I guess epic hunting simulation ain't my cup of tea.
Consider this a neutral review, with a red mark counter-balancing the positive ratings.
I had this one gather dust in the library until my close circle of friends decided to tackle this, so... It finally came down to see what made this game (and the franchise) stand on its own in the video game community.

The game trumps on the David & Goliat-esque concept, the selling point being to hunt large monsters and craft new equipments out of loots as a means to level your character up stats-wise. Battles outcome depends primarily on the sum of your weapon choice (and it's respective moveset), the enemy's behavior and how well you adapt. There’s a Souls-like rhythm to combat that rewards patience and mastery—fight, slay, loot, craft, repeat for a higher tier. I get that the MH community are hooked on it enough to praise the franchise's concept.

But for me? The payoff felt underwhelming. Combat is dynamic and engaging, but the constant grind wore thin. The story is barely there, and the characters failed to make an impact. That said, the game world looks fantastic, and there’s depth for those willing to climb the steep mechanical learning curve. Still, I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was just going through the motions.

If, like me, you're unsure whether the hype matches your taste, sample the gameplay before committing. It might just click—or not.

Amazing game! I originally bought the game only to play The Witcher 3 quest and at the beginning I could not imagine spending more than 50 hours on this game but here I am. This was my first Monster Hunter game and I am a big fan now. My favorite non-story video game for sure. 10/10

Something in my brain doesn't click with Monster Hunter. I've tried a few times. I've gotten into Monhun clones, even ones I know are less polished with less content. I can tell I should like this game more, yet playing Monhun itself never feels right. The speed of gameplay, the exploration and maps themselves just all feel like a slog. I wish I either had faster less time-consuming gameplay or a more robust exploration that doesn't isn't contained to what feels like a set of over-sized fighting arenas. It's an awkward middle ground between action and exploration that works to the detriment of both. I keep being told to power through it and it will eventually click but it just hasn't happened. Maybe I'll update this later if I actually reach the endgame in one of these games.