The recently concluded The Game Awards 2020 featured more footage for the upcoming Monster Hunter Rise, announcing that the developers will be releasing a free demo in January 2021. Monster Hunter Rise is the next main entry in the franchise after Monster Hunter World recently completed its game updates with its final monster.
There is still little known about the upcoming game such as various new mechanics that will improve the tide of battle and navigation throughout its world. The new Palamute helpers will assist players in traveling the world easier and aid them in battling monsters.
The featured mechanic for the demo will be the wirebug, which lets players discover the map Spider-Man style and even allows for new slick moves with weapons. Together, these gameplay mechanics will possibly make a unique experience within the Monster Hunter series which is extremely exciting given how constant Capcom is willing to recreate or innovate the franchise.
The trailer shown during this year’s The Game Awards announced various new information about the game including new and returning monsters. However, the most significant detail unveiled during the show was that a free demo will be launched on the Nintendo Switch this January.
The trailer also mentions that the demo will only be available for a limited time, but it’s uncertain how long that availability period will linger. Demos for previous Monster Hunter games, like Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate, are still available for download from the Nintendo eShop until today, so this is somewhat a unique practice compared to precedents set by past games.
The demo also further fortifies the fact about contents in the massive Capcom leak that happened last month. The demo for Monster Hunter Rise is noted as both a January and March release in the leak, so it’s possible that this is associated with the demo being available for a limited time.
Along with the demo announcement, the trailer also featured what appeared like a new kind of quest in which players will utilize siege weapons such as cannons and ballista to defend a village from a “rampage.” A group of angry monsters is shown rushing towards the town, and it is still unknown if the goal is to repel or kill them.
Having to face a bunch of monsters at once using siege weapons is yet another exciting new addition to the series, and should this kind of quest be featured in the upcoming demo, it would give fans a glimpse of what’s about to come from this Monster Hunter entry.
While the restricted availability is a possible point of concern, especially given the recent limited releases of Nintendo, there is no certainty that many are looking forward to the Monster Hunter Rise demo next month.
