Monster Hunter Outlanders Gameplay Explained - How it compares to Wilds, Rise and Now

• Monster Hunter Outlanders is the most faithful adaptation yet of the hit franchise to mobile
• But how exactly does this full-fledged new third-person adventure compare to the classics?
• Find out how Monster Hunter Outlanders measures up to Wilds, Rise and Now

For newcomers to the series, Monster Hunter Outlanders can seem just a bit intimidating to jump into. A full-fledged Monster Hunter entry on mobile that switches focus from puzzles and AR to classic, third-person adventure? It’s a major change in pace, and if you’re a Monster Hunter, you’re probably wondering how Outlanders compares to other entries, such as Wilds, Rise, and of course, Scopely Explore’s Monster Hunter Now.

Well, let’s get into it and look at how Monster Hunter Outlanders is different from the likes of Monster Hunter Wilds and Monster Hunter Now!

MHO versus MH Now

Describing how Monster Hunter Outlanders is different from Monster Hunter Now is probably the easier distinction to make. Now is an AR game at its core, where you travel around the real world hunting down monsters to battle, while visiting Pokestop-style nodes to gather resources. And that, as its main appeal, is perfect for some, but it’s not what MHO is, as it’s more your typical third-person adventure game where you explore the vast wilderness of the Aesoland.

But there are some similarities between the two, particularly in Adventure-mode gameplay. Just like Now’s combat, this is a more streamlined version of Monster Hunter’s classic over-the-shoulder fights, where the focus is mainly on dodging the (heavily telegraphed) attacks by monsters and busting out a special move when they’re Toppled and become Vulnerable to your Burst attacks.

If you’re a Monster Hunter Now player, it’s probably best to play in Adventure mode, as you’ll already have a lot to deal with when it comes to the shift in perspective and wider world to explore. However, if you’ve ever craved more depth and immersion when playing Now, you’ll find plenty to enjoy in Monster Hunter Outlanders.

MHO versus Wilds and Rise

The major selling point of Monster Hunter Outlanders is that, at its core, it’s intended to be the Monster Hunter experience on mobile. So, it bears a lot more similarities to Monster Hunter Rise and Wilds, as well as other classic entries in the series, than it does to previous Monster Hunter mobile games.

In particular, Classic mode offers controls that are more complex and much more familiar to fans of the mainline Monster Hunter entries. For those who like the difficulty and the thrill of the hunt, it also makes things harder by ditching hints and attack warnings, so you won’t have to worry about playing with the metaphorical training wheels on.

Exploration, crafting and field events also play a major part, and you’ll find your guide into each monster slowly expanding with each one you defeat, offering advice on weak points and what element they’re vulnerable to. You’ll also need to prepare yourself for exploration, gathering the right equipment or potions for extreme heat and cold, as well as witnessing changing weather and times of day.

For relative newcomers, such as myself, Monster Hunter Outlanders can feel a bit overwhelming, but in a good way. And while I can imagine veteran hunters will have some gripes, it does seem to manage to emulate the mainstream titles quite well.

Now, I’ll mention this more in another piece going into the do’s and do-not-do’s of Monster Hunter Outlanders, but Classic mode is not for the faint of heart. If you’re a Monster Hunter expert, you might find it challenging to switch gears to touchscreen, so be sure to at least dip your toes into Adventure and see if it works better for you.

MHO versus… everything else!

Not to turn this into a review, but you might be wondering how Monster Hunter Outlanders stacks up against other third-person ARPGs. And truth be told, if you want more depth in your mobile games, this might just be for you. There are plenty of similarities to other games, such as placing down ziplines and other movement devices, which offers shades of Arknights: Endfield, and the climbing and exploration will be familiar to Genshin Impact fans.

However, you’ll also find a deceptively engaging combat system which addresses one of my usual gripes with ARPGs, in that they can feel like brain-dead hack ‘n slashers. In contrast, Monster Hunter Outlanders has you actively targeting monster weak points even in the simpler Adventure mode, using the intuitive lock-on system. You’ll also need to quite often disengage and take a breather with some medicine, which you’ll need to craft, if you want to last through the fight.

With that in mind, if you’ve been dissatisfied with other ARPGs, Monster Hunter Outlanders does enough different to keep things engaging. So give it a go, and check out some of our guides, like whether Monster Hunter Outlanders has codes, to help you out!