Whenever a new installment of a series like Monster Hunter comes out, an age-old fan question usually rears its head: Which one is better? One way to determine this could be to look at the Metacritic ratings of the games in question. Monster Hunter World boats an impressive 90 average, whereas Monster Hunter Rise has only 88. That's far from a decisive victory, however, and only a small part of a much bigger picture.
There are certain things that mere numbers simply can't convey, not to mention the fact that patches and updates likely mean that both games are now pretty different from the ones that were originally reviewed by critics. The truth of the matter is that each one excels in certain areas, though that's not to say that one of them doesn't excel just a little more than the other.
Updated May 3rd, 2023, by Blaise Santi: When it comes to the most recent releases in the Monster Hunter series, these games have boasted a much longer lifespan than previous entries in the franchise’s long run. While Monster Hunter World received bonus content through the Iceborne DLC expansion, Monster Hunter Rise has recently been the recipient of numerous upgrades thanks to the Sunbreak expansion, which was released in the summer of 2022. With this new expansion comes new monsters, new locales, and an all-new range of difficulty hunts for players to overcome. As Capcom continues to update Monster Hunter Rise with even more content, it’d be worthwhile to again compare Monster Hunter Rise vs World.
Armor: World
With the addition of DLC expansions, there are plenty more Armor sets available in both Monster Hunter World and Monster Hunter Rise than in their base games. However, Monster Hunter World not only reinvented the series' armor mechanics but includes an additional feature missing from Rise that improves the overall experience.
Monster Hunter World features Alpha and Beta armor sets, which have slightly different skill distributions among the five armor pieces. Compared to Rise, it's much easier to accrue levels of the specific skill players want with only one piece of each respective Armor set rather than needing to mix and match.
Portability: Rise
Monster Hunter Rise was notably only available on the Nintendo Switch for several months before being ported to PC, while Monster Hunter World has only been available for PC, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4 since its release. Given Rise being made for the Switch, it makes a pretty easy candidate for the entry that will satisfy portably gamers the most.
However, the competition is surprisingly fierce, as video game fans can now access Monster Hunter World on Steam Deck. Nevertheless, the versatility and smaller size of the Nintendo Switch make Monster Hunter Rise a much easier choice for which one is best to play while on the go.
Expansions: World
Although Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak has the benefit of recency, meaning Capcom can continue to improve its content, Monster Hunter World: Iceborne was definitely the better expansion when it comes to satisfying longtime fans of the series. The DLC added many iconic monsters to the game's roster, including Brachydios, Nargacuga, and Tigrex.
Meanwhile, Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak's additional monsters are much more lackluster in comparison, despite some great returning picks like Seregios, Amatsu, and Gore Magala. However, Iceborne made the already-great Monster Hunter World more filled with iconic monsters, while Sunbreak isn't much of an improvement over the base game.
Load Times: Rise
The load times were the worst part about the launch of the PS4 version of Monster Hunter World. To the game's credit, they were greatly improved on the PS4 Pro and PS5, but they're still nowhere near as fast as the load times of Rise on the Switch.
In this respect, Rise is perhaps the best in the series so far. It’s actually kind of astounding, given the hardware's tendency to struggle with some multiplatform games. Monster Hunter Rise is like proof that the Switch still has plenty of life in it, even without a Pro version of its own.
Graphics: World
Monster Hunter Rise looks great on the Switch for what it is. If one squints enough, they might even be able to trick themselves into thinking that they are playing Monster Hunter World. They both share a lot of the same aesthetics, after all.
However, if one compares the two titles side by side, even with a base PS4, it’s clear that Monster Hunter World is still the graphically superior game. The difference is a lot less noticeable when comparing the PC ports of the two titles, but on console, at least, World is the clear winner.
Hub Town: Rise
To their credit, both games feature hub areas that are incredibly lively. However, Monster Hunter Rise’s hub village has just a bit more vibrancy and life to it. That's especially true of the Sunbreak expansion's Elgado, whose simplistic layout and beautiful scenery make for a standout hub town in the entire franchise.
Both games have fast travel to warp around town, but Monster Hunter World always takes longer due to the aforementioned poor loading times while playing on PlayStation. This issue becomes even more apparent when comparing it to Monster Hunter Rise, which loads noticeably faster on both Switch and PC.
Environments: World
Monster Hunter World isn't exactly an open-world game, but it’s not too far off. The game broke new ground in the way that it finally opened up zones so that they were no longer contained within their own separate loading areas. That's only a small part of what makes them great, though.
The areas found in Monster Hunter World are absolutely huge and brimming with monsters and secrets for players to find and experience. Monster Hunter Rise plays off of that idea as best it can with fairly big environments but struggles to compare to Monster Hunter World when all's said and done.
