It’s Capcom’s best-selling title of all time, but come the 6th of September 2019, the hunting will get real with the release of Monster Hunter World: Iceborne!
Announced in a special Spring update broadcast, Monster Hunter World: Iceborne sets the stage for a new storyline, new monsters, new gameplay options and much, much more. This massive expansion will rival the gameplay volumes of the original release when it drops on Xbox One and PS4 come September 6th, with a PC launch occurring a little later down the line in the Winter.
As you would expect from the title, Monster Hunter World: Iceborne brings about a brand new icy setting, more monsters than previous, and further gameplay options. Building on every aspect of Monster Hunter: World, Iceborne will start with an all-new story that picks up after the main game and whisks hunters away to a newly discovered chilly locale called Hoarfrost Reach. The snow-covered terrain offers an ecosystem that contrasts areas in the main game and progressively expands with the story, as it offers the largest region in the game so far, presenting hunters a wealth of new content with even more quests to face than in the original release.
Iceborne will also be found to introduce a new higher difficulty Master Rank, a brand-new quest tier that makes new and existing monsters more ferocious than ever. The extreme cold is also the setting for brand new frigid climate foes such as the horned brute wyvern Banbaro and the snow-buried Beotodus. These interweave with returning fan favourites such as the swift-attacking Nargacuga who adds some dangerous new tricks to his trademark move set as he joins the Monster Hunter: World line-up. Leading the way in Iceborne though is the mysterious new flagship monster Velkhana, an elder dragon with powerful ice attacks that is a pervasive threat in the new story.
In order to ensure you are ready to face the expansion’s fierce hunts, several new gameplay options have been added to Monster Hunter World in order to broaden the player’s combat repertoire, creating opportunities for exciting new hunting strategies; for instance, the Slinger can now be used while the main weapon is drawn, regardless of weapon type. New features have also been added for the Slinger such as the Clutch Claw used to grapple onto monsters with more direct control and the Flinch Shot which unloads Slinger ammo to stun monsters. Each of the 14 weapon types will also get new combos and new elements, offering additional depth to master in combat.
It goes without saying that the brilliant Monster Hunter: World base game is required for access to Iceborne, yet while players will be able to enjoy some of the gameplay options such as the Slinger and weapon updates right away, they must have completed the main story through Hunter Rank 16 in order to access the new Iceborne story and quests.
Should you be interested then there are several ways of getting involved, with pre-orders for new or returning players on console either digitally or at participating retailers, and a special Yukumo Series layered armour set bonus exclusively available for these early bird customers. For existing owners of the game, the Monster Hunter World: Iceborne expansion is available as digital DLC for $39.99 / €39.99, while a Digital Deluxe version including both the expansion and a Monster Hunter World: Iceborne Deluxe Kit DLC of cosmetic items will be $49.99 / €49.99.
For completely green newcomers, the Monster Hunter World: Iceborne Master Edition containing both the main game and the Iceborne expansion is available to preorder at retail and will be available for purchase digitally at launch for $59.99 / €59.99.
But it’s not just Iceborne which is the big news and for those who haven’t yet tried out Monster Hunter: World, a free trial is available on PS4 until May 20th 2019. This will provide plenty of opportunities to try out a variety of quests, craft and upgrade equipment, and join in on the game’s trademark cooperative multiplayer action with existing owners of the game. Any saved progress transfers over to the main game, so new players are encouraged to start their hunting journey before the expansion’s release.
And further still, existing Monster Hunter: World players on console, will see the last new content update for the base game celebrating the aggressive flagship monster Nergigante who will finally appear in the formidable Arch-Tempered form for a limited time from May 11th. Defeating this ultimate challenge will yield the powerful Nergigante Îł (gamma) armour.
Want to know more about Iceborne? You’ll need to wait until E3 as that is when Capcom will be divulging further info. The trailers below will sort you out for now though.
