About This Game
INTRODUCTION
Overview
ECOSYSTEM
HUNTING
Welcome to a new world! Take on the role of a hunter and slay ferocious monsters in a living, breathing ecosystem where you can use the landscape and its diverse inhabitants to get the upper hand. Hunt alone or in co-op with up to three other players, and use materials collected from fallen foes to craft new gear and take on even bigger, badder beasts!As a hunter, you'll take on quests to hunt monsters in a variety of habitats.Take down these monsters and receive materials that you can use to create stronger weapons and armor in order to hunt even more dangerous monsters.In Monster Hunter: World, the latest installment in the series, you can enjoy the ultimate hunting experience, using everything at your disposal to hunt monsters in a new world teeming with surprises and excitement.Once every decade, elder dragons trek across the sea to travel to the land known as the New World in a migration referred to as the Elder Crossing.To get to the bottom of this mysterious phenomenon, the Guild has formed the Research Commission, dispatching them in large fleets to the New World.As the Commission sends its Fifth Fleet in pursuit of the colossal elder dragon, Zorah Magdaros, one hunter is about to embark on a journey grander than anything they could have ever imagined.There are various locations teeming with wildlife. Expeditions into these locales are bound to turn up interesting discoveries.Your equipment will give you the power to need to carve out a place for yourself in the New World.There are fourteen different weapons at the hunter's disposal, each with its own unique characteristics and attacks. Many hunters acquire proficiency in multiple types, while others prefer to attain mastery of one.Monster tracks, such as footprints and gashes, dot each locale. Your Scoutflies will remember the scent of a monster and guide you to other nearby tracks. And as you gather more tracks, the Scoutflies will give you even more information.The Slinger is an indispensable tool for a hunter, allowing you to arm yourself with stones and nuts that can be gathered from each locale.From diversion tactics to creating shortcuts, the Slinger has a variety of uses, and allows you to hunt in new and interesting ways.Specialized tools activate powerful effects for a limited amount of time, and up to two can be equipped at a time. Simple to use, they can be selected and activated just like any other item you take out on a hunt.Palicoes are hunters' reliable comrades out in the field, specialized in a variety of offensive, defensive, and restorative support abilities.The hunter's Palico joins the Fifth Fleet with pride, as much a bona fide member of the Commission as any other hunter.
Capcom’s dinosaur-destroying smash hit Monster Hunter World belatedly arrives on Steam today nearly six months after its launch for consoles. Monster Hunter World has defied expectations to become one of the most successful games in the developer’s history. It’s already sold well over 8 million copies, and the PC version could push that number up much higher. But was it worth the wait?
The PC version of Monster Hunter World is solid and, in many ways, better than the console experience, provided you have the rig to support it. It’s hard, however, to see where the extra half-year of development has been spent. Most of the configuration options you’d expect are present, but there are key PC-specific features missing, like ultrawide support. The game also doesn’t feel very well-optimized for all but the highest-end of hardware.
On my PC, which is based around an i5-6600K with a GTX 1080 and 16GB of RAM, I could generally sustain 60 frames per second at 1440p, but I’d sometimes run into stuttering and strange bugs. The situation appears to have been alleviated somewhat in the run-up to release through a combination of patches and Nvidia driver updates. I’d just be cautious about running this game on lower-end systems.
On console, I mostly played Monster Hunter World on a PS4 Pro in its 1080p performance-priority mode, which still doesn’t manage to hit 60 fps. The PC version does give me a strong boost in performance, then, but it doesn’t look much better beyond the bump in resolution — assets and effects are almost identical to my eye. It’s a very different situation to the last delayed console-to-PC port I found myself waiting for, Destiny 2, which looked, ran, and played so much better than the PS4 version. It was practically a whole new game. (Granted, the comparison is particularly stark because you should really be playing Monster Hunter with a controller, even on PC.)
If you’ve already invested hundreds of hours into Monster Hunter World on console, you probably don’t need to start from scratch on PC. But if you mostly or only play games on PC, you should absolutely check out Monster Hunter World because it’s one of 2018’s very best games so far.
