Monster Hunter Rise introduces plenty of new things in the series. One aspect is the new monsters. There are technically ten new ones in the game although there are caveats to that. Palamutes and Cohoots are new monsters but they are pets and not meant for hunting. If one were to count them in the rankings, Palamutes would win by a landslide. They are Palacute. Cohoots are pretty great too.

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On the actual hunting side of things, two of those ten monsters are smaller breeds meaning that the grand total of new large monsters in this game is eight. That would be the Bombadgy which looks like a squat, mutated raccoon. It would have been great to see a Great Bombadgy just like how the other small monster, Izuchi, got a Great form. More on that will be later expanded upon. Sticking to those creatures, let’s see which one is the coolest new addition to the team.   

8 Great Izuchi

Monster Hunter Rise gameplay screenshot

The Great Izuchi is obviously the larger form of the Izuchi monsters. This beast looks like a large, feathered raptor with its big distinct feature being that of its hooked tail. It is also super fast so dodging said tail and or its constant jumping barrages can be tricky. Thankfully it gets its hooked tail stuck in the ground often. It’s a cool gimmick but the design looks like so many other raptor-like creature that came before it. 

7 Magnamalo

Monster Hunter Rise gameplay screenshot

For a cover monster, there’s not a whole lot new about Magnamalo. It’s like a dragon lion beast with a crazy color scheme. It’s tough no doubt about that. The worst of its abilities is being able to warp around within what appears to be a void. It’s an otherworldly monstrosity but another design that looks like so many others out there making it feel less special even if the fight is different. 

6 Somnacanth

Monster Hunter Rise gameplay screenshot

This lizard creature was supposed to be heavily inspired by mermaids when the Capcom designers were creating it. This makes sense for many reasons. One, its purple fins make them look like flowing hair. Two, it can make players fall asleep, making this fighting one of the more annoying in the game. 

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That’s more of a siren thing but it still fits well enough. Three, real mermaids of ancient lore often had a lizard-like appearance. It’s a nicely inspired creature but also not one of the more fun fights in the game. 

5 Aknosom

Monster Hunter Rise gameplay screenshot

Aknosom looks mostly like a monstrously giant crane but with dinosaur DNA infused within its head. This thing is lightning fast and has an incredible reach thanks to its legs. Even though it is tall and has a lot of vertical space, the amount of horizontal physicality makes it hard to actually hit. It’s like a martial arts monster crane missing from the set of a future Kung Fu Panda film. It is one of the more unique designs in the game. 

4 Tetranadon

Monster Hunter Rise gameplay screenshot

The Tetranadon monster is nothing short of an amazingly horrifying design. It’s like a toad spliced a bit with a crocodile within its beak and jaws. The rest of it is all toad with its hugely bloated body. As big as this thing can get, it also has a lot of speed or at least is able to get around quickly thanks to its jumping power. One thing is for sure, one would not want to cross this monster in a real swamp which goes without saying for a lot of these creatures. 

3 Goss Harag

Monster Hunter Rise gameplay screenshot

This thing is incredible. It’s one of the more horrifying depictions of a yeti around making it look like a true monster what with its diseased-looking scaled limbs. It also looks lethal when it forms iced blades on said limbs along with its powerful ice breath. It may not be that hard to take down as its size isn’t the biggest, and is still easy enough to dodge, but it’s certainly a memorable fight and monster for the game and overall series. 

2 Rakna-Kadaki

Monster Hunter Rise gameplay screenshot

None of these creatures can ever be encountered in real life. Yetis probably aren’t real, dinosaurs are extinct, and the pure monsters are obviously fake. One can get the point with the rest.

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However, spiders are often a point of contention with many people be they big or small. That makes Rakna-Kadaki all the more horrifying as it equates more to real-life fears. Good luck keeping this one out of one’s nightmares. Its webs can make escaping this nightmare even harder. Just make sure to take a full party along when facing off against it.  

1 Bishaten

Monster Hunter Rise gameplay screenshot

Bishaten should have been the cover monster. This monkey, bat, lizard thing is amazing. From its speed, to its spinning bat wing blade attack, to its fascination with fruit, Bishaten has it all. There are so many memorable things about this fight/monster that make it outshine anything else in the game. There have been monkey monsters before in the series but nothing quite as fun and cool as this. Its tail is the real star that completes the whole set. 

NEXT: 10 Great Action RPGs To Play If You Like Monster Hunter: Rise