I found a list of highest selling JRPG franchises a few days ago, and it was eye opening. Despite being popular with fans (allegedly), I've missed out on a lot of well known experiences. This year's resolution/saga is to check out all the biggest franchises I've never delved into. And today, we'll check out the third best on the list: Monster Hunter!
I can't play any of the newer and well regarded games, so I'll stick with the old go-to and boot up my (legit) PSP! I'm testing the waters with Monster Hunter Freedom! I jet past the cutscenes because I'm curious about the game...
The first thing we get to do is make our character. It's rare for JRPGs to have a character creator, so this is fun. As I usually do, I make a hot redhead and name them after my love (happy 34th anniversary), Lucy. Lucy gets out of bed, and I examine the chest in her room. It contains a variety of weapons to get you started on the adventure. The default is a sword of some kind, but I quickly sell it and whip out the spear!
I take a look around town and realize it's really tiny. There are four merchants: sundries, gear, gear enhancer, and a rare material lady. But, for now, speak to the village chief. He'll get you started on the basic gameplay loop that is MHF. You take a quest, find rare meat is the first, and then you go out to the field and do it. The field begins at camp, and there are basic necessities in a chest near the spawn point. From there, you head out to the world! It's inhabited by dinosaurs who aren't bothering you, but you have to kill them anyway for their meat. Combat is fat rolling in Dark Souls. You can also dig through a poop pile... Kill the creatures with your oversized and slow weapon, sheath it, and harvest your reward. Return to camp, interact with the second chest, and you've finished the quest!
And that's the game...?
Yep, that's the entire gameplay loop. Accept quest, go out, finish, and win to claim your rewards. Use those rewards to make better weapons and armor using items you've harvested from monsters, farm points, mine points, waste heaps, and quest rewards. You're also given a farm to help facilitate this. But why are we doing this?
There is no obvious point to all of this. The entire game is "do x because...." There's no big bad or stakes to be had. Your character is just some nobody. You can play this game with friends, which I'd bet is the main draw of it all. I can see how this would be so much fun to just go out and hunt giant dinosaurs and boars with friends. Solo, though, it's a pointless slog, and I'm not into it. I played three hours of Monster Hunter Freedom, got through the tutorial, fully decked out, and upgraded my spear three times. It's not clicking with me, and I doubt it will. Before I grow to hate this game and franchise, I'm just gonna head out.
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Plot: none. Characters are empty slates, there are no stakes, and there is no plot. 0/10
Gameplay: too simple. Combat isn't anything expansive. There are no combo mechanics, at least not with the spear, magic system, or skill moves. The idea of gear upgrades is rad, but I suspect it'll become a tedious slog by mid game. 4/10
Sound: zero. Music is few and far between, but the chimes are kinda fun, and I'd probably like the farm song if I cared. 2/10
Art: the redemption. Monster Hunter Freedom looks absolutely gorgeous. The world is beautiful, the models are wonderful, and I get the feeling weapons and armor are all different. All on a PSP! Farming points can be hard to spot, though. 9/10
Charm: bias aside... The world is probably pretty cool, and it's all about exploration. There are a couple of cute animations, and the amount of weapons probably opens up repeatability paths. Sadly, NPCs are just as boring as you, and MHF isn't targeted at everyone. I'll be nice and assume the game length is good. 7/10
Negatives: grind. If you're not into the grind, this is gonna get tedious between finding the materials, getting the money, and having enough leftover to start another quest that isn't kill two peaceful lizards. And I think there are mandatory alchemy and potion making, a fragile weapon degradation system, and ...I'm bored. -5
In total, Monster Hunter Freedom for the PSP is a disappointing and terrible 17 out of 50. Maybe I just don't get it, but it's best I put this down now. It's a game franchise not for me, so don't hold this against me. I don't hate the game, so let's move on before I do.
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