I’ll point you to my review if you’re unfamiliar with the game or series. I only managed to put in around 40 hours before deadline time, though, and I’ve tripled that since, so allow me to expand a little on where Monster Hunter World took me from there. It’s true that, with 30 main monsters, the base content is a little slighter than other Monster Hunter games, and the end game isn’t altogether as satisfying. You can still play this game forever; it’ll just get repetitive slightly sooner. But Capcom has done a pretty good job of keeping players coming back by pumping out free downloadable content updates with new monsters roughly every month. The latest update is probably the biggest yet, an ambitious Final Fantasy crossover in which you take on the iconic Behemoth.
This content won’t be available for PC players at launch, unfortunately, but that’s understandable. Almost no one will have leveled up enough to handle it for a while, and these types of high-rank events tend to rely on having a large base of players that are able to check it out at the same time. The real question will be whether the inevitable “G-rank” version of Monster Hunter World, with substantially more quests and content, will come in the form of a paid update or an entirely new full-price version of the game, as has traditionally been the case.
For now, though, what matters is that a mainline Monster Hunter game is finally available on PC for the first time, and it’s the perfect entry point for players who are new to the series. The joys of jumping off a cliff to bash a dragon’s head with a hammer have never been so accessible or available to so many.
It’s nearly here! Monster Hunter World drops on PC today, August 9, after months of patient waiting. So you’re not in the dark all day, here are the release times for Monster Hunter World in different regions across the globe.
For the longest time, Monster Hunter was written off as “big in Japan” but niche everywhere else. With Monster Hunter World though the series has shaken off that tag, shipping over eight million copies since it released on console earlier this year.
Monster Hunter World Release Time PC:
Monster Hunter World hits PC at 5PM UK time – ready for when you get home from work. This translates to 6PM in Central Europe and 2AM on August 10 for Australia.
In the US, MHW drops at 9AM on the West Coast, while players on the East Coast will have to wait until 12PM.
Use this link for a list of all the time zones, and to add your own to the calculator if you’re in a different part of the world.
While you’re here, we’ve got tons of Monster Hunter guides to make your journey through the New World smoother.
If you’re a new player, you’ll be faced with a difficult question: what starting weapon should I choose in Monster Hunter World? We’ve evaluated all 14 to give you more of an idea.
Monster Hunter World is a great game. So much so that we recently added it to our list of the best RPGs.
Monster Hunter World PC is finally out in the wild, plus we've go all the info on the Monster Hunter World DLC, reviews and more. We've also got all the Monster Hunter World weapons and monsters.
Monster Hunter World weapons come in all different shapes and sizes, and just as the monsters themselves are complex and challenging, so too are the weapons with which you hunt them. In this Monster Hunter World weapons guide, we'll be walking you through the best Monster Hunter World weapons, as well as detailing which weapons are better suited for taking down smaller or larger monsters.
If you instead need anything else on the expansive game of Monster Hunter World that isn't to do with weapons, including how to use the Scout Flies to track monsters, as well as how to kit out your Palico with the best gear available, make sure to head over to our Monster Hunter World guides walkthrough hub.
A brand new update for Monster Hunter World has now gone live, bringing with it the Deviljho creature as well as fourteen total new weapons for you to play around with. Head over to our Monster Hunter World Deviljho guide for all you info you need on taking down the brand new beast.
Monster Hunter World Weapons
There are fourteen weapons in total in Monster Hunter World, all of which have various different purposes and functions on the battlefield. You'll find extensive guides to each type of weapon just below, detailing how they are best put to use on the battlefield, and which monsters they are best suited for hunting. Don't forget that you can always upgrade these weapons at the Smithy in the hub area, and a vanilla weapon in Monster Hunter World will nearly always become useless after a while. Read on for details on all the Monster Hunter World weapons.
Monster Hunter World Bow Weapon Guide
The Bow is your standard ranged attack weapon in Monster Hunter World, and although it might appear weak at first, it's actually one of the best ranged weapons on offer. You can either hold down the left trigger to aim at a specific part of a monster, or you can press Circle/B without aiming three times, to have your character unleash two volleys of arrows, followed by a third attack which rains down gravel from the sky in an area, constantly damaging any monster caught underneath it.
You can also press Triangle+Circle/Y+B while either aiming or not, to have your character charge up a powerful explosive arrow for a few seconds. Unleashing this at a monster is bound to cause damage, and potentially stun the monster if you land a clean shot to their head.
Best for hunting: Just about everything. There honestly isn't an enemy that we wouldn't recommend the Bow for use against. It's a quick, versatile weapon that can be used quickly from range while aiming, or up close by simply pressing Circle/B and attacking with volley after volley of arrows.
