In North America, Monster Hunter is a minor cult hit, but in Japan, it's one of the biggest franchises on the market. It has a modest following and plenty of cult success, but its overseas multi-million dollar frenzy has never been matched. Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate has the potential to change that because it's the most polished, accessible and well-designed entry in the series to date.

Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate might be part of a long-running franchise, but it's clearly designed with newcomers in mind. The early parts of the game are an incredibly in-depth tutorial. This might be frustrating to Monster Hunter vets, but it's a necessary addition to the franchise. A lot of the gameplay mechanics look frustrating and intimidating at first blush but become intuitive and coherent with just a little hand-holding. Those who mastered The Claw might roll their eyes, but for the rest of the world, it makes the game a great starting place. The tutorials strike a good balance between explaining important core mechanics and offering optional in-depth tutorials.

Speaking of The Claw, Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate does a lot to make the main controls more accessible. A more user-friendly interface and lock-on features alleviate some of the control concerns of previous portable versions, and  everything has been streamlined. I strongly recommend that you play Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate on a New 3DS, if you have the choice. The title is one of the first to take full advantage of the new system, so right off the bat, loading times are reduced and textures are improved. The addition of the C-stick analog nub for the camera does a lot to keep the game flowing more smoothly, allowing for quicker camera movements without moving your fingers too far away from the all-important buttons.

The core gameplay is almost unchanged. You take your character on a series of quests to hunt down monsters, and that's interspersed with simpler quests that involve weaker enemies or simpler tasks. You jump from quest to quest to get more material and equipment, so you can step up to bigger challenges. There's some variety to quests. Some are simple fights, others want you to collect items, and some involve multiple steps. Many have subquests to get extra loot, and you can even take on the subquests but fail the main quest. You lose out on the big reward, but it's better than going home empty-handed.

Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate is a game about grinding for increasingly better gear so you can fight increasingly bigger monsters. You're seeking to craft the best equipment possible to take on your foes. This means the game can get somewhat repetitive because you face the same enemies with the intent of finding better gear, and if you want, you can spend hundreds of hours doing so. The game is well-designed enough that it doesn't feel tedious, and it's excellent about making greater rewards a part of the overall game. By the time you're finished, you're decked out in bizarre ornate weapons made from the hides of godlike beasts, and you're looking to take on more baddies.

What makes Monster Hunter work is the fun fighting. Enemies are cleverly designed and require you to engage your abilities and environment. Luring monsters into traps to capture them alive or trying to target specific parts of monsters adds interesting wrinkles to the "kill them and loot them" gameplay. New features add a twist, like the ability to mount monsters. The basic gameplay is most likely to turn off newcomers because it's very easy to see the combat as clunky or awkward. Put some time into it, and it becomes clear that it's deliberate. Every movement, strike and swing has weight and consequence. Swing wildly, and get an angry monster's tail directly in the face. Time your strikes, properly use your movement, and you can take on the biggest foes with ease. It can be frustrating early on, since learning the nuances of your foes takes time. The game loves throwing twists at you, including foes that can inflict deadly status effects that require you to change your fighting approach.

This is amplified by the fact that different weapon types come with different gameplay. Every weapon promotes a different play style, so they're not just simple swaps with different stats. A lance and shield require a thoughtful defensive style while larger swords mean you have to keep moving and put all your effort into a single strike. The Charge Blade is a new weapon that swaps between a sword-and-shield mode and a high-powered ax, and it requires you to learn the strengths and weaknesses of both types. The Insect Glaive is sure to be the new favorite. It's a bladed staff that sends a customizable Kinsect to steal stats from enemies, and it also vaults vertically into the air. It lacks the power of other weapons but offers tremendous versatility. There is something for everyone in Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate; it's just a matter of experimenting.

The franchise's adorable cat-like mascots, Palico, join you as loosely customizable AI partners. You begin with one but can gain more as the game progresses. They can be given special armor — including cameos from Nintendo and Capcom game franchises — and trained to aid you in combat. Palicos are no match for online play, which allows you to take on monsters with other human partners. For the most part, the online play runs well and offers a chance to take on enemies you couldn't alone. I played on the New 3DS with its improved Wi-Fi capabilities, and the online play was mostly smooth and playable. Monster Hunter shines during multiplayer, and the focus on local multiplayer may be a big contributor to the franchise's chilly reception in North America. Taking on monsters with multiple friends feels so much more satisfying than doing so alone.

Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate looks impressive for a handheld game. The environments are relatively small, and it's easy to identify the spots where compromises had to be made. The game still looks quite good and presents some incredible visuals. The New 3DS offers subtly improved textures. It's not worth running out and buying a new system, but it's enough to make it the clear winner. The New 3DS also loads noticeably faster and offers a better frame rate. It's not enough to sour the experience for anyone playing on a 3DS classic, but it's clear that Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate was made with the New 3DS in mind. The soundtrack is good, but nothing stands out, and the lack of voice acting is noticeable. On the other hand, the translation is good and frequently funny, so it lends a cheerful atmosphere to the brutal monster-slaying.

At the end of the day, Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate doesn't reinvent the wheel. It has more content, more polish, and more of the same gameplay that people love. It isn't going to convert anyone who disliked the formula, but it might bring newcomers into the fold. The series is difficult to learn but rewarding to master. The title may stick to its guns a tad too closely, but if you like Monster Hunter or Monster Hunter-style games, Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate gives you exactly what you're looking for, and it does it well.

Score: 8.5/10