I’ve been playing a lot of Monster Hunter Rise, and I’m far enough in that I’m getting a craving for a little more variety in my carves. But when I think about new creatures I’d most like to hunt, I hit a block.
There are dozens of big bosses in video games that seem like they’d be a great fit for the Monster Hunter franchise, like Bowser or Ultros. Even cinema has lots of great, big, scary beasts that seem ripe for hunting, like the Rancor or the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man. But none of them are quite right, and I’ve finally figured out why.
Monster Hunter Rise’s big blowout battles seem like they’re regular boss fights, like any other game has — but they’re fundamentally different. In fact, I dare to say they’re not boss fights at all.
As such, the only beast that will fit into the game’s fight structure is Pennywise the Clown, from Stephen King’s It.
In my research, I found that the recommendations on how to make a satisfying boss fight are pretty standardized, so I’ve simplified them into a handy five-part system: Big, Unique, Trapped, Test, and S-calation. Monster Hunter Rise throws most of these rules right into the monster dumpster.
Watch the video above to learn more about how Rise breaks all the rules of boss battles and why exactly that means I should get to wear Pennywise’s skin as fashionable clown armor.