What is Monster Hunter really about?

[@jakobmonsterhunter]

Here's a short analysis on Monster Hunter's art direction, and what I believe the game's theme and message is. What I believe Monster Hunter can tell us about humanity and our role on planet Earth. MH's Story Analysis Video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/h3-tgIiPmLR_jLM 00:00 Intro 01:37 Core Design Philosophy of Monster Hunter 10:48 Monster Hunter is a Reflection of Humanity 24:00 We will Forever "Hunt Monsters"

[@juicypineapple6995]

Dude, there is no God. Grow up and get your shit together, lol.😂😂😂😂😂

[@Teostra_MF_White]

"short" Actually compared to every other MH analysis video this is pretty short lol

[@muro158]

i find it really hard explining to my friends what monster hunter really is about, because it really is just about hunting monsters

[@DeffoZappo]

No

[@TheXell]

Yes

[@TheSplendidSolitude]

Perhaps

[@marmyeater]

Aggressive Environmental Conservation. That's my go-to explanation.

[@Virjunior01]

Nah... I go with the text when you pop in a UMD for PSP... Enjoy the beauty of nature in a world filled with giant monsters. It's very much about nature, morphology, behaviors, and learning how to use them all to your advantage.

[@bigwee125]

Monster Hunter is about hunting monsters. Which led them to making the monsters worth hunting as much as possible, make them as real as they could, which got them to make entire detailed ecosystems in which the monsters live in and survive, which is why hunting monsters feels so fun. The monsters are worth hunting.

[@rattled6732]

Monster hunter is about making cool pants

[@GeneralIVAN894]

"fair and based opinion my fellow fashion hunter" From - The Fashion hunter that also likes to Farm

[@heyheythrowaway]

And if you've got fatalis armor it's literally the ARMOR OF GOD.

[@justascaredgreycat1869]

Every end-game hunters. Hours of choosing which pants make my girl fabulous.

[@Kojisama]

29:30 "They aren't mindless evil monsters, born from Evil to destroy Humanity" while showing 5 bullfango in one zone. I don't know man, I'm pretty sure Bullfango exists to make your life miserable lmao great video

[@AngelosRitter]

bullfango and Gen 1 raptors/Bugs just are made to bully you out of the game man

[@Jade_The_Peryton]

@@AngelosRitter Amen, raptors are easy to deal with, but the bulfango's and bugs.. they can rot in the deepest pits of super hell.

[@somepvpguy69]

​@@Jade_The_Peryton Personally, I think bullfango will just rule super hell, send them to ultra hell

[@Jade_The_Peryton]

@@somepvpguy69 Ahhh good point, actually why not make them rule both? They can guard the gates.

[@justascaredgreycat1869]

This is why It was the GOLDEN RULE to get rid of small monsters first before hunting.

[@nadlanod5897]

It's actual some sort of twisted metaphysical experiment to see if human desire can be manipulated. For example, it took me over 100 hunts to get a Rathalos Mantle when I needed 2 of them. But the very next one dropped a mantle when all I needed was a lash.

[@TheXell]

The Greed-Sensor in action.

[@vaethe_w]

Oh man I'm new to the series and just started farming for a rathalos mantle in master rank. This comment is dark tidings. Update: I got it.

[@TheXell]

In other news, I just had 10 Celestial Prints drop in a round of Steam Engine gacha. Guess I'm not gonna farm for a while.

[@Matthias129]

@@TheXell Ackchyually, it was known as the Desire Sensor from ye olden days of the PS2. (Hopefully the tongue in cheek nature is apparent here) It's good to know, though, that no matter what changes throughout the series, that is one thing that will always be present.

[@varnix1006]

​@@TheXellmy friend had 30 Celestial Prints and less than 20 Gourmet Vouchers. On the on the other hand, I have less than 10 Celestial Prints and more than 100 Gourmet Voucher. The game is unfair for both of us.

[@-siranzalot-]

I think Monster Hunters concept is actually very simple. Once you understand what a Hunter does in the real World (not the ones hunting for sports but the ones that are actually needed) there is not much more explaining to do. Identifying threats to a currently sustainable ecosystem (which the guild does and posts as contracts for us in the game) and then go and alleviate said ecosystem of that threat. The appeal of the games gameplay loop is - though very much taken to the extreme - pretty much the same as it is in real life: become a hunter who understands his craft (and weaponry), do as clean a job as possible by getting better at what you do through experience and, last but not least, don't waste any ressources.

[@Verbose_Mode]

One of the things I took away from Monster Hunter is that the "grind" is not canon. The monsters are numerous, humanity is small and mostly ignored, and occasionally _a_ monster becomes an issue. Hunter's roles are more like park rangers, and while requests come in they tend to only be granted because they are a greater danger to human life or, if not, not going to have a significant impact on the environment. I always got the implication from every game that not only is humanity to small to make a devastating impact, but that we are actively trying _not_ to, and to have the environment hum along as it should. Elder Dragons, however, are disruptive beyond what humans do, and World shows this. The mere presence of one where it's not usually at (and we don't hunt them in their homes often) to be results in all endemic wildlife fleeing, the very weather changing wildly. Yes, the environment and nature move on if things happen, but how is the already spartan life in the Elder's Recess supposed to recover under the scorching heat or searing winds from a Teostra or Kushala that wandered in attracted by Xeno'jiva's cocoon? Sure, Xeno'jiva is part of the "environment" in being apart from humans, but it's design and impact on the space around it implies it's not a part of the "environment" in the way of normal nature; it's an invasive species causing all hell to break loose. Finally: a lot of the "research" in World is nonsense, co course, but I think that has more to do with the writers not understanding ecological research and the need to have a video game. Pure fan speculation on my part but I like to think there's only like a dozen hunters or so to the hundreds of researchers and workers, and they do fin without us 90% of the time. We just get called in when they hit roadblocks of a Dodogama deciding seismometers are tasty or a Odogaron getting way to bold with survey teams.