Monster Hunter World Charge Blade Weapon Guide
The powerful Charge Blade can take on one of two forms: either a one handed blade with a shield, or a two handed heavy blade. You can press the right trigger to switch between forms, and you can hold down the left trigger while equipping the shield to protect yourself with it.
The Charge Blade is useful in its weaker form with the shield as you can easily protect yourself from incoming monster attacks, but you can also use the larger, heavy weapon form to unleash massive amounts of damage on a monster. Hold down the right trigger, and then press either Triangle/Y, or Y/B to initiate large, sweeping attacks with the Charge Blade in its two handed form.
Best for hunting: Great Jagras, Anjanath, Radobaan. Generally speaking, you're going to want to save the Charge Blade for monsters that are less mobile, and definitely for ones that don't have the ability to leave the ground and fly. You'll want to aim for either the head or the tail of these larger monsters, as a powerful hit to the head can stun them, while slicing off their tail can grant you extra rewards.
Monster Hunter World Dual Blades Weapon Guide
The Dual Blades are the quickest weapon type in Monster Hunter World, allowing hunters to unleash a flurry of attacks in one go, while also allowing them to rapidly move around the battlefield, escaping the clutches of any monsters that you go up against.
The Dual Blades might not have any special transformation like other weapon types, but they can unleash special, charged attacks if you're able to build them up for long enough without being attacked.
Best for hunting: Great Jagras, Anjanath. The mobility of the Dual Blades are an excellent bonus, and as such, you definitely don't want to be in one place for too long when using them. Instead, land a quick few hits on the monsters legs or head, and then back off, allowing them to attack and you to move in for a few more hits.
Monster Hunter World Great Sword Weapon Guide
The Great Sword might be the slowest weapon in Monster Hunter World, and you're going to want to use it with a certain amount of caution against monsters out in the wild. The weapon doesn't actually have a switch ability, unlike the Charge Blade, and so it doesn't have the ability to unleash a series of quick attacks when you find yourself with your back against the wall.
As such, you should really only be using the Great Sword either when you're in an open environment against a monster with slow attacks, or when you've got at least one other player in your squad, able to draw the attention of the monster away from you, so you can land some heavy charged attacks with the Great Sword.
Best for hunting: Great Jagras, Anjanath, Rathian. The Great Sword is best for hunting monsters that stay on the ground, and while the Rathian might appear to be an exception to this rule, it does spend a lot of time in combat with its feet on the ground, letting you lay into it with some powerful attacks from the Great Sword.
Monster Hunter World Gunlance Weapon Guide
The first proper 'trick' weapon of Monster Hunter World, the Gunlance can be used either at close range to jab at a monster, or from a distance to barrage an enemy monster with multiple shells.
Add the inclusion of a shield to the Gunlance, and this is quite possibly one of the most versatile weapons in the game. You can use the shield to protect yourself in close quarters, jabbing away at the monster whenever you get an opening, or you can simply keep your distance the pelt the monster with shells.
Best for hunting: Great Jagras, Anjanath, Rathian, Radobaan. Since the Gunlance is a versatile weapon, it can be used to hunt a variety of monsters. With the shield you can protect yourself from the scathing attacks of monsters like the Anjanath, and you can also use the shells to tear off parts of monsters like the Rathian and Radobaan.
Monster Hunter World Hammer Weapon Guide
This hefty weapon does exactly what it says on the tin, and you can use the Hammer to lay waste to even the most powerful of monsters, stunning them if you're able to land a direct hit on their head.
The Hammer can also be used for charged attacks, which is especially useful for stunning monsters if you're fighting alongside other players. Although you can still dodge about the battlefield fairly easily while using the Hammer, bear in mind that the weapon's most powerful attacks with take a while to properly execute.
Best for hunting: Great Jagras, Anjanath, Rathian. For the Hammer to be used properly, you need to fight monsters who are going to be staying in one place for a while, giving you the ability to build up attacks. Kit your Palico out with a decent weapon so it can occasionally draw the attention of the monster, and you can go to work with the Hammer.
Monster Hunter World Heavy Bowgun Weapon Guide
While the Heavy Bowgun might at first appear similar to the Gunlance with the ability to shell monster from afar, it doesn't have a shield, or an affective close quarters attack. Therefore you're definitely going to want to keep your distance while fighting monsters with the Heavy Bowgun.
