Every Monster Hunter Game, Ranked Worst to Best

Monster Hunter World Iceborne

Capcom introduced the world to the first Monster Hunter over two decades ago, and it has since grown into one of the studio’s biggest franchises alongside Street Fighter and Resident Evil. Each game builds on the foundation of patience, skill, knowledge, and the thrill of taking down massive creatures. Since the PlayStation 2 days, Capcom has made changes and experimented with the series’ formula, sometimes to great success and sometimes not so much. With roughly eight mainline Monster Hunter games having been released, new players can jump in at any point, while veterans may wish to return to fan favorite games. But what Monster Hunter games are worth playing?

Ranking each Monster Hunter isn’t about graphics or content volume, but how each game shapes and reflects the series. We’ll exclude the Freedom series, or rather include them with the games they were ported from and lump the final editions with their base games. Likewise, this list consists of mainline games and not spin-offs. From its humble beginnings to expanded features, here is how every Monster Hunter game ranks compared to one another.

8) Monster Hunter

Monster Hunter
image courtesy of capcom

The original Monster Hunter deserves its credit. Without it, there wouldn’t be a series to begin with. But no amount of nostalgia can soften the sharp, outdated polygons of the PS2. By today’s standards, the controls are clunky, an issue that plagued it on release as well. Combine this with the uncooperative camera and wildly inconsistent hit detection, and one can see why the original game begins this list.

That said, Capcom’s ambition was clear, but the time was just wrong for such a project. Methodical combat, tactical preparation, and the exhilaration of victory are the best parts of the series, and they started with Monster Hunter. But this just wasn’t the standard for games in 2004. Back then, it was impossible to tell what was jank and what was intentional when looking at other fast-paced games that featured hordes of enemies rather than a single challenging foe. Monster Hunter was ahead of its time, and now the gameplay and systems properly support the vision that started it all.

Monster Hunter Freedom would eventually be a port of the original on PSP. It offered slightly more content and some mechanical tweaks, but largely felt like the same game. The portability was groundbreaking for this time, but it didn’t fix enough of the original’s issues to truly stand out.

7) Monster Hunter 2

Monster Hunter Freedom Unite
image courtesy of capcom

Monster Hunter 2 was only released in Japan, but would eventually come west as Monster Hunter Freedom 2 as a handheld port, which would then go on to receive an updated version, Monster Hunter Freedom Unite. Capcom made a lot of changes with the sequel, especially the mobile versions. Smoother controls made playing the game much more enjoyable, and several iconic monsters, such as Tigrex, were introduced here. Likewise, it expanded the weapon options with several new types.

Monster Hunter Freedom and Freedom Unite were so much bigger and more ambitious than the first game. Both games offered a brutal difficulty curve that was part of the challenge, but new Palico sidekicks helped solo players who didn’t want to bother with the clunky online. The game still had some glaring issues and was nowhere near as casual-friendly as it is today. We initially wanted to place this game higher, but had to consider the fact that it introduced the annoying habit of Capcom rereleasing the game with additional content shortly after release, effectively making players pay twice.

6) Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate

Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate
image courtesy of capcom

Monster Hunter 3 and the Ultimate Edition were essentially reimaginings of Monster Hunter Tri, the first game in the third generation. These games made the leap from PlayStation to Nintendo, releasing on the Wii U and 3DS. At first, Tri felt like a huge step backwards. It removed many monsters and weapons, as well as introducing the divisive underwater combat. Had Capcom left it at this, Monster Hunter Tri would be lower up on this list. But thankfully, Capcom redeemed it with Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate.

It reintroduced these missing features and included many new and welcome features. This includes cross-save progression between the Wii U and 3DS, allowing players to play anywhere. It also included improved online, at least for the Wii U version, and better camera control. Another majorly successful feature was the inclusion of a free hunt zone, allowing players to play the game outside of the main quest.

But for all its additions, the classic Monster Hunter jank was still present. The visuals on Nintendo’s consoles were okay, and the pacing dragged more than it should have. Capcom was beginning to hit its stride, and the success of the series can be traced back to Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate.

5) Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate

Monster Hunter Generations
image courtesy of capcom

Monster Hunter Generations and Generations Ultimate are some of the most important games in the series, and the largest at the time. It featured over 90 monsters, multiple hunting styles, and nostalgic locales that honored the series’ history. It was essentially a love letter to fans and one of the most welcoming games due to its accessibility. Players had so much freedom when it came to quests and learning the gameplay, giving something for newcomers and veterans alike.

But it was incredibly overwhelming, especially for new players. Monster Hunter Generations still maintained the old-school gameplay and mindset. Even the quality-of-life features Capcom introduced weren’t enough to remove the overall clunkiness of the series. So, even though it was a more beginner-friendly game in the series, getting into it still had quite a few hurdles. But it was an excellent starting point and would catalyze the games that came after it, and become more friendly to first-time players.

