Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak, guide for new players

Monster Hunter Rise

We usually accompany the release of a new Monster Hunter with a small guide for newbies, explaining what it is, why to play it, what to expect. The Capcom series, however, has become increasingly popular in recent years and Monster Hunter Rise, the first truly new Monster Hunter to come out for Nintendo Switch after the World parenthesis on other platforms, has sold an impressive amount of copies. A figure that suggests an expansion towards an audience of new players. Sunbreak, however, is not a new Monster Hunter, but an expansion, and this means that it could also be the first for many owners of the Nintendo console.

Let's start over, then, but in a different perspective. In the next few lines we will explain what Sunbreak is and what you can expect from your first - or not - expansion: monsters, maps, gameplay news ... A guide with everything you need to know about Monster Hunter Rise : Sunbreak, in short. Happy reading!

What is Sunbreak?

Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak, the Espinas makes its debut in the west Let's start from the basics. Sunbreak is an expansion, that is, additional content that requires the possession and installation of Monster Hunter Rise on your Switch console. Without, in short, you cannot play Sunbreak, and for this reason Nintendo has prepared a package, both digital and physical, which includes the base game together with the expansion for those who have not yet purchased it. Before reviewing all the purchase options, it is worth dwelling on the meaning of "expansion": today we could talk about DLC, but usually an expansion is much more substantial and adds a lot of content to the base game in the form of monsters. , maps and weapons.

For us Westerners, Sunbreak is the second expansion to be released independently after Monster Hunter: World, which was called Iceborne. But for Capcom it is a tradition that dates back to the first Monster Hunter of many years ago, albeit only in Japan: the games localized later for the West, in fact, almost always included additional content, but for this they arrived with several months if not years of delay. Today, however, we can enjoy every new Monster Hunter simultaneously worldwide!

How to buy Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak

Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak, the Gore Magala comes directly from Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Nintendo offers several options for both new players and those who have already purchased Monster Hunter Rise. In addition to the aforementioned Monster Hunter Rise + Sunbreak Package, in fact, the expansion is available digitally and physically in different versions. The Standard Edition, digital only, would be the smooth one, which includes only the additional content and nothing more. The Deluxe Edition, also digital only, includes an additional Deluxe Kit, which is a stack of exclusive content that will be unlocked on June 30: Armor Style (Set) "Dragonblade", Armor Style (Set) "Hound C", Armor style (set) "Devotee F", Set of 4 gestures "Aim", Set of 3 poses "Combat pose", Hunter face paint "Elegant eye", Hairdo for hunter "Soft curls". As you may have guessed, these are only cosmetic content that won't give you any gameplay advantage, but will add some options for customizing your hunter.

The same content is included in the Monster Hunter Double Deluxe Pack Rise + Sunbreak, digital only, which also includes a Deluxe Kit filled with cosmetic content for the base game. We then have a physical Collector's Edition which includes, in addition to the expansion, also a pin, some stickers, the Deluxe Kit described above to be redeemed in the game, the Steelbook case and the Malzeno amiibo. On the occasion of the release of Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak, in fact, Nintendo has produced three new themed amiibo: Malzeno, Compagno "Malzeno Canyne" and Compagno "Malzeno Felyne". In addition to being posh, these amiibo unlock corresponding Armor Styles in the actual game. Finally, Nintendo has also produced a Sunbreak-branded Pro Controller for those who prefer common joypads to the unique Joy-Con of the hybrid console.

The Sunbreak campaign

Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak, Capcom Rebuilt the Monster Hunter 2 Jungle Once the June 30th update is downloaded, all Monster Hunter Rise owners will experience some changes in terms of gameplay and functionality, regardless of whether they bought and installed Sunbreak. In this case, the basic hunting mission 7 ★: Goddess of Thunder must first be completed to play the unreleased content. Only then will the new expansion campaign begin. If you are starting to play now, and want to hurry up to reach the additional content, Capcom has thought of you too. Starting from June 30th, in fact, it will be possible to download for free the black belt armor set and the defender weapons, which will allow you to complete the initial missions in ease.

Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak, of course there will be new weapons and armor The new campaign will take place a bit around the village of Kamura, a bit in the new overseas region to which the Elgado base belongs and which we will reach together with Fiorayne, a brave swordswoman who will ask for our help. In this new settlement we will meet many brand new characters, such as Admiral Galleus and Doctor Tadori. Our goal will be the usual: find out what troubles the monsters in the region and eliminate the most dangerous, such as the powerful elder dragon called Malzeno. This time around, however, there will be something new: we will face some single player hunts along with the characters of the story. Called Follower Collaboration Missions, these assignments will deepen our knowledge of the supporting characters, who will follow us in the hunt, behaving like real players as they wield their weapons and use specific skills. Who knows what the rewards will be ...