[@jimjimson6208]

[LONG WINDED RAMBLING WARNING!!!] Hi, I'm up to the part where you talk about how Ceadeus is an exploration of how nature will ultimately reject human domination. Apologies if you address this later but I want to add some of my analyses, because I find myself somewhat disagreeing with your interpretation (and have the Monster Hunter Tri brainrot). Personally, I don't think that Ceadeus is meant to represent even a temporary 'triumph' over the disastrous power of nature. I think that rather than a reminder of the futility of trying to overcome nature, it is instead a rejection of the participation in this 'arms race' at all, for reasons I will explain. It is worth noting that (at least in the 'canon' confrontation), you don't actually defeat Ceadeus, you just break its horn and send it on its way. I think this is an important distinction to make, because the entire reason the earthquakes are happening is because Ceadeus is trying to break/grind away/whatever its painfully overgrown horn. This is relevant, I would posit, to the overall theming of Tri around humanity's relationship with the sea, as well as to Ceadeus' foil character, the Lagiacrus. The Lagiacrus is initially positioned as the culprit for the earthquake, and its design embodies popular cultural and historic perceptions of the sea: it's dark hue and lightning evoke deadly ocean stormfronts, and it has elements of both real and fictitious aquatic predators in it's crocodilian-esque jaw and serpentine body. Within the story it attacks the village fishermen and it appears that the people believe it to do so out of malice rather than necessity. I feel confident, then, in my claim that Lagiacrus is an idol of the collective human fear of the ocean, encompassing both animal and environmental threats. So, as you said, the hunter is sent to defeat this calamitous force of nature. And they do, they defeat this symbol of everything they struggle against, but to what end? The earthquakes go on. Nature rages unabated. Enter Ceadeus, whose design evokes a whale, and whose white hide calls to mind both the brightness of white sand and the unknowable alienness of the seafloor. It doesn't cause the earthquake out malice, or even conflict with humans, but rather complete ignorance and indifference to our suffering. That it is the true culprit of the earthquake makes me think that it is similarly the truth of the ocean that the writers and designers were trying to convey. When its horn is broken and its pain is eased, it simply leaves. It isn't a 'triumph' over nature, it is an accord, or at the very least a compromise, with nature. Ceadeus is the wholeness of the sea, all of its terrible destruction, but also its beauty, calm, and majesty; Lagiacrus is fractured, it is violence without the peace, hate without love. Lagiucrus is, in my opinion, a one sided human interpretation of the sea, while Ceadeus is the ultimate truth of it. The hunter kills Laguacrus. It cannot kill Ceadeus. Slaying the Lagiacrus achieves nothing, because the Lagiacrus itself represents the lie that the sea needs to be slain. Breaking horns of the Ceadeus and ending its suffering, to me at least, suggests an accord with the sea: give to the sea, and the sea gives back. Moga Village lives in harmony with the sea: it was never meant to dominate it. It's only when this truth is accepted that they can be freed from the earthquakes that threaten them. [END RAMBLING] Anyway, cool video. Sorry about any mistakes in my response, I wrote this at 3am. Peace.

[@hyper_sword8835]

Damn, that's a really well thought out take. I haven't even played tri but I feel compelled to agree

[@Markcus003]

ok that shit is really good and to add to your comment I really hate when we the hunter for some reason able to "kill" the embodiments of nature aka elder dragon, i dont mind the concept of defeating them but killing them is frantically impossible specially if we based this elder dragon on lore.

[@jeremiahtorrevillas4396]

@@Markcus003 in canon lore only wyverian can kill elder tier wyverns not axtual elders

[@johnlecavalier6199]

this is a really good analysis

[@TornaitSuperBird]

@@jeremiahtorrevillas4396Cite your sources. If you can't come up with one I'll just write off what you're saying as bullshit.

[@TheXell]

"So how do want to convey the the environmentalist message through gameplay?" "By making the player beat the shit out of a dragon with a giant hammer." "...GIVE THAT MAN A RAISE!"

[@forkedentry3214]

"No other game setting permits such an fantastical and exhilarating experience as being a normal human mortal facing a mythical creature." Just summed up why I love this series. This is also probably why I haven't put as many hours into GU and Sunbreak. The extremely flashy player moves and Frontier-esque style is just a vastly different experience because the players have become fantastical with their super speed and herculean special moves. I think Sunbreak only re-tips the mythical balance back towards the monsters when facing Risen elder dragons because they answer your increased mobility and counters with their own overwhelming speed and savagery.

