Out Of Over 100 Monsters... Here's 10 I Want To See Return
With the release of the Nintendo Switch’s exclusive Monster Hunter Rise less than 2 months away as of the time of writing this article and with the demo for it ending on the 1st of February, making us expect the release of a brand new trailer soon.
With this running through my mind, I wonder to myself every day “what monsters are coming back from previous games?” and I am more than sure that millions of other hunters out there are thinking the same… Is Nargacuga coming back? There’s a snow region so maybe Gammoth has a chance or they might think: “Hey, I know that skeleton, maybe this monster could return”. I can assure you that these thoughts cross my mind every day that we creep closer to the release of the teeth sinking, wyvern riding monster mash.
So here are my Top 10 Monsters to return in Monster Hunter Rise and remember, my favorite picks will probably differ from yours so don’t sharpen your longswords in my direction just yet, Monster Hunter has dozens upon dozens of monsters, all varying from different shapes and sizes and everyone’s personal list will surely be different. So without further ado, put on your helmets, and let’s head out on this expedition.
10. Velkhana
Starting off the list we have the most recent flagship herself, the self-appointed regal ice queen herself, Velkhana. Introduced in Monster Hunter World Iceborne, Velkhana has a wonderful combination of both a beautiful design and an excellent fight. Making it a tense fight for both Blade masters and Gunners.
One of my favourite features about Velkhana is the ice armour she builds on herself which has a similar mechanic to another monster later down the list. When she has her armour on, the hunter should make it their priority to break off her armour on the different sections of her body, doing so will cause Velkhana to topple over, leaving her open for those Juicy AEDs (Charge Blade main here). however, taking too long to do so will allow her to absolutely cover the arena in ice, making it very to even get to her, this is exacerbated in her Arch-Tempered version.
This is the mechanic that puts her in 10th place as I just love the micromanaging you have to do when fighting, as it never leaves the fight feeling boring and since there’s an icy map in Monster Hunter Rise, what great chance to bring her back.
9. Chameleos
In 9th place, we have a potentially controversial pick as Chameleos tends to get a bad rap due to his somewhat annoying mechanics, essentially, he straight up just steals your items and deals poison attacks. And while I do understand that this can frustrating, Chameleons just has such an awesome design in my opinion and was severely missed by me when he was not in Monster Hunter World as he is usually a part of the trio that consists of Teostra and Kushala Daora (the former being okay and the latter being the worst nightmare to ever haunt me).
But I digress, Chameleos just deserves better in my opinion, having an awesome design and the ability to turn straight up INVISIBLE, not like the Predator’s kind of see-through stuff but straight up vanishes, eerily watches you struggle to find him and then surprises you by whacking you with his tongue. And if you look carefully, it's even hidden in another image. Monster Hunter Rise could have a returning gem if they decide to put this master of disguise in the game. (Please Ichinose).
8. Gore Magala
In the 8th slot, we have a fan favourite, the Flagship of 4U itself, the Frenzie virus pouring mysterious monster (classification: unknown) itself, Gore Magala. As mentioned previously, Gore is the Flagship of Monster Hunter 4U but unlike many other Flagships, he is easily the most fascinating and intrinsically linked to the story of 4U you can find, as you fight him continuously throughout the story, forming an undying rivalry between you and Gore Magala itself. With an absolute astonishing design, reminiscent of what seems to look like a massively evolved Xenomorph.
Gore Magala has one of the best fights in the entire franchise, sporting these massive arm-like wings and a fighting style that lets him swing his entire body, with its animations looking so smooth in a 3DS game, it just makes you wonder how fantastic Gore Magala could look like, what his animations could flow like and most importantly, what his fight can feel like the fresh feeling controls that the 5th generation of Monster Hunter brought. Just imagining how it could look like when jumping from graphics from the 3DS to the Nintendo Switch just gives me goosebumps with how amazing Rise is looking.
