With Monster Hunter Rise getting its Sunbreak expansion later this week on PC and Switch, now seems as good a time as any to track down some great alternatives to Capcom’s monster co-op hit for Xbox players…Monster Hunter has somehow gone from being an extremely niche series to spawning Capcom’s best-selling game of all time with Monster Hunter: World. Still, the franchise has long been known to bounce between multiple platforms, meaning those who only play on one system end up missing out on some great instalments. It’s one of my favourite gaming series ever, and I’ve ended up buying no less than three Nintendo consoles purely to play the MonHun games exclusive to those systems, even if I did get a lot more use out of them even after hunting season was over. Still, that’s not a luxury that everyone will have, and that’s the purpose of this article — to shine a light on some great games that share some DNA with Capcom’s hunting games for those who only play on select platforms, in this case, Xbox.Even though Xbox players have relatively limited choice when it comes to games that can stack up to Capcom’s co-op action-RPG hunting greats, there’s still a few interesting options to try out, and even more if you’re okay leaving the comfort of the Xbox world. While we’ll keep the main entries below to games playable on Xbox, those looking for a great co-op boss battle fix and willing to play elsewhere would do well to hunt down the hulking demons of Toukiden 2 (PC, PS4, Vita), the fairy tale monsters of Soul Sacrifice Delta (Vita), or the hungry weapons and anime action of God Eater Resurrection (PC, PS4, Vita). With Rise (and my extension Sunbreak) unlikely to leave its native PC/Switch habitat and the next Monster Hunter game yet to be announced by Capcom, if you’d rather keep your hunting on Xbox turf, here are a bunch of your best options.Monster Hunter World: IceborneIs it cheating to open a Monster Hunter alternatives list with the main attraction itself? A little bit, sure, but hear me out. Monster Hunter: World did a decent stint on Xbox Game Pass so many of you likely succumbed to its charms (or bounced off its idiosyncrasies) before it left almost exactly a year ago. Of those who did fall into its wonderful Pitfall Trap of a gameplay loop, though, I imagine there are a fair few hunters who didn’t take things one step further and brave World’s massive Iceborne expansion, which I can’t recommend highly enough. Lots of awesome new monsters, fantastic new locations, useful weapon tweaks and quality-of-life improvements galore, and of course tons of powerful new gear to craft from the remnants of your fallen foes… oh, and the small matter of a harder difficulty tier in Master Rank, which series veterans will likely know as G Rank. If you didn’t work your way through Iceborne and its additional achievements (which, yes, sadly involve more crown-grinding) yet, what better substitute for the new MH expansion than the incredible previous one? Monster Hunter World: IceborneLet your hunting instinct take you further than ever!”Iceborne” is a massive expansion that picks up after the ending of Monster Hunter: World and opens up the new “master rank!”New quests, monsters, weapons, armor, and story await to take your hunting to the next level!DauntlessPhoenix Labs’ free-to-play MonHun-alike Dauntless serves as kind of a double recommendation here. Why? Well, it’s a pretty different game today to what it was at launch, after the game got a full revamp in time for its relatively recent Xbox Series X|S upgrade. So, if you jumped in at launch, you’d do well to dive back in and see what has changed and been added (spoiler: quite a lot), and if you’ve never tried it, Dauntless is arguably in a better place than ever these days. Structurally, there’s nothing on this list closer to Monster Hunter — pick a mark, group up, set out into a mini-open world area, track down your quarry, and make with the hitting. Unsurprisingly, monster parts can then be used to forge and upgrade new gear, with varying elemental weaknesses meaning you’ll need to build up quite the weapon rack. There are even similarities in things like how monster parts can be broken for additional rewards and to prevent them from using certain powerful attacks, or how weapon types have useful interactions with one another — one softening up a weak spot, for instance, so that the rest of the team can go to work on a key part of the boss enemy. It is a free-to-play game, so the basic Hunt Pass doesn’t offer nearly as much in terms of rewards as its Premium counterpart, but you can always give it a go to see how you get on, then upgrade the Pass later if Dauntless manages to get its claws into you to retroactively grab all of those Premium rewards you’re owed.DauntlessAs a Slayer, you are all that stands between your world and the Behemoths that seek to devour it. Take on boss-sized monsters, forge powerful weapons, and craft armour from the very creatures you slay — all in a massive, free-to-play online world.Phantasy Star Online 2: New GenesisAnother free-to-play game and one that sort of brings us full circle. You see, in many ways, Dreamcast classic Phantasy Star Online can be seen as a progenitor to the Monster Hunter series, with its online lobbies, various weapon classes, four-player squads, and giant bosses to bring down in exchange for sweet new loot. It’s only right, then, that the latest version of PSO, Phantasy Star Online 2: New Genesis, should get a shoutout here and even if it perhaps doesn’t quite have that same kind of magic as the originals did back in the day, MonHun fans are still likely to enjoy the loop all the same. While regular missions