[@tariqdanzig3621]

I totally agree, i missed having to deal with a monster's bullshit lmao. That being said, im gonna miss some if the abilities we had, especially the rocket on the gunlance and sns' shoryuken. :')

[@XxMissLadyBlissxX]

You don’t even kill ceadeus in MH3s village you break his horn which was overgrown and irritating him and he leaves. I think that that’s probably the best example of monster Hunter and the story it’s trying to tell.

[@thanamesswish6077]

I got into Monster Hunter right at the release of Generations, which admittedly, I didn't play too far into, as I was really confused and overwhelmed by all of the meals, weapons, armor, etc. but I loved the concept.. As someone that will binge a game, for a few weeks, and then not touch it for months, sometimes years, it took me a long time to "beat" MH World, and I'm almost done with Rise, but I am absolutely sold that it's one of, if not THE best series I've ever been introduced to.. This video will certainly help me sell the concept to friends of mine, as I was someone who explained it as "Imagine being a normal human that goes out and hunts dinosaurs with superpowers.. Oh, and you get a cat person to help you.." Which is a horrible way to try and get someone to want to try it out for themselves..

[@rydersharp7554]

This man did not have to go this hard on a monster hunter video but GODDAMN ITS SO GOOD

[@thmistrapillay1811]

For me Monster Hunter, despite the obvious theme of respecting nature, is about true utter fun *'Adventure'* Every aspect from the many beautiful and happy melodies & music, to the vibrant lively worlds, to the intriguing discovery of every new Monster and the constant getting-back-up-&-trying-again either solo or with a party of fun-loving teammates *_all_* screams *"Adventure"* It's honestly the most adventurous and happy feeling game I've ever played and it does it to a degree to which I'll always come back to the adventure

[@jacktheomnithere2127]

same, mate. one of the reasons why i picked up Monster Hunter is because of my love for dinosaurs; and i saw Velocidrome and Tigrex, to name 2 out of i-don't-remember-how-many monsters i've seen - that was before i was 14; i think i was 11 or 12 years old when i first saw them? and MH4U, my first game, allowed me t ointeract with the cretures i loved the most. what's this? Zamtrios? even better: i loved sharks a lot when i was small, and spiders too, so Nerscylla made it better still (i watched Return of the King *just for Shelob.* i was... what, 4 or 5? just to let you know). just meeting something you always wanted to see was an adventure in and of itself; like going to the zoo for the first time. now, my kind of adventure is getting to slay dragons, like in fairy tales. oh? i get to do it with other players? even better.

[@MossMothMyBeloved]

MH and Zelda are my go-to adventure games. There's nothing else like them

[@jacktheomnithere2127]

@@MossMothMyBeloved since you brought up other games, i'll add mine: Minecraft (though it could be better, with the righ monster), MediEvil, and Chronos: Before the Ashes.

[@AncientFataIis]

I've always had the perspective that in the current time where we are experiencing Monster Hunter games, humans aren't trying to dominate or tame nature. Up until World where there was an actual story around "humans driving nature/correcting it", I always felt like humans were just coexisting and participating. That unlike our world where we are constantly overcoming nature and transforming the world to our needs, humans have found their place in its cycle. Hunting even in our world isn't just about killing the animal to dominate nature, though it absolutely can be about that. Killing an animal for food, or space, or materials isn't going against nature; that is participating in its cycle. In Monster Hunter we hunt and kill these creature and they also consume people and destroy human settlements; it's gritty and ruthless but in spite of that the people we see who live in this world don't seem to be crushed by the fear of monsters or have strong hatred towards them. People genuinely seem to have respect for monsters and accept them as a normal part of living. There's no "we must eradicate all monsters for the good of humanity." This is a major part of what makes Monster Hunter so special to me and what really hooked me on the original game on PS2.

[@dinoseen3226]

TBH I sorta don't really think you can call them humans without that drive - irl we've made every threatening megafauna we've had problems with extinct. They're kinda psychologically different - irl it's only our dominance over and separation from nature that allows eco-conscious mindsets to form in the first place, because that ecology is no longer threatening us, safe in our civilisations. When a situation is life and death, humanity as a whole/on average is always going to look out for number one, even if that means making beautiful creatures extinct.

[@benkelly9464]

Stopped watching at 0:03

[@bl00dywelld0ne]

It said everything you need to know

[@OMGYOUARER8GHT]

Fun fact:Original producers of GEN 1 and 2 already left after Royzo took over,thats one of the reasons of the big style changing at Tri era There's no way to go back to original and gen 2 style anymore.

[@BadEnd98]

Tbh, I love the gen 3 era onward, I couldn't stand the jank of first and 2nd game, aesthetic and graphics too

[@AngelosRitter]

thats probably because you didnt start with gen 1 or 2 properly. playing them After you played a Gen that came After them, you will not feel the same hype and love as you had for your first truly played MH gen. @@BadEnd98

[@GrievyRZ]

What is even meant with "style"? Is it the gameplay, atmosphere, aesthetic or narrative. This is such a nothing argument.

[@justascaredgreycat1869]

I started with 2G and oh boy do I get crapped by Naga-chan.

[@OMGYOUARER8GHT]

@@GrievyRZ yeah the atmosphere,my English is crappy lol

[@ripp3rjak934]

Capcom took a gamble with this game. No ads and it went straight to video. It found its footing in the handheld scene then suddenly it blew up on consoles

[@pixelmaster9964]

“Hey I was thinking of getting into monster hunter and I know you play it a lot, what’s it about?” “The hubris of man” “…”

[@kurosan0079]

I think non-fans will never get it unless they actually experience it for themselves.