Maps and monsters

Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak, the Astalos made its debut in Monster Hunter Generations Sunbreak will take us to a new continent, where we will explore two large maps: the Citadel, which is completely new, and the Jungle, which is a modernized and redesigned version of a map dating back to Monster Hunter 2. Capcom has stated that the Citadel, with its variety of scenarios, is one of the largest and most complicated maps I have designed in all these years: the areas surround the ruins of an ancient castle, presided over by Malzeno, one of the so-called three lords. The other two are the Lunagaron and the Garangolm, and if their appearance reminds you of the monsters of Western folklore, you are on the right track: to design them, Capcom drew inspiration from vampires, werewolves and Frankenstein's monster respectively.

In addition to the three lords, we will have to deal with monsters old and new. Among the most important returns we have the Seregios and the Gore Magala: these two monsters made their debut in Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate, and now they come to haunt us in Sunbreak with their peculiar mechanics, namely Bleeding and Frenzy. >
Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak, the Malzeno of the Demo is much stronger than the normal one. The Espinas is a return that has the flavor of novelty. This monster, in fact, comes directly from Monster Hunter Frontier, an online spin-off never released in the West: for many hunters, therefore, it is a very poisonous monster. The Daimyo Hermitaur and the Shogun Ceneataur date back to the old Monster Hunters, as well as the Astalos, which was one of the four cover monsters in Monster Hunter Generations. In Sunbreak we will also find some subspecies of the monsters that made their debut in Monster Hunter Rise: so far Capcom has revealed the igneous Rakna-Kadaki, the bright Somnacanth, the lava Almudron and the blood Bishaten. We do not know how many other monsters await us in the final version of the expansion - even if the usual leaks have confirmed the presence of the Shagaru Magala - but to this bestiary must be added all the other monsters that we will face again in the Master Degree. What is that? Read on.

The Master Rank

Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak, the first sword ax to be made from Lunagaron parts If you're new to Monster Hunter, and maybe you have so far played only Rise, completely skipping the generation of Monster Hunter World and Iceborne, you may not know what Master Rank is. Of course it is an additional level of difficulty that follows the Low and High grade missions, and characterizes what we could define as the true endgame of each generation.

At the Master Rank - commonly called Rank G in Japan, or Master Rank in English - monsters become even more ferocious and aggressive, they possess new skills or combinations of attacks, and of course the carver gives away items of higher rarity, with which we will be able to make new weapons and armor. The latter are aesthetically different from those of Low and High degree: they are more sophisticated visually and you may want to collect them even just to change your look through the functionality of the Armor Style. In general, however, many passive abilities change, so you'll have to start over looking for the best combinations of pieces based on your style of play and the weapons you prefer.

New skills

Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak, the igneous Rakna-Kadaki is a new subspecies Sunbreak enhances the extraordinary movement and combat mechanics introduced by Monster Hunter Rise: the Thread Bug. In reality, the expansion does not go to retouch the control system or the particularities of the wire bug - except for the run on the wall, for which the Filoscatto is no longer needed - but perfects the combat system with the introduction of the Swap Skill Reversal, a feature that allows you to set two different "reversal rolls", one blue and one red, with your favorite swap skills. In combat, it will then be enough to press the corresponding key combination to switch from one reverse roll to the other, and thus alter the maneuvers at our disposal, perhaps while dodging a monster with the new dodging Swap technique. Swap Skill Reversal essentially duplicates the configurations at our disposal, making hunts even more fun and frantic ... but perhaps a little easier than the Monster Hunters of yesteryear.

Monster Hunter Rise : Sunbreak, it is possible to configure up to two inversion rolls In addition to this exciting novelty, Sunbreak implements new moves and silkworm attacks for all fourteen weapons, which have also been balanced and tweaked for the occasion: it is still early to say which ones are the best guns on this round, but as always the best guns are only the ones you are best with, so don't pay too much attention to the speedrunners on YouTube and above all think about having fun. In this sense, Capcom has introduced some nice improvements during the hunts. It is in particular the endemic fauna that has been expanded by the addition of creatures such as the Ragnonette, which will allow you to hurl monsters against the walls to stun them, and the Mutated Thread Bugs, which will temporarily enhance your characteristics. Other animals, such as Calamalancias and Crabs, are a new type of trap in which to lure monsters to deal more damage with a bit of strategy.

Post-launch updates

Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak, Capcom has released a calendar of first free updates Unlike Monster Hunter Rise, which has been a bit overlooked after two major monthly updates, Sunbreak should enjoy interesting and lasting post-launch support. Capcom has already released a provisional calendar that reveals the first of these completely free updates, scheduled for August: it will implement a new zone, called the Desolate Arena, in which we will face the Shining Nargacuga, but also some "monsters of rare species" and "monsters. of special species ", which are two incredibly vague definitions and we can't wait to find out what that means.

The next updates will arrive then in the fall, in the winter, and in the course of 2023. In addition to new monsters still shrouded in mystery, we speak of "powered monsters", and we can not help but think of the tempered monsters and arch-tempered that we hunted in the generation of Monster Hunter World. The Iceborne expansion, in fact, has enjoyed extraordinary support, full of new content, monsters that are very difficult to fight alone or in company, and many weapons and armor to manufacture. If Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak offers the same kind of post-launch support, then this generation could become our all-time favorite.

Have you noticed any errors?