still stick to similarly small parties to most games like these, PSO2 also goes one louder with Emergency Quests which happen throughout each day, inviting players to squad up in groups of up to eight to take on even more dangerous threats than usual. Like Dauntless, there’s no getting away from the fact that this is F2P through and through, and progression can feel slow for free players. Still, it’s got a great variety of weapon types to mess around with, some fantastic locations and bosses, and it can absolutely take huge bites out of your time just like MonHun if you get into it, so it’s certainly one to try out if you’re done with MH World and need a fix. Phantasy Star Online 2 New GenesisPhantasy Star Online 2 New Genesis, the latest chapter in the Phantasy Star Online 2 series, is here at last!It’s time to jump into adventures beyond imagination!Dragon’s Dogma: Dark ArisenYes, folks, he’s at it again… sure, the structure of Capcom’s own action-RPG Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen is pretty far removed from that of Monster Hunter, with DD being a continuous open-world adventure as opposed to self-contained quests. But considering that it involves working as a team to bring down gigantic mythological creatures, there are undoubtedly similarities here that will lead to many MH fans getting a kick out of this. While Dragon’s Dogma is a single-player RPG, it’s made to feel like an online game with the addition of Pawns — recruitable allies (you can even borrow your friends’ characters!) used to fill out your party with a good balance of ranged and melee capabilities, with the less-than-perfect AI reportedly being an attempt to make Pawns feel like actual player allies. It’s a really fun system and seeing high-level Pawns set off remarkable magical effects will be enough to make you want to drop your weapon and start a second character, and even though the lack of true multiplayer might be a turn-off for Monster Hunter fans who love to party up, those who play solo get the benefit of bots here, and they can be a huge help. Capcom recently confirmed that a Dragon’s Dogma sequel is in production, and with fans keen to see co-op added in the next game, maybe it will wind up being even closer to Monster Hunter than this one.Dragon’s Dogma: Dark ArisenThe critically acclaimed action-RPG Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen, now in 1080p HD with all previous paid DLC included.Remnant: From the AshesThis one might seem like a bit of a stretch, but I can tell you that my MonHun crew all really enjoyed Remnant: From the Ashes during some of World’s content lulls. It feels like it lands somewhere between MonHun and the Souls games, with elements that fans of both series will recognise and perhaps resonate with, and while it can’t be considered a true replacement for taking down the likes of Diablos and Deviljho, it may still serve as a great gateway drug (greatway drug?) into FromSoftware’s hardcore action games if you haven’t managed to get into them. Remnant is much more high-tech than Monster Hunter, but other aspects feel more familiar — co-op team play, various weapon types, big ol’ monsters, lots of loot, and a real sense that good team composition can make a big difference between success and failure. So yes, it is a bit of a stretch, but by offering a bit of the familiar and a bit of something new, perhaps it could help you expand your gaming horizons… since when is that ever a bad thing? Remnant: From the AshesThe world has been thrown into chaos by an ancient evil from another dimension. As one of the last remnants of humanity, you must set out alone or alongside up to two other survivors to face down hordes of deadly enemies to try to carve a foothold, rebuild, and retake what was lost.Attack on Titan 2Anime/manga tie-in Attack on Titan 2 is a surprisingly well-fitting pick here, given that both this and MH Rise — the specific title we’re looking for altenatives to, if we follow the brief to the letter — both offer far crazier mobility options than any other mainline Monster Hunter game, and even than the majority of other games on this list. It’s not going to offer as much in the way of enemy variety, sure, and it’ll likely lose a fair bit of its appeal if you aren’t already an AoT fan, but regardless, zipping around at ridiculous speed and pulling off crazy swooping attacks as your whole team puts on these wonderful aerial displays is as close to Rise’s Wirebug antics as this list is going to get. Attack on Titan 2 sees fairly regular deep discounts in the Xbox sales and while I’m not sure I can fully endorse it as a MonHun alternative at full price, you might want to check it out when that price comes down a bit. Better yet, there’s also a demo on the Xbox Store, so you can try it out for free and add it to your wishlist if you do end up liking it. Attack on Titan 2Abandon all fear. Attack on Titan 2 is the gripping sequel to the action game based on the worldwide hit anime series “Attack on Titan.” Experience the immense story of the anime alongside Eren and his companions, as they fight to save humanity from the threat of the deadly human devouring Titans. Try your hand in operating the omni-directional mobility gear, maneuvering and flying through the sky to counter the Titans, and feel the thrill and satisfaction of battling giant opponents.Note:- This product is “Attack on Titan 2”, not “Attack on Titan 2: Final Battle”.- The content of “Attack on Titan 2” is included in “Attack on Titan 2: Final Battle”, which is scheduled to be released on July 5th, 2019.