[@_highmonkey]

I just love how Fatalis the monster that shapes the world around him and rule all monsters looks so simple and generic and fights so simple too, just like humans

[@Rankaquion]

actually astalos, qurupeco and anjanath make sense, they're an extrapolation on piezoelectricity, which is why anjanath vibrates it's tail wing and astalos it's horn wing

[@memyselfishness]

They don't make sense evolutionarily. Why did they gain those powers? Not, how do they use them.

[@Rankaquion]

@@memyselfishness evolutionary speaking there is some sense, piezoelectricity is the most common in insects and birds

[@thechugg4372]

@@memyselfishness wdym why? You either use electricity to fuck up your airborne neighbour or you're dead that's literally evolution in a nutshell

[@memyselfishness]

@@thechugg4372 but they already had adaptations to use fire and there isn't a reasonable explanation of pressure for them to evolve to something so drastically different.

[@Rankaquion]

@@memyselfishnessthey didn't ever over from their regular counterpart they evolve from their base, both had nothing then evolved to something. In anjanath's case, the one from warmer climate got fire and the one from cold possibly due to high calorie intake that takes to sustain a flame sac got lightning

[@liquidmustard9925]

"monster hunter is about hunting monsters🗣️🔥🔥💅🌊🦅👹" PEAK

[@roughlyadequate6165]

for Crimson Qurupeco the process is called Piezoelectric discharge. The crystals on its wings contain structures that can store and release energy through an electromechanical interaction. A lead zirconate titanate crystal can hold the charge and will discharge when struck or deformed.

[@itsMoxichu]

Monster Hunter is about hunting monsters. Monster Hunter is also about making memories hunting said monsters with other hunters along the way.

[@TheDeathToaster]

One of my favorite parts about monster hunter is making the armor sets. Usually it was best to stick with one monsters full armor set especially in iceborne, but in the older games I used to stay up for hours mixing up different armors and talismans to make something unique and awesome.

[@justsomejojo]

Something I can't get out of my head since I started playing the series, is how the humans in the game act. It's gonna sound very strange I think. When I started (in Tri) I had an incredibly hard time. Like, almost timed out on Great Jaggi-hard time. It was my first action game proper because as a handicapped person I had been taught (not literally, but through constant experiences) that stuff that requires reaction time and dexterity (in this case, action games) would be impossible to ever play for me. But I loved the world of the game. I was always a fan of animals and monsters (spurred on by my grandfather's dinosaur encyclopedia and then Pokemon) and MH had some of the most fascinating creatures. And, more importantly to my point here, I loved Moga Village and its inhabitants. The few cutscenes and the way the NPCs move and interact felt incredibly cozy and welcoming. At one pivotal point, I remember I thought "I want to enjoy the world the way they do". I was incredibly frustrated at my own lack of skill and was miserable between all those happy NPCs. And I didn't get why they were so happy when there's earthquake-creating leviathans out there. I wanted that. I eventually got it, when I played all the way through MH3U with two friends and slowly became much MUCH better at the game. But I think that experience is also another facet of what Monster Hunter is about. In every MH game, the people in it are always pretty happy, confident and they are that even in the face of calamity. In 3, earthquakes coul destroy Moga at any time. In 4, Val Habar is built in the territory of an Elder Dragon. In Rise, there's a rampage going on that already destroyed the village before. I think MH, in a way, combines this narrative of the never ending battle with nature with a pretty motivational one - not usually through the actual narrative (the day when the power of friendship saves the day will be a sad one) but through the way the humans in this world deal with living at the bottom of the food chain and hare happy doing it.

[@kolelis2]

Thank you very much for this video. You made me realize how important Monster Hunter is for my personal beliefs and my direction as a writer. I am a hunter since MHF2 and I always believed that Monster Hunter is a unique experience. Unlike any other. I always found myself in these cruel hunting grounds. Through my achievements and failures, I saw a brief reflection of what I could be. Fear became courage in the face of the unknown, which I had to analyze its weaknesses, movements and behavior in order to face it directly. Relaxing moments became pretty important too, as the villages themselves were very welcoming and made me strive to improve myself and help everyone around me. Pokke village will always be my home. A place where I belong. As the monsters became more and more difficult I finally found a proof that I could be a hero somewhere. To fight against the odds of nature. However I was never alone in this journey. Other fellow hunters helped me achieve this goal. The others were heroes too. United Heroes, now forgotten by time itself. And thus legends were born and then perished, as the world had the need of heroes again. I grew up with Monster Hunter. Monster Hunter developed too in those years. So many titles. So many monsters. And I realize through your other videos, that you want to see Monster Hunter reach its true potential. I can't thank you enough for that. I really hope that Wilds will implement all of your hopes and ideas. Let me quote something from MHF1. ''Hmph. It seems you've set your sights on being a hunter. What is a hunter? A lonely soldier without a name. Someone with an eye for collecting. Someone chiseled with memories of victory with comrades. Everyone has one or two of those traits, but a hunter must have them all.'' -Kokoto Chief MHF1.

