Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruinis a month away, and it looks like Capcom is finally going to start releasing substantial information on it. This game will feature co-op and monster collecting, alongside the chance to fight alongside friendly monsters withMH’s signature giant weapons. With a wide variety of costume options, including some save synergy withMonster Hunter Rise, it looks likeMonster Hunter Stories 2is going to be a pleasant time.
With that said, a lot ofMonster Hunterfans are going to be curious about how this game measures up againstRise. The most recent mainline game in the series,Monster Hunter Risejust recently received an updatethat added a more climactic-feeling ending to its story and single-player hunts. That won’t last long, as more substantial content updates are guaranteed to drop, but it does bring up a rather large point of difference betweenRiseandStories 2. These games have similar, yet very different approaches to story and how it’s presented, andStoriesmay have the advantage.
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Monster Hunter Rise is Very Limited In How It Can Tell Its Story
Much of this difference in storytelling comes from these games’ vastly different genres.Monster Hunter Riseis a dyed-in-the-wool hunting game where the sole focus is hunting monsters and crafting successively more powerful equipment from their parts.Monster Hunterhas always had an eye for the ecology of its monsters, but that is often revealed as a by-product of hunting and slaying them. It also always makes a point of having some sort of framing device, and this time that’sthe mysterious “Rampage” affecting Kamura Village. It’s all just in service of setting up interesting gameplay scenarios though, and giving the player character a reasonable justification for all their hunting.
Risebrought back the split betweensingle and multiplayer missions, so those who want to go all-in on hunting over story can. That shows pretty definitively whereMonster Hunter Rise’s priorities lie, but it does make the effort to sprinkle some character in. No matter how one chooses to play the game, they’ll be interacting with the inhabitants of Kamura Village. Aside from the Housekeeper, every one of them has a unique name and voice, and their own well-defined role in assisting Hunters. They participate in the story, but aside from the twins Hinoa and Minoto, the townsfolk don’t have a terribly large impact on what happens in the plot.
Monster Hunter Stories 2 Could Offer a Better Narrative Experience Than Rise
Monster Hunter Stories 2, meanwhile, is defined by its focus on story. The vast majority of content seen in trailers thus far has been cutscenes, and it’s clear that this time around, interpersonal conflict is going to be in focus alongside the usual hunts. Players take control of Riders who raise and fight alongside Monsties, smaller breeds ofMonster Hunter’s many creatures. This fact alone radically recontextualizes the game as a completely different genre, with that genre allowing for more long-term adventuring likePokemoninstead of one-shot expeditions.
Stories 2also hits the ground running with its plot. In the midst of mass global Rathalos disappearances, the player character has a fateful encounter with a white-haired wyverian girl named Ena. She has been entrusted with a Rathalos egg, which hatches into a flightless Rathalos with small black wings. These are the titular Wings of Ruin, and are said to bring ruin to the world in time. This Rathalos is shown to be capable of incredible destructive power, and participates in the story as the player’s main Monstie. Aside from monsters going berserk as usual, there are also several factions and characters at odds with the player due to their use of this Rathalos. For players who look for games that tell a story,Monster Hunter Stories 2may end up being abetter introduction to theMonster Hunteruniversethan any of the comparatively plot-light mainline games.
Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruinwill release July 9th on Steam and Nintendo Switch.
