Welcome to our review of Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin, a brand new Switch RPG set in the Monster Hunter world.
It is the night of a festival in Mahana, the central village of Hakolo Island. Rathalos all around the world are vanishing. You are the grandchild of Red, whose Monstie was Guardian Ratha, the revered protector of Hakolo Island. Upon setting out to gain experience as a Rider, you encounter Ena, a Wyverian girl who once knew Red. In order to protect the egg that Guardian Ratha has entrusted her with, you decide to leave the island together.
There are strange things happening everywhere. As you try to figure out what is causing these environmental abnormalities, the egg finally hatches. A flightless Rathalos with small wings bursts out of the egg. “When the wings unfurl, disaster will befall the land.” Your life will never be the same after your fateful encounter with the legendary Rathalos. Hatch, raise, and live alongside monsters as a Monster Rider in this fun-filled RPG set in the Monster Hunter universe.
Our epic tale begins with the mass disappearance of Rathalos from around the world. At the start of the story, you meet a Wyverian girl who knew your illustrious grandfather, Red. She has been entrusted with an egg, but what’s inside it? The fate of the world hangs in the balance as the exciting narrative about the Wings of Ruin unfolds.
Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin is an RPG so it is not your classic Monster Hunter game, it is more the turn-based kind rather than perfecting swinging massive blades. Imagine more of a Hawaii vibe, a classic RPG story, and a whole lot of specially named monsters that you want to tame!
Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin is a lot more fun and despite its very misleading Hawaii vibes, it is very hardcore in its fighting mechanics. Very strong Monsties all around and even within the first hour of the game, you are encountering a T-rex-like Monstie called an Anganath. It is so strong that the game even forces you to withdraw. It is really cool how the game leads you by the hand.
Another thing I found very cool is the ever-so-subtle rumble of the pro controller. I have had some less positive experiences with games on Switch, but this one just nails it perfectly. Ever so smooth when needs to be and slightly more invasive when it comes down to it.
I also really loved how the entire battle system is so easy. It is literally made more interesting by introducing a Rock-Paper-Scissors mechanic. There are ways to mount your buddy Monstie during battle, get your special attacks going and so much more. The menus are a little overwhelming at first, the first half of my gameplay I was really mostly just using the menus for crafting healing items. Items you will need in battle.
I say you need them in battle and you really do need them a lot. Most battles are against monsters with extensive energy and despite that, really, there is no need to worry this game will just drag on. Just learn to properly fight against Monsties, like how some are more vulnerable to speed attacks and others to power or Technical ones. Once you get the hang of that, you just learn how to change the flow of the fighting.
Your accompanying Monstie plays a big role in this, not just during the fighting, but everywhere, some can swim, others can jump, … The entire game is often a big badass puzzle for its most basic of mechanics and that is where the power lies of this game, Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin is just a really good RPG but with a higher stepping stone to really get to love it. Once you are past that, you will be in for the story of your career as a Monster Rider!
In conclusion, I love this game but did not fully start off this way. At first, I was overwhelmed by this and that and just everything thrown at me. I got to really learn how to play it thanks to the demo. A demo that I took for granted at first, but it turned out to be an amazing help. Learning to really fight suddenly made the most impressive of Monsties become a more than feasible fight. Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin really shines when you let it and give it the time it needs! There is more to the turmoil brewing on the island, do you have what it takes?