[@friendlyneighborhoodasdrobaloo]

I think this is one of the best written videos I've ever seen, and it is about a such a niche topic that I would have never expected to stumble upon something like this before actually doing so, it really demonstrates that monster hunter hides so much more than what it shows. I think I particularly love this because you managed to produce a terrific work basing it on ideas that I had on the series too but never really put up to debate. Congratulations, you're a great writer! I hope this reaches many people all around the globe

[@joe_the_zombie]

This is a dope video and all, but you know, I reckon the first couple seconds did a pretty darn good job explaining it

[@RyumaXtheXKing]

20:15 I love the old school cutscenes so much. The atmosphere is amazing and really sells the grounded fantasy. I need a movie like that.

[@justascaredgreycat1869]

Those are literally my whole childhood.

[@krysmphoenix6010]

Monster hunter is a game about you, a normal person, hunting fantastical monsters that represent the world. And they Monster Hunter doesn't have a story. I guess it almost doesn't need one. We know the story deep in our hearts. Its the story humanity has always known: survive and thrive.

[@TheFloodFourm]

I feel like they lost that “normal person” feeling in the 3rd gen. You’re anime protagonist now.

[@josefernandez4423]

I remember back when MHW was just released. I jump from streamer to streamer on twitch streaming it, and one of the common first impression of the monster hunter gameplay is that it's just a boss rush game like dark souls. but after a few hours into the game, when they understood that you craft armors and weapons from the parts you carved from the monsters you kill, it hit them, they understood, then they got hooked.

[@tortuah]

I would argue personally that Fatalis represents (through it's antithesis to humanity) humanity itself, or rather the ambition, greed, and selfishness inherent to the human condition. The buildup to Fatalis is the conquering of the very forces of nature through the elder dragons, with Fatalis representing the final aspect of nature to overcome, that being our own egocentric & domineering (and by extension destructive, both self and generally) desires as a species. Only after conquering nature can we conquer the self, and only by conquering/tempering the self can we create true utopia. (not fully satisfied with how this comment came out, might reword/reformat later)

[@tortuah]

Something something evangelion something something humans being the 18th angel

[@hekucarrasco2870]

I've always interpreted Fatalis as a representaion of humanity itself. I don't want to sound "humanity bad" but in our real world, there is none that hates humans more than humans themselves, and there is none that kills more human and destroy our civilization more than humans themselves. The world of monster hunter on the opposite is pretty idilic talking about human interaction. Everyone is happy, and there is no major inter-human conflict other than poachers that goes against the guild regulations afaik. In this sense, following the line of thought of Elder Dragons representing forces of nature and disasters, Fatalis would represent the hatred of humanity itself as a major and probably the biggest disaster (cuz of war and all that). I'm not an expert of japanese philosophy at all, but recently i found some kind of confirmation on their vision of "humanity evil side" as a force of disaster within Jujutsu Kaisen, with Mahito, someone that represented the worst emotions of humanity, being part (and even the leader) of a group that was supposed to represent forces of nature like volcanos and tsunamis. This would go hand in hand with MH second greatest topic right after hunting monsters, that is cooperation and community as humans, thus making Fatalis the perfect enemy to that.

[@zanthe_]

49:00 i feel like Fatalis is representative of War, humanity destroying itself.

[@zanthe_]

Base Fatalis - Offensive War Red Fatalis - War of Retaliation White Fatlais - Total War, maybe Holy War, MAYBE Nuclear War

[@Kormeister]

I was not expecting the theological angle, but it was very welcome & did add a lot to explain your view. The contrasts you note hit the nail on the head. Everything together makes for a compelling video!

[@anotherdinamicchannel]

I've always liked the way Monster Hunter normalizes the existence of monsters as normal animals, and how their design makes them memorable and charismatic. The Monsters are in fact a character within the saga.

[@Goji-Moji]

I was very pleasantly surprised with the last chunk of video-I didn’t think it was going there, but I think you’ve got it in essence. Kudos! It makes me very happy to see someone come to similar conclusions independently, makes me feel like what’s there is there and not just in my head, haha I’m a little sad I dragged (and am dragging) my feet so long on making a video talking about it to not beat you to the punch, but I still have lots and lots novel to talk about, and I hope when I release something you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed this. Congrats on a good video covering things people don’t talk about enough! -Goji

[@nervosen]

Stellar video! The comparisons of monsters to creatures in real life mythologies/legends is one I don't see often explored by the community at large. I wish more people were willing/able to see Monster Hunter as a mirror to our own world (even with it's numerous fantasy elements). You've really improved at getting your points across since the 'ol Dos video.

[@TornaitSuperBird]

Rise just made this comparison a lot more apparent, but it's always been there in the series.

[@lolimmune]

It's such an innocent question followed by such a simple yet deeply loaded answer. Beautiful

[@Malastrome]

I always tell my friends that it's about keeping nature in balance and preventing calamities in the environment. It's like hunting world-ending deers; You need to keep the population in check

[@ArdynSol]

Excellent video. It’s always crazy to me how deeply someone can think and different themes about their favorite media.

[@scarops]

Really excellent video. You articulated several ideas I've always had, but couldn't put into words. Thanks for that

[@SwaxGuy]

Man, I love proof of hero especially in world it was awesome the transition.

[@bensarmchuqui7164]

white fatalis theme is my favorite in the series, because i feel like im fighting god. now i realize that was the case

[@HiddenLink_clips]

I came here to learn about Monster Hunter. And i left with a lesson in life

[@raccoonman6251]

Wait you're telling me the filler part of this Fashion-Sim has lore?

