Parents' Guide to Monster Hunter: World

This immersive adventure provides more than enough content to keep players tracking monsters for months to prove they're the best hunter in the game's vast new world. Monster Hunter games have always had a sort of niche fan base. It's a gorgeous series with a lot of fun packed in, but it's been trapped behind a wall of intense complexity that's never really been welcoming to newcomers. Capcom is looking to change all that with Monster Hunter: World, the latest entry in the fan favorite franchise. While it's not a reboot in the traditional sense, the game is a fresh start for the series, with a heavy emphasis on bringing more people of different skill levels together to join in the monster hunting excitement. Make no mistake about it, Monster Hunter: World is still a far cry from being a cakewalk. It's still a game that you'll have to put some real time and effort into if you expect to get the most out of it. But the game does a fantastic job of easing new or casual players into the experience without taking anything away that returning fans have come to know and love.

Whether this is your first outing as a fledgling hunter or you're a veteran that's taken down more Rathalos than you can shake a Gunlance at, there's plenty to discover and to be in awe of. The world you're dropped into is a gorgeous, sprawling place that looks amazing no matter which system you run it on. Unlike previous games, the different sections of the map smoothly transition from one into the other, so there's never a break in the expedition. And speaking of the expedition, there's so much to find in the game that it's almost overwhelming. One minute you're tracking the footprints and other clues left by a creature, and the next you're swinging from the trees searching out plants or ore. Then there are the times when a chance encounter with a powerful monster flips the script, and you go from being the hunter to being the prey. It's times like these when it's nice to know you can send up an S.O.S. flare and call in some support from other online hunters. Whether you set out as a team from the start or call in the cavalry mid-mission, working together as a team -- especially with experienced hunters -- is a treat. Coordinated attacks, distractions, traps, and all the other tricks of the trade quickly come into play, and can turn the tide of almost any confrontation. Monster Hunter: World is so much more than just playing a game. It's adventure on a truly epic scale, and the way to create your own journey while helping others build their own.