Pets: Rise
Palicos are the mainstay mascots of this franchise. However, Monster Hunter World introduces not one but two new pet species. The first is the mighty Palamute, which not only accompanies players into battle like the Palicos but can also be ridden around like a horse.
Not only that, but players also have eyes in the sky too, thanks to the introduction of Cohoots. Granted, one can’t literally control them as they survey the area, but having a birds-eye view of things offers a whole new dimension to proceedings; even if they weren't great, though, the more pets, the better.
Content: World
Even with Sunbreak looming large on the horizon, it's difficult to imagine that the upcoming expansion will come close to providing parity between Rise and World when it comes to the volume of content that each game has to offer. HowLongToBeat estimates that a main story run of the former clocks in at less than half a typical Monster Hunter: World playthrough, and that's just the tip of the iceberg.
Once Iceborn is taken into account, Monster Hunter: World players can expect at least 80 hours of main story content, with completionists looking at closer to 650 hours. By comparison, the main story of Rise only lasts about 20 hours, with the completionist time averaging out to 135. Sunbreak would therefore have to provide more than twice as much content as the base version of the game to compete, which seems pretty unlikely based on what's been revealed thus far.
Bugs: Rise
Monster Hunter World made the series more accessible in several ways. One of these was the guide bugs that helped track down monsters. Monster Hunter Rise eliminated that idea, always showing monsters on the map instead, thus doing away with the need for them entirely. They were replaced with another insect, though: The Wirebug.
The introduction of Wirebugs completely changes movement in Monster Hunter. As well as allowing each weapon type to access additional unique attacks, they also allow players to launch themselves in any direction. This can be done outside of combat to reach new heights, during combat to dodge attacks or land an aerial attack, or even after sustaining damage to move to safety.
Connectivity: World
With both games being greatly enhanced by their multiplayer elements, connectivity and the size of their respective player bases will likely be incredibly important for co-op enthusiasts. Unfortunately, however, even with Rise having been released fairly recently, it fails to implement Crossplay. Granted, the feature is also absent in World, but not quite to the same degree.
Due to the lack of a separate current-gen version, those playing World on console are able to team up with players on either the current or last-gen versions of their platform. The game is also one of several that is being given away to PS Plus subscribers who own a PS5, meaning that there are still plenty of people playing it. It also spent a few years on Xbox Game Pass, though was removed in June of 2021.
Mobility: Rise
One element of the Monster Hunter franchise that is commonly criticized by people new to the series is the lack of mobility. Some newer players state that the series features sluggish movement, making maneuvering through a fight difficult. Rise provides players with a multitude of new mobility options, however, both for traversing the game's world and during battle.
In addition to the aforementioned Wirebugs, the introduction of Palamutes (rideable canine companions) allows players to traverse maps at much quicker speeds. While this can save plenty of time when tracking monsters, it also allows players to move while performing actions that could once only be done while standing, such as sharpening one’s weapon.
Food: World
Both games have exquisite-looking food. However, while the various dango treats do look tasty in Monster Hunter Rise, Monster Hunter: World offers considerably more variety. Granted, this is perhaps more a case of style over substance, but it definitely helps out in the immersion department.
Everything just looks so good in the game to the point where players may well start to feel hungry just by looking at it. The fantastic variety of food in World even led to Capcom releasing a cookbook with Monster Hunter-inspired recipes and opening up a limited-time cafe in Japan.
Monsters: Rise
Both games have a lot of monsters in them. While Monster Hunter World had a healthy amount at the start and introduced more further down the line through DLC and updates though, Monster Hunter Rise just seemed to be far more jam-packed right from the get-go.
It also introduces eight new large monsters for players to contend with, with some real ringers out there like the monkey bat creature, Bishaten, or the yeti, Goss Harag. Plus, the Palamutes and Cohoots should also count along in this regard, along with some of the game's smaller monsters.
Variety: Rise
Every entry in the Monster Hunter series allows players to express themselves through gameplay, most notably through their choice of weapon. However, thanks to the introduction of Switch Skills, Rise provides players with even more new ways of expressing themselves than ever before.
These unique alternate moves are available for every weapon type, meaning that even two players using the same type of weapon have access to different strategies and maneuvers. Additionally, while all hunters are able to bring companions with them to their hunts, Rise allows a player to make the choice of bringing a more support-based Palico or a mobility-focused Palamute.
Verdict: Rise
Monster Hunter fans will undoubtedly be pleased by both titles as they each bring their own strengths to the table, especially once their respective DLC expansions are factored in. However, while Monster Hunter: World does look better and is far bigger in scope, Monster Hunter Rise is just a better-balanced game for newcomers and veterans alike.
Sure, it’s technically the smaller of the two experiences, but it still feels huge when compared to most of the other games out there. In fact, in far more ways than one, it really does feel like the true successor to World, even if it doesn't say Monster Hunter: World 2 on the title screen.
Monster Hunter Rise is available now on Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.