[@thepcplayer3265]

followed you on twitter for about a year. I never realized you had a youtube channel. Great video dude, gonna have to check out the rest of your videos.

[@lapisfengari2428]

There's a lot that was said here that I couldn't exactly articulate about what I love about the series and especially about how it handles ecology in it, particularly the bit about it going from hunting stuff that feels like stuff that either exists or once existed on Earth to eventually progressing to hunting the embodiment of natural concepts like natural disasters Edit: One thing i forgot to mention is I feel like this is a huge part of why other monster hunting games have repeatedly failed to capture the same magic that Monster Hunter does, all of them just jump straight into the deep end with the fantastical elements as opposed to building up to them like Monster Hunter

[@dinoseen3226]

Tbh I think Monster Hunter is also just good at tricking laymen into thinking many phenomena make realistic sense, when if you look into it it really doesn't and is just magic with pretend science on top a lot of the time.

[@Alureon25]

This is a really neat perspective and a very well-made video. MH can be about whatever the player wishes, whether it be hunting, decorating, or researching the world and its creatures, which is why it's so accessible. Thanks for making this!

[@ИльяРодин-щ9в]

I love you. Hello from russia btw 1. I play since freedom 2 for about 10 years, tri is my fav monster for all the reasons in this video. I played tri for the first time 2 years ago. But my favorite moment in monster hunter is after a long struggle of beating alatreon. I am referring to a dialogue with a seeker about human’s doomed fate 2. White fatalis is fought in tower - the representation of the Tower of Babel. This tower was built by people who spoke one language and tried to reach God. God punished them by giving them different languages. The tower in monster hunter also failed. And white fatalis is fought only there. You can hear some sort of language in its theme but you are unlikely to understand it. Because it is russian. BUT only a small part of it. There are words «…ты бессмертный сын богов» translating from russian as «you are the immortal son of gods». The thing is that these words are in the middle of the sentence, there are words before it. But those are not russian. I can hear something familiar, but it is not russian. Likely a mix of different languages including russian

[@trombonegamer14]

You love the kirin armor set so much lol

[@empiar5481]

In his defense the kirin set is designed to be loved

[@dontaco5317]

I just want to say that 23:00 is SUCH a cool shot that you got together with the background music, I would say you encapsulated perfectly the way I fell about the series

[@sarbe6625]

This video gives words to something I have been trying to find the words for to say for years now. Absolutely amazing work, I loved every minute of it.

[@RevengeRaptorREAL]

Amazing video my man. It's refreshing to see someone put into words what I've taken from the MH franchise myself.

[@peaberry9413]

Holy, consider me a new subscriber. This is the stuff I LOVE to talk about but my friends don't see it this way. Thank you so much for giving me more to think and talk about!

[@baitposter]

4:40 I would contend that the humans are still magical in their superhuman status

[@codyhastings115]

Late to the video but honestly goated video. You did an amazing job well done.

[@Terminarch]

Mastery. You start out struggling with clunky controls and unintuitive combo trees. You squeeze out a few early victories and get a feel for the basics. Then you meet the flagship monster and realize there is a lot more to the game than mashing a couple buttons. Few hours later you take out a tougher foe, something that gave you trouble, maybe a Rathian. Then you need more Rathian parts for a new thing you want. But that fight was brutal! It took half an hour and you were on the last cart sweating bullets... but you also noticed quite a few untapped opportunities in that hunt. You KNOW you can do better. And if you're gonna get that cool new thing sometime this week, it's time to get good. Monster Hunter is one of those games that people don't understand until it "clicks" for them in real time. I remember the frustration. I remember walking into an utterly overwhelming fight (PSP Rathalos) for the dozenth time not even sure wtf I'm supposed to do. I remember finally getting good enough at Diablos that I could run out of time instead of lives. I remember that mad rush of possibilities from accidentally i-framing a fireball and learning an entirely new avenue of opportunities. I remember starting a difficult quest with the intention not to win but to *learn as much as possible* then rofl-stomping that bastard later with my trusty SnS. Monster Hunter taught me *intentional mastery*: The ability to decipher what you need to learn / skill-up to progress and knowing how to accomplish that in tangible segments. This weirdly grounded franchise with its weirdly bonkers mechanics is unironically responsible for a great deal of my personal success.

[@nogoaway7540]

This is really solid. I expected a typical video essay but you raised some really solid points comparing the typical flow of a monster hunter game, with the early game monsters being relatively simple and mundane, to the later monsters being representative of vaster, unknowable creative forces, and finally the judgment, or test of Fatalis, as man's struggle to assert himself against nature. Man wants to play god, man finds that nature, and eventually, the primordial creative forces, push back unless he proves himself worthy. The evidence of failed civilizations lingering in the wild show that this is a trial has faced time and time again, and the recurrence of fatalis time and time again, as a godlike being with a hatred of man as a final test, is your chance to prove this generation of hunters worthy. You're on to something, there's something distinctly demonic and unsettling about his design for being a fairly normal looking black dragon, who's carapace is made from all of those who've previously failed his test. It looks very much like the old wyrms and dragons of older medieval texts, reminiscent of the dragon face by St. George. Excellent video, this was a nice listen.