4) Monster Hunter Rise

Monster Hunter Rise
image courtesy of capcom

Monster Hunter Rise took the accessibility of Monster Hunter Generations and cranked it up considerably. It is one of the fastest games in the series, getting rid of the slow and clunky feeling that past games gave off. The Wirebug made traversal and combat incredibly fluid and dynamic. It gave so much verticality to a series that had never seen something like this before. Travel was further improved with the Palamute, a rideable companion that also aided in battle.

It also made onboarding smoother and easier than ever. Some of these changes were controversial, but allowed newcomers to get into the series quicker. Players no longer had to hunt monsters as they were now marked on the minimap from the beginning. Silkbinds made it easier to immobilize creatures rather than learning weaknesses, making hunts altogether faster. Considering the Nintendo Switch’s handheld aspects, many fans praised these changes.

But veterans didn’t like these changes as much. Monster Hunter Rise was seen as too easy and unrealistic after the release of Monster Hunter World. There were also big changes made to the weapon’s move sets, something fans didn’t like. Not only this, but many of the quests were unsatisfying for veterans, especially in the late game. Monster Hunter Sunbreak improved some of these issues, but the game felt like both a new direction from World and a step back.

3) Monster Hunter Wilds

Monster Hunter Wilds
image courtesy of capcom

Monster Hunter Wilds is a combination of Monster Hunter Rise and Monster Hunter World. It continued the multi-platform release of World while keeping the faster gameplay of Rise. It proved to be massively successful, especially amongst newcomers and casual players. The new mounts, Seikrets, allowed for easy travel, even including an autopilot mode. Hunts were fast, and the new biomes were visually impressive. Likewise, many of the new monsters were a blast to fight, and Wilds brought back many fan favorites.

Where the game suffers is its overabundance of unskippable cutscenes, hand-holding that overstays its welcome, and the infuriating online. These alone would be enough to bump Monster Hunter Wilds further up this list, but the sheer fun of its gameplay loop makes up for this. Not only that, but the narrative is surprisingly good for a game about hunting giant monsters. That said, many felt the narrative didn’t add anything to the game, and fans would have preferred Capcom focus on gameplay, particularly with difficulty, as Wilds is overall an easy game.

Still, Monster Hunter Wilds’ combat is some of the best in the series, and if Capcom can round out the rough edges with online, it may prove to be the best game yet. The next game can continue the trend of making the games more accessible while not taking away from the difficulty. Capcom also needs to ditch the greedy microtransactions it built into the game and focus on making gameplay as stellar as possible.

2) Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate

Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate
image courtesy of capcom

For many fans, Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate represents the perfect balance between classic challenge and modern convenience. It brought more verticality to environments, smoother movement, more varied combat, and some of the series’s best monster encounters. Better controls and more map variation made every aspect of the game more fun and interesting. What makes this most impressive is that it was released in the West as the Ultimate Edition, meaning all these features were available from the start.

A new introduction to the series was Guild Quests, offering more story-driven content that would lead to future games having more in-depth stories. Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate’s dynamic hunts and maps would also go on to inspire further games. Online multiplayer was also a major focus for the series’ fourth generation, not only bringing it to all players but vastly improving on it from previous games.

It’s hard to find something wrong with Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate. Nearly everything it did improved on the series. It even did portability right. Years later, Capcom’s Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate still stands as one of the series’ finest games.

1) Monster Hunter World: Iceborne

Monster Hunter World
image courtesy of capcom

Monster Hunter World was an excellent game at launch, but the reason it holds the #1 spot on this list is the expansion, Iceborne. It fixed nearly every issue with the base game and catapulted into the spotlight. Monster Hunter World: Iceborne is the pinnacle of the series and the standard to beat. It had it all: depth, presentation, spectacle, and accessibility. Capcom nailed the world and gameplay with World: Iceborne, and not even Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate can compare.

Gameplay is among the most varied and satisfying. Capcom brought out the best aspects of hunting, making you feel like a true predator by searching for clues about the monster you seek. Combat features new, exciting moves for every weapon, along with improved controls, making learning and mastering this game better than ever.

The world feels alive, and the open world removes the annoying loading screens between areas. Aside from hunting, there is so much to do in Monster Hunter World: Iceborne. Side activities, gathering materials, and quests allow players to enjoy the parts of the series they love most, how they want. It also made many of these tasks feel less like chores.

Monster Hunter World certainly launched with flaws. Far too few monsters and disappointing end-game content were the main complaints. However, these issues were addressed with the addition of DLC, particularly in Iceborne. Now, this game is considered the best among most fans, and it has gone on to become one of Capcom’s best-selling games.

What do you think? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!

The post Every Monster Hunter Game, Ranked Worst to Best appeared first on ComicBook.com.