Keep in mind that you can equip some specialized ammo while fighting monsters with the Heavy Bowgun, including ammo that can paralyse and put the enemy monster to sleep temporarily.
Best for hunting: Great Jagras, Anjanath, Rathian, Radobaan, Paolumu. Since the Heavy Bowgun can be used from range to pelt monsters, it can be used to take on a variety of monsters, including those that can fly like the Paolumu and the Rathian.
Head to our Monster Hunter World Bow weapons guide for more detailed info.
Monster Hunter World Hunting Horn Weapon Guide
The Hunting Horn is best used when you've got at least one other player with you, since it's primarily a support weapon. While it can reach monsters and land attacks from a fairly decent range, it can also be used to buff fellow party members with melodies.
Not only this, but the Hunting Horn can also be used to increase the abilities of Scout Flies to find nearby items. As such, the weapon is obviously best used when you're with another player, who's able to draw the attention of the monster, and allow you to play melodies from the Hunting Horn.
Best for hunting: Great Jagras, Rathian, Radobaan. If you're going to use the Hunting Horn while venturing out on your own, then you'll want to use it against slower moving monsters. Hunting Horns actually have some decent attack values on their own, which means you can go toe-to-toe with some of the weaker monsters in Monster Hunter World.
Monster Hunter World Insect Glaive Weapon Guide
The Insect Glaive might be one of the harder weapons to use in Monster Hunter World, but it's also one of the more powerful available to hunters. You can use the Insect Glaive to propel yourself above monsters, raining down attacks on them from all different angles.
The weapon also comes with the added bonus of a Kinsect, that you can be used mid-fight to harvest extract from monsters, which imbues the Insect Glaive weapon with certain bonuses for a limited amount of time.
Best for hunting: Great Jagras, Anjanath, Radobaan, Tobi-Kadachi. Since the Insect Glaive is such a nimble weapon, you can confidently use it against nearly any monster in Monster Hunter World. It's an effective counter to a monster like the Tobi-Kadachi, which can move around the battlefield at rapid speeds.
For more info, head to our Monster Hunter World Insect Glaive weapon guide.
Monster Hunter World Lance Weapon Guide
The Lance is one of the more conventional weapons in Monster Hunter World, able to prod monsters from a decent range, while also coming with a shield that can be used to guard hunters against most attacks from monsters.
The shield that the Lance comes with is particularly useful in close quarters, given that you can actually move around with the shield still raised, meaning you won't have to frequently dodge to move around the battlefield.
Best for hunting: Great Jagras, Anjanath, Rathian, Rathalos, Tobi-Kadachi. The Lance has be effectively used against most beasts in Monster Hunter World. While you can guard yourself from plenty of attacks with the shield, you can also take on monsters that have the ability to take to the skies, prodding them with a few quick attacks when they touch back down on the ground.
Monster Hunter World Light Bowgun Weapon Guide
The cousin to the Heavy Bowgun, the Light Bowgun is obviously the lighter counterpart, allowing hunters to dodge out of the grasp of monsters, before unleashing a few quick volley attacks in their direction.
The Light Bowgun can confidently be used against even the most powerful of beasts in Monster Hunter World, especially when you're going up against an enemy with one hunter at your side.
Best for hunting: Great Jagras, Anjanath, Radobaan, Tobi-Kadachi. Since the Light Bowgun is so agile and rapid, it can be used by a hunter constantly on the move. It allows you so rapidly evade attacks, and then fire off a quick few rounds in the direction of the monster, all before reloading.
Head to our Monster Hunter World Bow weapons guide for more detailed info.
Monster Hunter World Long Sword Weapon Guide
The Long Sword weapon is one of the more agile weapons in the arsenal of Monster Hunter World, allowing hunters to land a quick few attacks on any monster, with the added ability of extended reach, letting you stay out of the clutches of most monsters.
The Long Sword also has the added ability of the Spirit Blade, which effectively buffs the weapon for a short amount of time. Used at exactly the right time, the Long Sword can be used to unleash devastating attacks in fairly quick succession, all while not costing a substantial amount of stamina of the hunter wielding it.
Best for hunting: Great Jagras, Anjanath, Rathian, Tobi-Kadachi. Since the Long Sword is such a slick weapon, you can use it to hunt most monsters in Monster Hunter World. As such, you can also use it to take down monsters that can take to the skies, such as the Rathian.