7. Lagiacrus
In the 7th slot, we have my first real Flagship in Lagiacrus, an amazing looking blue Leviathan introduced in Monster Hunter Tri. You see, Monster Hunter 3U was the first Monster Hunter that really stuck with me (this will become important in the next pick as well).
I had dabbled with prior entries like Freedom Unite but nothing really caught my eye until I was going through 3U and I saw Lagiacrus for the first time. With its slick build, as if it were a beautiful blue crocodile with the powers to wield electricity, and while 3U did have the swimming mechanic that in my opinion, hampered the fight to some extent. It was perfected in later entries, cementing Lagiacrus as one of the best.
In addition, Lagiacrus was actually supposed to be added in Monster Hunter World, yet was eventually cut due to the interactions the monster’s skeleton model was having with the vast amount of sloped areas found in World. But let’s all rejoice as Mizutsune (A monster that shares the same skeleton model as Lagicrus) was confirmed to be in Monster Hunter Rise, actually being part of the most recent demo. This leaves me and all the other Lagi fans across the world with the hope that its beautiful blue scales could appear once more in Monster Hunter Rise.
6. Brachydios
In 6th place, we have the Hajime No Ippo of monsters itself, Brachydios, this brawler was introduced as the main Flagship in Monster Hunter 3U and boy it leave an impression on me… no, seriously, it left me covered in green slime that explodes. Nothing like this had been seen before as Brachydios introduced the slime mechanic, later evolving into Blast.
Not to mention the no-nonsense business design that it exudes, become the first brute wyvern to start curling weight as the arms of this monster pack a serious explosive punch, accompanied by its awesome horn to top it off. And on top of all this, Brachydios features a spectacular 2 tone design, sporting a beautiful sapphire blue shell, with its arms and horn covered in the aforementioned neon green coloured slime and that will very quickly turn red as it explodes.
With the wonderful way Brachydios was executed in the Iceborne expansion for Monster Hunter World, it just makes me wonder how much better than a boxing monster can be when fought using the silk bind mechanics.
5. Nergigante
In 5th place, we have arguably the most popular dragon in the entire franchise, Nergigante, being introduced in Monster Hunter World, becoming the Flagship in Capcom’s most sold game ever.
This elder dragon is the epitome of brutal, whereas other elder dragons rely on an element or a similar type of gimmick, Nergigante uses its pure, brutal, unflinching strength and power, even to the point of its detriment. Nergigante has easily divebombed its way into all our hearts, with its menacing design, it being a huge muscular spike-covered dragon with razor-sharp teeth, nothing can get in its way.
Nergigante easily has one of the tensest battles in all of Monster Hunter, where the best defense is a great offense. It's one mechanic other than its pure brutality are its spikes. If you let these grow without breaking them off (hence the great offense line from above), it will gain a type of armor, allowing your weapons to bounce off and making it hit much, much harder, with the battle heading to a crescendo when it begins its infamous Divebomb, a devastating attack that has the power to completely one-shot you if you are not prepared.
With the way Nergigante was represented in World, in addition to its equally, maybe even more terrifying variant, Ruiner Nergigante, that was added in the Iceborne expansion. I personally cannot wait to see this powerhouse of a dragon make his way to Monster Hunter Rise. (I mean, I hope it gets in).
4. Yian Garuga
In 4th place, we have what may seem like an odd pick in the fiercest bird wyvern in the franchise, Yian Garuga. This powerful bird wyvern has a temper that isn’t matched by any other monster (maybe Nergi) and has the skills to show it. This freak hybrid of a monster, wherein the Monster Hunter Lore is actually the offspring of a Yian Kut-Ku and a Rathian, is what you come to expect when someone says crazy fire breathing chicken. This beautiful purple coloured bird sports a massive beak that with it, will both try to take you out and roar constantly.
