Welcome to World Zero - Reviews for the hardcore gamer

If you’re familiar with Monster Hunter, the first new addition you’ll come across is the Felyne-run Kokoto Farm. While simple in nature, this addition is a godsend and it really makes me wonder how we got along without it. What the farm does is provide the player with his own private material collecting locale, complete with mining spots, a plantable garden, a fishing hole, and many other harvesting spots free of any aggressive foes so you can collect some of the game’s many essential resources without having to take up a life threatening quest. What makes this addition more than just a simple convenience is that you earn separate farming points awarded for any Zeni (Capcom’s infamous, career spanning fictitious currency) transactions in the nearby village. These points can be spent on numerous farm improvements and upgrades that really encourages the player to invest time and effort in developing their own personal farm into something they can really take pride in. Considering that the rewards for doing so are so vital, this makes the farm both a truly enjoyable and gratifying addition.

Freedom’s home base places you in the original Monster Hunter’s smaller, offline village as opposed to its much more sprawling online town. Fortunately, a few new NPCs were added to provide the player with the same benefits the online town gave you that the original village did not. The revamped village now contains new NPC vendors, one of which changes stock regularly, allowing you to grab some of the rare materials the original’s online only vendor gave you access to once a week. You are also given access to a re-creation of the Gathering Hall which was previously an online only area as well. Here, you can meet up with your friends for some ad hoc cooperative missions, take on the game’s guild quests, or try your hand at the new Treasure Hunting mini-game.

Treasure Hunting allows two players to connect locally and go on scavenger hunts which can result in some extremely rare material rewards if done quickly and efficiently. Even the original’s most sought after material, the Rathalos Plate, can be acquired here. This brings me to the much appreciated discovery that the original Monster Hunter’s most rare materials are slightly easier to acquire this time around, perhaps to make room for the new higher-end equipment that requires rare materials beyond the scale of the original’s. For those of you that went on hours upon hours of near endless plate runs, you’ll definitely appreciate the fact that chopping off (and carving up) a Rathalos tail will generally result in a much better outcome this time around.

Another massive difference in Freedom’s mechanics in contrast to its PS2 brethren is that the game is tailored to be a single player experience. While the ability to play ad hoc with your friends offline exists, it is more supplementary than anything. If you’re longing for an online Monster Hunter adventure, you’ll have to stick with the PS2 alternatives; the original, the upgraded G, or even the superior Monster Hunter 2 (which, as of now, hasn’t made it to these shores – but hopefully that will soon change). But don’t fret, it’s not a total loss. If you’re one of the many hunters who have logged in uncountable hours online, it’s a breathe of fresh air to take on Freedom’s quests at your own pace. Even better is that all the online only missions from both the original and G are available as a single player quests. This makes the experience for MH veterans even more refreshing when returning to these classic quests via a new angle. While Freedom looses its brilliant cooperative team dynamic, it becomes a completely new monster in its own right by offering the hunter a more personal and individually catered experience that makes up for the multiplayer loss.

Disappointingly, Monster Hunter received a bad rap from the majority of the mainstream gaming press when it was initially released. This is unfortunate because said reviews seemingly sway a good number of gamers’ opinions and, as a result, ultimately fuel Capcom’s reluctancy to bring unique games like this stateside. Despite Monster Hunter being excessively critically acclaimed everywhere but America (even winning the Tokyo Game Show's prestigious Game of the Year award), it was met with mediocre reviews. It came as no surprise to some, but Monster Hunter was GunValkyrie all over again.

Admittedly, Monster Hunter isn’t a series for everyone. It’s a series for those who were aware of gaming pre-Playstation, as it harkens back to a time where challenge was immanent and skill alone was required to progress. It’s extremely enjoyable and excessively gratifying to the point that it makes you consider the thought that contemporary gaming has taken a turn for the worse at some point down the road it has been traveling.

Thankfully, Monster Hunter has a large enough following to warrant expansions and sequels, thus allowing the import-challenged among us to finally get a hold of this new content. In many gamers’ eyes, myself included, Monster Hunter should be considered a modern day classic. In light of its numerous improvements and additions, Monster Hunter Freedom is definitely the version to pick up if you can forgive the absence of online play. Regardless of the PSP’s lack of a second analog stick, the crystal clear, widescreen format and the fact that you’re holding this massive, imaginative world literally containing a thousand hours of gameplay in the palm of your hand almost makes up for the fact that Capcom chose to release the game on an unaccommodating format. Almost.

Rating	The rating scale in detail
9.0	++ The game looks fantastic to the point where it even exceeds the original Playsation 2 version’s visuals. How the hell did they do that? - The PSP’s lack of proper anti-aliasing is apparent.
9.4	++ All the original classic tunes, sound effects, and insane “voice acting” are not only intact but are exceptionally enhanced via Dolby Digital 5.1. Providing you have a set of 5.1 headphones, or hook up your PSP to a proper receiver, the audio becomes so exact that you can actually pinpoint an enemy’s location with your eyes closed.
9.3	- The combat looses a little fluidity in the transition to a single-analog stick format. ++ Capcom made an impressive attempt at making the conversion as seamless as possible and the result is a more traditional system that still manages to be as visceral and intense as the original’s analog combat. ++ The new additions, especially the Kokoto Farm are outstanding.
9.5	++ Monster Hunter’s brilliant combination of over the top bad ass-itude and bizarre humor returns in full force. ++ Capcom cleaned up the menus and slightly updated the overall appearance of the game’s general presentation, my one and only complaint with the original’s exceptional art direction. - Monster Hunter arguably looses some of its larger than life atmosphere on the small screen.
9.5	++ Somehow contains even more content that the soul stealing original. - Being a primarily solo adventure might hinder veteran hunters.
9.3	Two years later, Monster Hunter still remains at the top of the stack.