Monster Hunter World Switch Axe Weapon Guide
The Switch Axe is the cousin of the Charge Blade, able to switch between a one handed weapon with a shield, and a single large axe. As with the Charge Blade, the Switch Axe has extended reach while in its bigger form, allowing you to reach in and take a swipe at monsters from safety.
The Switch Axe also has the ability to charge itself up, also like the Charge Blade. If you can successfully charge the weapon in its bigger form without being staggered, you can unleash a powerful attack that's guaranteed to stun any monster.
Best for hunting: Great Jagras, Anjanath, Ratholos, Tobi-Kadachi. The Switch Axe can confidently be used against all types of monsters in Monster Hunter World. You can use the one handed form to get up close and personal with a monster, and you can also back off and use the two handed form against a flying monster whenever it touches down.
Monster Hunter World Sword and Shield Weapon Guide
It might be the most basic weapon in Monster Hunter World, but don't discount the Sword and Shield combination. It's a great weapon combination to start with, but it can also be used against basically any monster in the game, with the shield defending the hunter and the sword used for a few quick attacks whenever you get the opportunity.
Best for hunting: Just about everything. You can't go wrong against any monster with the Sword and Shield combination. If it's a slower monster, you can dodge around it and defend against attacks with the shield, whereas if it's a quicker monster, you can still use the shield to protect yourself.
Best Weapons in Monster Hunter World
Strictly speaking, there's no one "best weapon" in Monster Hunter World. It's hard to judge which one type of weapon rises above all thirteen others in the game, but there's no denying that there are a few which work no matter which situation you're in. For everything on why we believe the Dual Blades and Insect Glaive are the best weapons in the game, head over to our Monster Hunter World best weapons guide.
Monster Hunter World Best Co-Op Weapons
But which are the weapons you should be using if you're playing Monster Hunter World online with a few friends? Up to four people can take on a single monster at once in the game, and so we've outlined scenarios for teams of two, three, and four players just below:
A team of two - If it's just you and one other person venturing out into the wilds of Monster Hunter World, we'd recommend having one person go up close and personal with a slow, powerful weapon like the Charge Blade or Switch Axe, while the second player stands back and pelts the monster with ammo from a Bow or Bowgun.
A team of three - When you have two other people playing with you on a quest, then it's a good idea to have two people fighting a monster with close combat weapons, while the third player specializes in ranged attacks. Note that the two players using close combat weapons don't have to use slow weapons like the Charge Blade and Switch Axe, and can instead afford to use weapons like the Long Sword or Insect Glaive, since there's two of them pelting the monster with attacks.
A team of four - The biggest team possible in Monster Hunter World, there's a lot of combinations you could go with for the weapons of each of your teammates. However, we'd recommend having two players focus on close attacks, one player stand back with a weapon like the Bow or Bowgun, and the fourth player equip a Hunting Horn. Make sure the Hunting Horn is kitted out with some elemental damage like Poison or Fire, and your team will make short work of even the toughest monsters.
How to Unlock High Rank Weapons in Monster Hunter World
At the very right of the weapon upgrade tree at the Smithy in Monster Hunter World, you'll see the end of the upgrade tree, and the best levels that you can upgrade your weapons to await you there. But you'll also notice that a lot of the required items to craft the most powerful weapons upgrades in the game are absent, being listed as '???' instead.
To unlock these upgrades, and find out what the required materials are for crafting them, you'll have to firstly take down the Pink Rathian, in the story quest that follows after you successfully turn Zorah Magdaros back out to sea. After this, you gain the option to undertake High Rank Expeditions and quests, defeating powerful monsters like the Pink Rathian and Bazelgeuse.
Only once you get into the 7 and 8 Star Assignments through defeating the Pink Rathian will you be able to make significant progress towards the best weapon upgrades in Monster Hunter World. It's unfortunately a fair journey to get their, but the powerful weapons like the Dual Blades pictured above are well worth the effort.
This brings to a close our Monster Hunter World weapons guide, but you might want to continue ahead to our extensive armor guide, where we detail how you can unlock and upgrade new armor sets, or our guide on how to capture a monster.
This article may contain links to online retail stores. If you click on one and buy the product we may receive a small commission. For more information, go here.
