Elder Dragons are the most powerful monsters in the world of Monster Hunter . Any discussion about the strongest monster is inevitably dominated by Elders. The classification of Elder is marked by the ability to cause major damage to an ecosystem. However, there are a select few monsters with this level of influence that aren't actually Elder Drag

That doesn't mean Legends: Arceus will be like that, of course. Just this year, New Pokemon Snap has proved that Pokemon can still experiment with fantastic ways of constructing narratives through clever worldbuilding, but given the relative lack of innovation the Pokemon formula has had over the past 15 years or so, a full open world could have gone very wrong. The Wild Area was one of Gen 8’s biggest attempts at innovation, and it came with mixed results. A Monster Hunter Wilds tips|https://monsterwildlands.com/ Hunter-style game feels like open-world training wheels - but it also seems as if Pokemon can't be trusted to ride on its own just

These two were among the first batch of monsters introduced, and they're still among the strongest. The Rathian's acrobatic tail swipes hit fast and cover a wide radius, while the Rathalos breathes fireballs that leave burning trails behind them. Both of them gain extra attacks when they're hurt, and they have even stronger variants in the Gold Rathian and Silver Ratha

You can return to the Wild Area again and again, exploring more of it and actually being able to catch some critters, but it's all pointless . You know the real world, and the real story, exists beyond its confines. Yes, that part is snowy and that part is sandy, but it's all artificial. The Wild Area is like a zoo in the middle of a city. There aren't really lions in New York, or tapirs in Paris. They're just creatures in a self-contained, specific area. That isn't real ice in the polar bear enclosure, it's white painted rocks. That's all the Wild Area

Its deviant form, the Hellblade Glavenus, was even more hellish than its regular form, capable of dealing Blastblight. Additionally, Monster Hunter World: Iceborne featured another variant in the Acidic Glavenus, which is duller in color and lacks the fiery blaze of its regular form. Don't be fooled, though, as the Acidic Glavenus is a lot faster and more savage with its smaller t

A Monster Hunter structure means there will be a central hub for you to return to, and various Wild Area-esque zones for you to explore in turn - but unlike the Wild Area itself, you will be exploring them with purpose. It probably won't be to hunt down and slay a Garchomp, but the game looks set to offer a sense of direction in every open area it offers you. This is a halfway house between the rigid routes of the main game and the Pokemon Hyrule of everyone's dreams, but it's probably for the b

I’m not a huge fan of Breath of the Wild as a game . I am, however, a humongous fan of Breath of the Wild as a world that exists on the Nintendo Switch and could be filled with Pokemon. Pokemon Legends: Arceus was supposed to be the delivery of ‘Pokemon but Breath of the Wild’, but it now seems to be more like ‘Pokemon but Monster Hunter: Rise’. That’s disappointing - Breath of the Wild is much closer to my hypothetical perfect Pokemon game than Monster Hunter - but it might just be for the b

I’ve wanted an open-world Pokemon game for as long as I can remember - longer than I can even put into words. I remember playing the very first Assassin’s Creed and thinking ‘I hope they put Pokemon on the PlayStation one of these days’. What a fool I was. What an absolute buffoon of a 14-year-old. But that was what appealed to me more than any gameplay conventions - can I get it on my TV. With the Switch and the likes of Let’s Go and Sword & Shield, that’s now a reality, but the open-world hankering remains. Legends: Arceus , which is now going back on its open world promise , might be the perfect middle gro

It's hard to think of Pokemon in the style of Breath of the Wild in practicality. Sure, anyone can edit a screenshot to have Gyarados in a BOTW lake or Rapidash racing across the field, but isn't that just what the Wild Area is? The illusion of an open world, the type that would look good in screenshots, but without meaning or purpose. Without any heart or direction, BOTW would not be the same game. It gives you freedom to go wherever you want, but it also provides contours across the map to steer you towards towns, it makes sure each location is thematically linked, and you often need to hit multiple landmarks to secure the tools and ingredients to reach the next one. Even though I'm not the biggest fan of it, I have to admire the level of design on show here. It's not a level I think Pokemon can match, and that's before you introduce the much more complicated issue of where you put the Pokemon and how you offer freedom while ensuring players don't meet their doom at the feathers of an overpowered Hawlucha 40 minutes into the g