- If you have already purchased “Attack on Titan 2”, you can play “Attack on Titan 2: Final Battle” by purchasing the additional content “Attack on Titan 2: Final Battle Upgrade Pack”, which is scheduled to be released on July 5th, 2019.- Please visit the official site for details about the game “Attack on Titan 2: Final Battle”https://www.koeitecmoamerica.com/attackontitan2/finalbattle/Based on the manga “Shingeki no Kyojin” by Hajime Isayama originally serialized in the monthly BESSATSU SHONEN magazine published by Kodansha Ltd.©Hajime Isayama,Kodansha/”ATTACK ON TITAN”Production Committee. All Rights Reserved.©2018 KOEI TECMO GAMES CO., LTD. All Rights Reserved.Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac AgeCurveball time, and while Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age is obviously nothing like Monster Hunter in terms of gameplay, it’s here for a reason. Recent Monster Hunter games like World and Rise have shifted the emphasis away from the tracking phase of the hunt somewhat (at least after the first few hunts of each monster type in World, when the Scoutflies start leading you straight to where you need to go), and some MH veterans might want more of that aspect of the game. That’s where FFXII’s Hunts come in. After the first few, which are very much ‘go to where target is, kill enemy, profit,’ things soon start to get a fair bit more involved. You’ll end up talking to the locals to get the lowdown on where monsters might be hiding, revisiting areas during different weather conditions or under different circumstances to try and lure them out, or getting involved in longer quest lines that culminate in those big challenging battles. Some of the later ones get kinda crazy — the final target Yiazmat has over 50 million HP — but if you’re after a complete change of gameplay that retains a little bit of Monster Hunter-esque tracking via an involved and interesting side quest, FFXII is a decent choice. Did I mention that it’s also an amazing RPG in its own right? No? Oops, my bad.FINAL FANTASY XII THE ZODIAC AGEReturn to the world of IvaliceThis HD remaster is based on the smash hit 12th instalment of the FINAL FANTASY series, which has shipped over 6M units worldwide, featuring a new, re-worked game design!Not only have the graphics and sound been updated to take advantage of the power of new hardware, but the core game design has also been tweaked to produce an evolution of the original FFXII fitting for the current generation.Enjoy a classic adventure reborn!Lost Planet 2Another Capcom game hits the list, and there’s lots of smaller aspects of Monster Hunter to be found in over-the-top co-op shooter Lost Planet 2. Teaming up to take on oversized monsters? Check. A mission-based structure with lots of replayable ‘hunts?’ Check. An almost endless online grind to get all the best gear? Checkity-check-check. Lost Planet 2 even channels an aspect of MonHun that none of the other games here really do, and that’s those big ‘showcase’ bosses — the likes of Zorah Magdaros, Kulve Taroth, and Jhen Mohran, where it’s not just about hacking away at a giant monster with your comically oversized weapons, rather using the environment to your advantage with cannons, ballistae, and other fun siege weapons. There are several missions in LP2 that offer that same kind of epic battle, whether it’s a team of players loading up the cannons on the train, or a full group hopping into combinable mech suits to form a Voltron-like super-bot to force the giant enemies to pick on someone a little closer to their own size. We should talk about the Gammoth in the room, though — the Lost Planet 2 achievements are famously revolting, requiring luck, dedication, and a ton of time to work through. If that’s a dealbreaker for you then you might want to sit this Xbox 360 classic out, but if not, I think a lot of Monster Hunter fans will find themselves feeling strangely at home here.Lost Planet 2The next installment in the popular action series returns in Lost Planet® 2. Ten years have passed since the first game, and the face of E.D.N. III has changed dramatically. Terraforming efforts have been successful and the ice has begun to melt, giving way to lush tropical jungles and harsh unforgiving deserts.Elden RingThis one is more or less interchangeable with any of the Souls games, although I’d argue that Elden Ring’s many, many self-contained dungeons are as close to Monster Hunter as anything in a FromSoft game, even if it’s still not especially close. Here, you make your way through a more limited environment filled with smaller enemies before finally coming across a boss arena, where you’ll need to master each giant enemy’s specific attack patterns if you want to bring them down in any kind of effective manner. Sound familiar? Thought it might. Elden Ring’s gargantuan cast of bosses means it uses variations quite a lot — something to which MonHun fans will be no stranger after seing things like Subspecies and Deviants bring back familiar monsters but with a new twist. I think this is probably the furthest removed of all the games on this list from Monster Hunter, hence why I saved it for last, but there’s undeniably at least a little bit of crossover. If you want to fight challenging giant monsters for gear and somehow haven’t yet played the biggest game of 2022, you might want to give it a go, especially if nothing else here takes your fancy.ELDEN RINGTHE NEW FANTASY ACTION RPG.Rise, Tarnished, and be guided by grace to brandish the power of the Elden Ring and become an Elden Lord in the Lands Between.Got any more suggestions to add to the pile, or liking the look of any of these while Capcom prepares to reopen hunting season on Xbox? Let us know below!
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