Monster Hunter Rise Switch demo returning March 11 with new monster Magnamalo

The Monster Hunter Rise Switch demo will be updated and reopened this week, this time featuring the new flagship monster Magnamalo.

Capcom announced the second demo period during today's Monster Hunter digital showcase. The tutorial quests and hunting quests from the original demo are returning as well, but I suspect most players will be more interested in the new advanced-level hunt for Magnamalo. This is our first opportunity to get up-close with the so-called Wyvern of Malice, and it's the perfect time to learn the fight before we encounter it in the game proper. 

"If you already played the demo in January, you can update it to this new demo to add the Magnamalo quest," Capcom explains, "and to reset your remaining number of tries as well, so you can start afresh." 

Like the original demo, the Magnamalo demo will limit players to 30 quest attempts. However, there's another easy workaround for this: by deleting the demo save data from your Switch, you can reset your quest attempts without going through the Nintendo eShop or creating extra Switch accounts. The demo is a locked vertical slice with no bearing on the main game, so there's no reason not to wipe your save for more playtime. That said, if you spend time setting up an item wheel or other tailored inputs in the demo, you will lose those details when you reset your save, so keep that in mind. 

The demo kicks off in the evening on Thursday, March 11 (or early on March 12 if you're playing in Europe).

Last month, the Monster Hunter Rise team walked us through the nitty-gritty details and improvements we can expect from the full game, from Apex monsters to the Rampage. One big piece of news: a Monster Hunter Rise PC port is coming in early 2022.