Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection Review - The Best Yet

Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection steers this monster-taming spin-off series into a more mature, and sometimes darker, direction. But the fun gameplay, humor, and spirit of discovery from previous games are still wonderfully intact here too. This results in an adventure that might just be the best Monster Hunter Stories game yet.

As someone who enjoyed the first game and adored Monster Hunter Stories 2, I had high hopes for Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection. Somehow, those expectations were surpassed. From quality-of-life improvements to pushing the series into new territory and making meaningful callbacks, this third game does everything a new entry should.

There's Always Something To Do In Monster Hunter Stories 3

Tame Monsties, Explore Dens, Develop Habitats

The gameplay loop for Monster Hunter Stories 3 is pretty straightforward. As a Ranger, you get to explore open areas with your crew, develop habitats, and (of course) hatch eggs and raise "Monsties". You can send Monsties out on excursions for rewards and extra EXP, and developing ecosystems allows for higher-rank Monsties and mutations.

Each area comes with various types and rarities of Monster Dens, and there are almost unlimited materials to gather. You'll find a host of side quests as well, but there are also Side Stories this time around. Each one lets you spend some time with a fellow Ranger in your crew, letting you get to know them better while performing a short quest that usually ends with a battle. For your troubles, you'll get nice upgrades and unique armor or weapons.

There's always something to do, so boredom is never an issue. If you need a break from the main story, explore zones, tackle a Side Story, or work on mutating new Monsties in an ecosystem. All of this feeds into developing your team, so it never feels like busywork, and taking the time to do some side content can certainly make the tougher fights a lot easier.

Monster Hunter Stories' Turn-Based Combat Returns

Plenty Of Customization For Battles

As with previous games, the turn-based combat in Monster Hunter Stories 3 revolves around a rock-paper-scissors system that you'll definitely need to memorize. Staggering Monsters and breaking parts play a role, and there are also feral monsters that provide an extra challenge throughout the story.

You'll need various weapons and Monstie types to aid in battle, and as with previous games, there's a bit of strategizing required. Monster parts will let you improve armor and weapons, as well as make new ones, and it's the kind of customization that other monster-catching series like Pokémon could benefit from learning from.

There's a depth here that's missing from most monster-taming games, except for possibly Dragon Quest Monsters, which comes close. This is apparent in both the ways you must upgrade weapons and armor, but also in the way you can cause Monstie mutations and use the Rite of Channeling for better genes.

Of course, how deep you want to go is really up to you. You'll be required to be at least passingly familiar with these mechanics by the halfway point of Monster Hunter Stories 3, but you don't necessarily need encyclopedic knowledge of every Monstie's gene pool to advance. This results in an experience that's challenging but not overly difficult. I found it to be a perfect balance.

Monster Hunter Stories 3 Cast & Monsties Truly Shine

MHS Is Back & Better Than Ever

The cast of Monster Hunter Stories 3 is pretty lovable, and it's fun to experiment with the different characters in your party. No two characters feel the same, and it's also nice to have a protagonist who feels like a real person with experiences, hopes, and fears rather than a cardboard cutout who gains EXP.

MHS3 has really upped its game, no pun intended, when it comes to characters and storytelling in this series. The story feels like two-thirds How To Train Your Dragon with sprinkles of Game of Thrones and Fire Emblem thrown in. There are warring kingdoms, betrayals, and plenty of twists along the way, but you're still surveying environments and working to improve Monsties and their ecosystem.

The story admittedly drags at times — there were a few moments when I wished Monster Hunter Stories 3's characters would just get on with it — but it doesn't really detract from the overall experience. The game is beautiful to watch, so even a few overly verbose cutscenes can be excused here and there.

Besides, the majority of the game is spent in the overworld, and this is where MHS3 really succeeds. There's not too much preamble, and very little waiting around for the good stuff, like in previous entries. You start Monster Hunter Stories 3 with a Rathalos and can start flying around, climbing towers, and going into dens pretty much from the get-go.

The various zones stand apart from one another, and while some are certainly easier to navigate than others, it's hard to choose a favorite. There are also callbacks to previous entries, which I won't spoil here, but longtime fans will enjoy spotting them. And if Twisted Reflection is your first Monster Hunter Stories game, then don't worry, you can still enjoy this one as a standalone experience.

MHS3 Establishes Itself As A Premier Monster-Taming Game

A Great RPG Experience From Beginning To End

There are no immediate downsides to Monster Hunter Stories 3. It's easily the best entry in the series, and it improves everything that came before it. If you found the first game too simple or the second game too slow, all of that has been corrected here.

For what it's worth, Monster Hunter Stories 3 is the first game in years that I've played and then just completely lost track of the time. By the time my first weekend with the game was over, I'd sunk 30 hours into it without even trying or really realizing it. It's the kind of RPG that's easy to get hooked on and hard to put down. It knows exactly what you want in a monster-taming game and gives it to you from the very start.

As I said, I had high hopes for Monster Hunter Stories 3 already, but I never expected it to be this good. Between the improvements from past games and new mechanics introduced here, Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection is cementing this series as the premier RPG in the monster-taming genre. I still can't believe how good it is.