[@icccee]

That's my favorite answer to that question "it's about hunting monsters" the look they always give you is priceless lmao

[@thedazzlingape2006]

what I liked about og monster hunter was that it felt like it was you vs the unsurpassable odds and even tho ultimatly futile, you were one of the humans, who in this hopeless world adapted and held your own!

[@socriabbas454]

The way i try to convince my friends is that, yes basically monster hunter is just hunting monsters but the rewards you get makes the hunt worth while and each hunt makes you stronger and better as a hunter. So if you hunted a strong monster, you are rewarded with a gear that allows you to fight even stronger monsters.

[@ShadowMistNinja]

came in not expecting much but was pleasantly surprised. great video and a trip down memory lane with OG monster hunter. used to listen to in game music from options menu all the time. Also never thought about how similar games were to our own old world.

[@user-yw9mw9hv8o]

Love the montage at 22:10

[@j.s.t.6515]

12:24 holy f... That's the monster hunter tone the series just yeeted out of existence for no reason at all. Can we have that again please, like all the time 🥹. Someone make that game please

[@RouxBeard]

Another banger essay as usual! 🔥 Thanks for the great breakdown

[@MaddyWaves96]

Y'know, at the beginning, I only tried out Monster Hunter because it had dinosaurs (I'm a huge dinosaur nerd, so you can't really go wrong with that) - then, the gameplay actually managed to get me hooked, but what ultimately made me stay and truly cemented my love for the series was the "hidden message" in the games. MH does a great job of exploring the themes of humanity, nature, and the relationship between the two, most of which happens in a non-verbal way. It's something that's hard to describe to someone who doesn't know the games, but I think you did a better job of putting it into words than I ever could have. I particularly like your take on the theme of human overconfidence. It's been said that the hunts are regulated to ensure no species of monster ever goes extinct (I think they even integrated this into the gameplay in MH Dos), so I always relied on these "legal regulations" by the Guild as justification. However, I see now that I might have been a little too complacent in that - after all, the members of the Guild themselves are also just people, and people in general aren't that great at acknowledging their shortcomings. Anyway, thank you for this video! Much love. 💖

[@CalixerGC]

Amazing video. As a long time fan, if someone asks me "What is monster hunter about?" I'll be sure to send them this video.

[@jazzking348]

Really enjoyed the video. Not too sure on the theological bits, but I really found the idea that the monsters we see are all that exist pretty neat. Never thought about it like that. Also didn't play gen 1 but the music and the way you explained it really helped hammer home the point that Monster Hunter even from back then was about an ecosystem. I always thought it was just fighting cool monsters up until 4U and World. Again, great video!

[@evankurasu3190]

That opening statement x follow-up earned my subscription. Take it

[@josephthomas3766]

How does thunder element in Crimson Q ,Fulgur A ,and Astalos not make sense. It's clear these creatures use piezoelectricity. Crimson and Astalos are more obvious as their animations show parts engaging some form of friction to generate an electrical charge. Crimson striking it's and Astalos twitching its wings and horn to generate an electric charge.Fulgur does this by force he generates while moving or fighting. You answer your own question when you brought up Tobi-kadachi. Over great video this just really got to me.

[@YouMystMe]

This is the best Monster Hunter video I have ever watched! I love your stuff dude, happy hunting!

[@pyrogriffin]

Bravo! I loved this analysis of the world!

[@LordShonji]

Astalos' thunder is actually kinda neat, that constant moving each of the breakable body parts do is generating electricity similar to how our muscles makes small amounts of electricity to move via neurons. So that halbert crest you always see on his head gyrating back and forth is it generating it via constant movement

[@Dave_Chrome]

Your content make up what are probably my favorite MH videos, period. I've not seen anyone else talk about this series in a more thoughtful way, and I hope you keep fleshing out your ideas like this whenever you get them!

[@Spike2276]

I think that Fatalis (the black one) is not representative of God or nature, but instead of death. It's literally in it's name, it is fatal, it is final. And it's not just the death of a person, but the death of cultures and civilizations, which is why we face it in Schrade and why the story of Schrade exists. In fighting the black Fatalis we conquer that which could end us as a people. Whch is also why i think they chose to make Fatalis immortal with it's eternal regenaration/reincarnation through those that wear it's armor. There is no such thing as ending the end. And then they evolved the process to not just have you defy natural death, but it's ultimate devilish/divine incarnations: the Devil in Crimson Fatalis, and God in White Fatalis.

[@pikminjake]

Fatalis is called Miraboreasu in Japanese version. Its name has “Miracle” in it. Neither of these matter when the game itself says that the name refers to a phenomenon.

[@azure4622]

I don't think nature and death are mutually exclusive

[@Spike2276]

@@pikminjake Well, in game lore states that Fatalis is the event which wiped out the nation of Schrade, but outside of the game (and i believe that in Iceborne this was more or less made canon with Fatalis' appearance in the storyline) we know that the "event" was the black dragon we fight. And since they are one and the same i think it's fair to say that the name Fatalis in reference to the dragon itself.

[@Spike2276]

@@azure4622 They aren't mutually exclusive at all, death is one of the facets that make up nature. I just think that Fatalis embodies that specific facet of it instead of embodying the divine.

