Now surpassing 13 million copies shipped, Capcom's highly successful Monster Hunter World, is dominating the gaming industry. Originally releasing in January of 2018, Monster Hunter World has successfully revamped the once struggling (in the West) franchise. After its release, Monster Hunter kept its hunters satisfied with with free DLC content through the year, seasonal events and constant QoL updates. After a year and a half of play, Capcom has finally announced the first and last expansion for the game: Iceborne, which drops September 6th.
Iceborne is no lightweight. Adding in a whopping 20+ new monsters, a new frigid region called the Hinterlands, weapon combos and gear and an entirely new story line; it's worth the $39.99 price tag. After discovering an odd migration of Legiana, you and the Handler are lead over the seas and discover the Hinterlands. The Research Commission then sets up a new home base, Seliana, in the Hoarfrost Reach which is a section of the Hinterlands. Seliana brings a very different feel than Astera, yes it's covered in snow, but there are new vendors like the Grammeowster, a hot spring sauna, and a fully customizable house for your hunter. This snowy region is home to new and unknown dangers, exciting mysteries and plenty of nail biting hunts to be had. Some of the new, and returning monsters are not to be taken lightly; they're as follows: Tigrex, Brachydios, Barioth, Velkhana, Acidic Galvenus, Beotodus, Viper Tobi Kadachi, Nightshade Poalumu and the mysterious new Elder Dragon: Namielle.
With Iceborne comes a new rank of quests called 'Master Rank'. Master Rank quests will offer a new level of difficulty and challenges to veteran and new hunters. Along with this new rank will be a heap of new armor sets and weapons that will allow hunters to dive deep into their upgrade trees. There is a catch, however, in order to play Iceborne you must own the base game and have completed the main story and reached HR (Hunter Rank) 16. It may seem like a hefty requirement, but getting to HR 16 will ensure that you won't be getting slapped around like a ragdoll when you land the Hoarfrost Reach. However, Capcom has not only gifted hunters with new gear, but new weapons combos and the 'Clutch Claw' that will allow your hunter to pack even more of a punch that ever before.
Monster Hunter World: Iceborne is a visually stunning addition to the franchise, it offers simple but engaing game mechanics for all hunters, is packed with a massive amount of new and brilliant content and is truly a title worth playing. For those who are wary to jump into this daunting franchise, there is hope! One last beta for the PS4 launches this week, August 30th through September 1st and Xbox One following on September 2nd through the 5th.
Monster Hunter World: Iceborne hits stores on September 6th!
Rating: 9/10