Yian Garuga, in addition to being so volatile, is such a fun fight as it embodies close-quarters combat, as you narrowly dodge it from slamming its beak or as it just misses you with its spinning tail swing or if you just manage to roll out of the way from its deadly fireballs. I have mentioned the roars and I’m not exaggerating, this crazy turkey could put Brute Tigrex to shame, using its roars to stun you so it can hit you with its next attack.
Yian Garuga was such an incredible fight in Monster Hunter World Iceborne that I simply wish that it could poke its crazy head around the corner in the Ancient Shrines. Also, its purple colour would mix absolutely beautifully with the Rise art style.
3. Zinogre
Now we’re in the top 3, and to begin it, we have the most infamous thunder wolf of them all, Zinogre, this tank was first introduced as the Flagship in Monster Hunter Portable 3rd, a game that never actually made it the west but undoubtedly has one of the most stylish monsters in the franchise, cemented by the fact that it was the first and only fanged wyvern to ever be found in the Old World. Zinogre is an astonishingly awesome monster that anyone could get hyped for by just looking at it, it attacks using both raw power and thunder that is granted to it with the Fulgerbugs that live on its body.
With such an aesthetically pleasing design, including its massive front claws that backed with equally massive front arms, this break dancing wolf (yes, I said breakdancing) boasts a unique color palette of light blue and electric yellow that makes it looks like it deserves to be royalty. Zinogre is truly an all-round fantastic monster with an incredible, fast-paced fight that almost seems like an eloquent dance between you and it.
Zinogre would be such a fantastic pick for Monster Hunter Rise and actually seems quite likely for multiple reasons, my reasoning being that putting it in marries the Rise art style and the monster’s design to a point of perfection. The second reason is that Zinogre was actually the Flagship for one of Monster Hunter Rise’s director, Yasunori Ichinose’s previous games, as mentioned above, MH Portable 3rd. Seeing that Rise and Zinogre are incredibly Japanese, this would be a match made in heaven.
2. Nargacuga
The second spot is taken by my all-time favourite monster of all time, the black panther dragon itself, Nargacuga. This ninja-like monster was first introduced in Monster Hunter Freedom Unite and when I first fought it in 3U, I positively fell in love. This elegant flying wyvern has such a slick yet powerful design, from its powerful and iconic roar, its striking spiked tail to its bleeding red eyes that leave a trail when it’s enraged. Nargacuga was one of the first super fast-paced monsters that didn’t leave any time to breathe, it would quickly jump behind you and strike, leaving you without knowing which way was up or down.
It also has an incredible fight that actually lets you use I-frames to properly dodge the monster attacks. Nargacuga is simply the epitome of what a monster should be in these games, a fast and fair fight and would be a perfect fit for Monster Hunter Rise simply because I love it. And I mean, come on, if Tigrex and Barioth can get in, so can my favourite hawk-cat wyvern thing.
1. Valstrax
In 1st place, we have the ultimate elder dragon, easily the coolest elder dragon, the one and only rocket-powered elder dragon, Valstrax. Introduced in Monster Hunter: Generations Ultimate. The design, amazing, the fight, amazing, the monster battle theme, for crying out loud, simply amazing.
I first fought this monster with the GU demo for the switch and I won’t lie, it took me weeks to take down this monster, not even in the full game but the demo. I tried and tried again to take down this monster and after each failed hunt, I fell in love with it more and more. The silver and red design makes it look like it’s from another world. The magnificent theme gives you a sense of euphoria every time you face it and let’s not forget the elephant in the room…
IT USES ITS WINGS AS ROCKET PROPULSORS. The way it jets off the screen and shoots back down, forcing you to superman dive for your life. Just everything about Valstrax is amazing and when I finally beat it after countless tries, I shed a tear with my heart pumping. If I need just one reason for it to return, it would be that.
Now there are so many more monsters I could’ve gone on about and I know that anyone who reads this would have a different opinion, so let us here at GamesAtlas know what monsters you would love to see return in Monster Hunter Rise, releasing on March 26th, 2021.
