’s a disgrace that Capcom didn’t take the chance so as to add a few of Monster Hunter Tales 2’s enhancements into the remaster – like having the ability to break particular monster elements, as an example – however even in its authentic kind, it really works fairly effectively. Monster Hunter Tales has you battling a lot of enemies, and although it by no means actually will get difficult in a manner that will stand out in reminiscence, the battle system is all the time enjoyable sufficient to carry your consideration, for essentially the most half. As you develop extra highly effective, unlock new abilities, increase and enhance your roster of Monsties, and add extra and higher weapons to your arsenal, the fight solely ever will get better- it additionally helps, after all, that as you progress additional, you additionally begin taking over bigger and extra formidable foes, together with many who Monster Hunter followers will loving locking horns with in a turn-based sport.
Outdoors of fight, Monster Hunter Tales is fairly customary JRPG fare. There are massive, open-ended hub maps to experience round in, randomly generated monster dens to discover, subquests to trace down, and extra, although none of it ever actually stands out. From a design perspective, Monster Hunter Tales reveals its age fairly a bit, with exploration feeling fairly restricted, and even fundamental moment-to-moment motion feeling awfully stilted and clunky nearly on a regular basis. On prime of that, facet actions can typically be horribly dull- some are definitely enjoyable sufficient in their very own proper, however most are painfully rote and unambitious. Even monster dens shortly get repetitive. Although the joys of discovering a uncommon egg by no means fairly goes away, it’s laborious to not be let down by how simplistic and boring many of the dens are in design.
“A fight system could make or break a JRPG, and Monster Hunter Tales, fortunately, has a stable one.”
Monster Hunter Tales can’t fairly disguise its age, which, after all, can also be right down to the truth that as a remaster, this isn’t a very important one. In its enhanced kind, Capcom’s charming, simplistic JRPG does deliver a handful of enhancements and additions within the type of improved visuals, newly added voice performing, and even a Museum mode to take a look at artwork and music, however that is nonetheless finally a near-decade-old 3DS sport. Is it nonetheless enjoyable? It completely is. It’s enjoyable and charming and legitimately heartwarming in its personal proper. It’s, nevertheless, additionally fairly a restricted and simple sport, so simply maintain that in thoughts if and while you resolve to dive into it. Followers of conventional JRPGs will definitely discover loads of enjoyment right here, even when the sport admittedly does get outdone in so some ways by its successor (which can also be now out there on PlayStation, by the way).
The PlayStation 4 model of this sport was reviewed on the PlayStation 5 through backward compatibility.
