Monster Hunter World debuts the series on PS4, as a high-action, slightly western-feeling beauty

In a surprising turn early in Sony’s E3 2017 press conference, Sony unveiled a brand new, distinctly current-gen Monster Hunter for PS4, entitled Monster Hunter World. While the trailer doesn’t give too much away about the wider structure, or what exactly that ‘World’ part indicates – though a bit of camp fire cooking does appear at the end – it does indicate an interesting tune-up of the series' traditionally methodical action. 

With a slightly more western twang, Monster Hunter World doesn’t waste any time in getting into some serious action, with a faster, more frenetic vibe than the series' traditionally more methodical MO. After a bit of light stalking and a dash of Assassin’s Creed-style, crouching-in-a-bush fun, our giant-sworded hero creeps up on a huge T-Rex type creature, but then climbs to a higher vantage point and leaps on top of it to initiate a distinctly cinematic struggle.

From there on, it’s smash cuts of similar battles, dotted with slightly scripted-looking stand-out struggles, and a whole lot of running away from large monsters whilee leaping and vaulting over logs. Imagine the bit in Uncharted 2 where you have to run away from the truck, except with a giant, hulking lizard, and you’re pretty much there. 

That aside, there isn’t much to decipher, except that the game looks gorgeous, in a more-photorealistic-than-usual kind of way, and that it’s coming in 2018. More news as we get it. 

Make sure you check out our full E3 2017 schedule to stay tuned for all the details as they arrive, and check out our roundup of all the E3 2017 trailers.

David Houghton
Long-time GR+ writer Dave has been gaming with immense dedication ever since he failed dismally at some '80s arcade racer on a childhood day at the seaside (due to being too small to reach the controls without help). These days he's an enigmatic blend of beard-stroking narrative discussion and hard-hitting Psycho Crushers.
Latest in RPG
Deltarune
Undertale's Toby Fox teases arrival of Deltarune Chapters 3 and 4: PS5 testers are "slurping the last drops of soda from between the ice cubes now"
Ghost of Tsushima screenshot of Jin interacting with a fox
Assassin's Creed Shadows' Knowledge system sounds like it's tapping into what I loved most about Ghost of Tsushima
Baldur's Gate 3 pale vampire elf Astarion, a man with curly white hair and red eyes
The Baldur's Gate 3-arization of Dungeons & Dragons continues as Astarion gets 2 official mentions in the new source books
Visions of Mana
6 months after the Visions of Mana team was closed down the day after releasing its JRPG remake, one of its leads has started a new studio: "Management needs to protect creators"
Key art for Solasta 2.
A single D&D spell in Solasta 2's Steam Next Fest demo proved to me that not every RPG needs to be Baldur's Gate 3
Avowed
The rarest Avowed ending has only been seen by 0.2% of all the RPG's players, but to get it you'll have to commit to a path of death and destruction
Latest in News
Spider-Man: No Way Home
Daredevil: Born Again episode 1 references Spider-Man, and Marvel fans are excited about what it might mean for the future
The White Deer Inn in the Suikoden game
Fans are concerned Critical Role's Suikoden one-shot will be ruined by one player's "complete incompetence and blaming the game"
Minecraft key art showing Steve holding a pickaxe.
Minecraft modder uses "3 hours of my life that I'll never get back" to create a new mod that gives Steve Jack Black's voice
Daredevil: Born Again
Daredevil star Charlie Cox was behind one of the most emotional parts of Daredevil: Born Again's premiere: "That was a brilliant idea"
A marketing reveal image of the Hori Wireless Fighting Commander OCTA Pro
Hori's latest gamepad is up for pre-order, and it's nearly $100 cheaper than other pro controllers for PS5
Jon Bernthal in The Punisher
Daredevil fans have spotted a Punisher detail in the Born Again premiere, and Frank Castle is not going to be happy about it