[@FenrisRM]

god i love the kushala theme so much, brings me back to the first time i huddled in the middle of the night in front of my PSP

[@fulltimeslackerii8229]

It’s funny that they say “we’re not just gonna make changes randomly to make the game easier” despite doing that for world and rise in many many ways lol

[@boshwa20]

Also for charging money for layered armor for "better access"

[@justascaredgreycat1869]

@@boshwa20I mean, you don't need to buy them? It changes nothing with gameplay.

[@boshwa20]

@@justascaredgreycat1869 Event quest rewards with stickers and gestures instead of the stuff stuck behind the shop says otherwise

[@justascaredgreycat1869]

@@boshwa20 Still changes nothing? And all the good layered armors are from FREE event quests anyway. I don’t even know what are you blabbering about anymore.

[@boshwa20]

@@justascaredgreycat1869 There has been nothing but an objective escalation World Iceborne had paid gestures and stickers Rise had paid layered armors Sunbreak has paid layered weapons There is a clear escalation, and what else is left after this? Monsters and actual gear

[@viviteng2419]

Very meaningful insights. Now it's mine and I am going to show off to my friends

[@winterfreyja5494]

You mention how they're hunting damaging the ecosystem being acknowledged would be something you'd like But I'd argue they do exactly that in Monster Hunter World. Ecosystem gets more and more and unstable the more monsters you hunt. The more Nergigante you slay, the more elder dragons there are. You stop Zora Magdaros from detonating in the ever-stream? You xeno-jiiva and Shara Ishvalda, as well as the other powerful dragons there going unharmed. In the hand they say that the blast would spread to every part of the new world, through the ever stream But I seriously don't think that the people in Monster Hunter have the ability to truly estimate that. I'm sure it's impacts would be felt, But if you can take Zora just a bit offshore, And it doesn't even impact the shore nearby, I seriously feel like it would not have been as apocalyptic as they tried to make it sound. In fact Arguably, It would kill off a lot of those extremely powerful monsters which would destabilize any ecosystem they went to, and leave them to become the fertilizer for a new one. In reality I think that's what the rotten veil is, a huge amount of monsters being killed off in a short period of time, causing many more monsters to move into take the place, many of which ended up being killed off as well by stronger predators, There's too much to be consumed before things start a rot, And I think That's where the rotten veil comes from. Another example is Shara Ishvalda. It's called an Old Ever Wyrm, suggested to be something that has always been as far as humanity knows. I don't know exactly what sort of all its song plays in controlling the ecosystem, but considering the fact it almost all of the extremely powerful variance of monsters like raging brachydios, safi-jiiva, furious rajang or just rajang in general, silver rathian or gold rathalos, brute ti-grex, all are things which appear after it's killed. It definitely had one.

[@SkyTowerKurogane]

Great video. I really enjoyed listening. I don't agree with a lot of your interpretations, but it was a very enjoyable time.

[@RayA2ooreq]

48:15 to be fair, Fatalis was never meant to be the actual end of MHW. They only added him because the community wants him.

[@U-235cereal]

Monster hunter is about “yes i want to steal that gorrila’s arms and wear them like a skinsuit”

[@wichiewamirez5599]

After watching all those ratatoskr streams and feeing I know how you think about things alittle more, I really see the work and thought that went into this video. Good job dude. I wish I could like it more than once.

[@blatblan]

Epi tome

[@careca1112]

Monster hunter its not about the finish line its about hunting monsters.

[@Herogaze]

when I've told people what its about, I've said its really as simple as it sounds. you just run around hunting big monsters and you kill or capture them. its really that simple.

[@nikitasavenged9374]

Fantastic video, friend! Especially liked the conclusion segment. Keep up the good job!

[@froststatecansir1180]

Simple. It's the proof of a hero like the main theme is named.

[@BlueMagicite]

Nice, the way you described the elder dragons as completely independent lifeforms strikes pretty similar to Evangelion's description of Angels. I find that pretty amazing considering both MH and Evangelion pull on so much tokukatsu media. Tokukatsus in particular design their monsters of the week as playful/abstracted takes on common problems people face, usually framed in some way with a B-plot that's happening side-by-side with the monster action

[@L0rdR3van]

Wanna counteract all these comments that say it's not that deep because I really really appreciate you going this deep into a seemingly shallow subject matter. I loved it

[@IT-kone]

Kushala Daora has the powers and elements of an Asian Flood Dragon, but the outlook of a slender western dragon. Lao Shan Lung on the otherhand is pretty much an asian Earth Dragon, now that I think about it.

[@zule10000]

I think monster ecology and the struggle to maintain balance with living forces of nature in a 'bonepunk' setting are most of the flairs I like to describe the game with to newcomers. The thirst to know more tends to hook people well enough from there with a few examples to help.

[@mariejuku]

that cosplay in the beginning is incredible. everyone looks incredible and spectacular and stunning and amazing. i hope they know it. they deserve to know it. :)

[@tilbertado]

Hunting monsters it’s literally in the name of

[@calebfoley5872]

Thunder tends to be a really useful element in some of the games, and in japanese culture thunder is very strongly related to divinity.

[@NoImNotPedro]

I'm loving the video so far! Your analysis is excelent, it is always incredible the ammount of thought you put into this series. I have never been great with analysis, but in many of your videos you have helped me think/dissect why i love these games, so thank you! Have a great day, Jakob!

[@aaronrattley8580]

It is the gameplay loop that keeps me locked in tho