The Monster Hunter X (Cross) trailer was released fairly recently, and it’s looking promising. Despite the somewhat odd naming choice, it is supposed to be a main series Monster Hunter game. We start off in a serene-looking village with lots of airships in the sky, which we also got to see in Monster Hunter 3’s online mode. It appears that you’ve got the early game armor and weapons on you as you walk through the all new villages, and it looks like some of the stuff you’re carrying is new to this title. Everything’s looking nice and peachy.
Then we jump right into the monsters. The first monsters we encounter are large, brachiosaurus-like creatures that seem to travel in packs. Could these be the new Popo? They seem docile enough. It looks like these passive monsters have finally been given life and seem to have motivation to do things, as opposed to previous iterations where the monsters in the background do nothing. We’re also getting new, smaller monsters which look a bit like green T-rex chickens. They’ve got feathers and beaks, and appear to have bodies similar to the Jaggi’s. Maybe they’re cousins? If that’s the case, then these guys should be fairly easy to dispose of.
We also get a giant, angry green dragon-looking creature. Our first glimpse of him shows him flying, but he also gets down on the ground and just starts smacking things around. It’s glowing green, so there’s some lightning element going on here. There’s also a new elephant-like creature with ornate tusks that inhabits a new snowy zone. A new dragon that has bubble breath (we wish we were kidding) can also be seen in the trailer. If one of the bubbles hits the hunter, he gets a bit stuck and starts flailing a bit. That’s either to shake off the effects, or is the effect. Doesn’t seem very harmful, but it could just be a slightly funny-looking version of getting poisoned, for all we know.
Then we get a massive, majestic creature. It’s got a heavy, spiky tail that it’s not afraid to use. It’s also got the ability to spit fireballs, so watch out for those. You’d think something that has such pretty-colored scales would have less of a temper.
By the looks of it, we’re also getting some pretty badass new moves. All of the weapons are getting new attacks, with the ones shown in the trailer looking pretty impressive. Every weapon has multiple styles to choose from, and each of those will make the weapon handle somewhat differently. You can combine this with a Special Attack of your choice to customize your hunter even further. The new Sword and Shield attack used against the chicken-Jaggis earlier has us spinning, but it looks fairly effective. It looks like the most effective attack for Sword and Shield so far.
They also showed us a Dual Blade hunter just does a drill claw forward and smacks the Rathalos in the face, which would have us believe that certain attacks grant a degree of invulnerability. Will this be available for everyone? Dual Blade-wielders also get a double-spin type thing that lands multiple hits, but we can’t really tell if you’ve got to be committed to both spins, or if you can just do one spin and dodge out of it.
Also on the receiving end of a new Hammer attack is that poor Tigrex in the video. This new move requires a bit of buildup, probably to get the momentum necessary to make that devastating blow. It appears to be an AOE move, no direct contact necessary, as it appears to hit the ground a short distance away from the Tigrex. It looks pretty effective, but it’s a double-edged sword: The hunter becomes stuck in an awkward, almost-toppling-over position for a short while after the attack, so if you miss, you’re probably going to get punished.
We’ve got the Gun Lance showing off another new attack, as well. Doesn’t look to be a one-shot type of deal, it’s almost a flamethrower. Not sure if that’s the best thing to use against a Hermitaur, though.
The Insect Glaive also has a new attack(?). It doesn’t look like much of an attack, actually. The hunter stabs it into the ground and is immediately surrounded by a spray of blue-green lights. This might be a healing effect, and given the spread of the lights, could be meant for helping nearby party members.
Bowgun-wielders will probably also be getting a few new moves of their own. The hunter in the clip is shown being nothing short of badass, jumping onto the head of that Rathian and just firing into its back while they flip in mid-air. Getting a jumping-type attack for every weapon would probably make everyone’s lives easier, too.
The Lance also seems to be handling a bit differently in this clip. Instead of charging with it straight forward, it’s off to the side a bit; as the hunter makes contact with the Tetsucabra, he lands two hits: first with the shield, then with the lance. This may or may not replace the old charging attack, or if this is just another style.
The Hunting Horn’s new attack looks pretty similar to the Hammer’s, but with one major difference: It doesn’t touch the ground. It stops right above the ground and activates the horn, letting out a sound blast that appears to have an even larger AOE effect. It also appears to require almost no recovery time, unlike the Hammer. There’s also a new monster being taken on here, and it appears to be the larger version of the T-Rex chickens we saw earlier, or just MHX’s version of the Great Jaggi. It’s equal parts adorable and slightly terrifying.
Those who prefer the Great Sword also get a new move, which consists of a forward leap and a nice cut right into the Zamtrios. Looks quick and clean, and you’re probably going to get bonus points if you time it right. Again there is a forward leap involved here, as with the Bowgun, which backs the theory that each weapon will have a leap move.
The Charge Blade is pitted against the Najarala in this trailer, where it’s a bit difficult to tell if you can pull off this new attack straight from being idle, or if you have to combo into it. It’s got a quick charge animation and goes right into a beautiful, explosive circle attack. They’re also getting a second move that looks like it needs a combo prior to it, but there’s a multiple-hit payoff.
Bows also have a new effect, which appears to only be executable after a dodge. This is demonstrated while our hunter is dodging a Nibelsnarf, then shooting an arrow that stops short and seems to rain sparkles. It looks to be either a heal or some sort of buff effect, we’ll probably have to wait to find out for sure.
The Light Bowgun seems to have gotten a new blast-type attack that requires deployment before it explodes in the monster’s face. Judging by the way that Khezu just dropped, it’s a very effective attack. Fingers crossed that the explosion itself won’t affect other players, or that’s going to leave a few people very peeved.
Great Swords look to be getting an attack that you can execute from a standing position, no prep time really needed. The hunter can swing the Great Sword, connect with the monster, and smack them silly. All of this happens very quickly, and at the end of it, the hunter appears to receive some sort of power-up (judging by the afterglow).
Long Swords get some love, too. The animation shows that you can probably pull this off if your sword is already unsheathed. Go straight into the charge animation, and make that seriously deep cut. Seems a little slow, but the payoff looks pretty good.
All these new attacks are pretty intense, and some of them look super effective, so there’s a possibility that there’ll be limiters put in. They could drain your stamina, affect your sharpness, or use up all your loaded shots. Whatever the developers decide on, it’s got to balance out somehow or everyone will just spam these new attacks.
The gameplay footage also brought us quickly into a new zone, most likely to show off the vertical gameplay. Jumping, climbing, stuff you got to do in Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate will be present here. Returning zones are as follows:
· Ancestral Steppe
· Desert
· Sunken Hollow
· Frozen Seaway
· Primal Forest
· Dunes
· Kokoto Village
· Pokke Village
· Yukumo Village
Last, but probably not the least, they’ve revealed one more creature: A SHEEP. It’s new, it’s cute, and apparently you can kiss it to make it happy so that flowers magically appear. No word on whether it’s replacing the Poogie, but we really hope not. We need more cute creatures to balance out the monsters.
Looks like Monster Hunter X’s got a lot of familiar (monster) faces and places, with a good bit of new stuff that should kick the gaming experience up a notch. How do you feel about the new attacks? Are you going to try a different weapon when you get your hands on Monster Hunter X? Are you looking forward to facing the new monsters? Tell us what you think!
