Monster Hunter World Board Game Review: A perfect pickup for franchise fanatics

In recent months I've been lucky enough to review Steamforged Games' Gears of War Card Game and the Sea of Thieves Board Game, but the one I've been itching to get hands-on with has been Monster Hunter World.

For context, the video game it's based on remains an all-timer for me, so I was desperate to check out the board game adaptation. And, while the board game version is undeniably complex, it does justice to Capcom's megahit in just about every way you'd want it to.

How do you solve a problem like Monster Hunter?

The funny thing about attempting a board game based on Monster Hunter is that the gameplay loop, as refined as it has been over 20 years, is remarkably simple.

You hunt monsters, carve them into fresh weapons and armour, then go tackle even bigger monsters. Compelling, yes, but how do you translate that into a board game? Steamforged Games has worked to lean into the hunt of it all, laying each campaign out into 25-day chunks (in-game, thankfully, your friends can leave the sleeping bags at home) which are then split into Gathering, Hunting, and reconvening back at your home base.

As with something like the Divinity Original Sin Board Game, you can expect a lot of stats and data to pore over during the setup phase, and I'll admit that the more I laid out in the board, the more my partner (a board game novice and reluctant participant) seemed to glaze over.

Thankfully, much of the handholding is done via a quest book that offers a whole host of guidance to lead you on as complex or as simple missions as you'd prefer. I'm a big fan of the Arena Quests inclusion here, too, which became one of my favourite ways to play Monster Hunter World when I had less time.

Step by step

Once you're set up, you'll gather resources and learn more about your monster, and in doing so, you'll make the monster's main attack a little weaker. It's a little bit incongruous, but it's a clever way to incentivize making the most of your gathering and planning time. Once it's over, it's time to do some, well, it's time to hunt a monster.

The monster strikes first, using a bespoke deck of potential moves, and players respond to it in turn. I like giving the monster the opportunity to strike first because it adds to the unpredictable nature of a first encounter with something like Rathalos.

Stamina is spent to attack, but dodging also uses it, just like in the video game. That adds a level of choice to the moment-to-moment gameplay of the combat phase, and additional wrinkles like weapon sharpening and consuming healing potions make it feel as true to the core property as it could possibly be without challenging you to throw a monster figurine across the room (more on those shortly).

It doesn't take long to pick up the basics, and before long, you're rolling to find out what items you'll get from carving your prey, which then determines what you can use to grow stronger back at base.

Gotta whack 'em all

Just as with the main game, you'll move on to larger and larger monsters. Included in the Ancient Forest Core Set (the one I'm reviewing) are Great Jaguars, Tobi-Kadachi, Anajanath, Rathalos, and Azure Rathalos (although the latter two share a model).

There are also four Hunter characters included, and each of them looks impressive. In fact, my only issue is that after tackling the Azure Rathalos, I'm a little concerned about how much money I'm going to spend to complete the set.

That's probably a 'me' thing, as a big fan of the franchise, but with Wildspire Wastes having its own Core Set, a series of expansions including additional Hunter weapons, and the way sets can be used interchangeably, completionists will want to save up for the whole lot.

For now, though, I'm just as likely to keep these miniatures displayed on a shelf in my home as I am in the box when I'm not playing, and I think Steamforged Games has done an excellent job of translating the scale of the monsters - they dominate the board.

The Verdict

Monster Hunter World: The Board Game is mana from heaven for a franchise fanatic like myself. It's exciting, complex, and a worthy translation of one of the best video games of the last few years.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some expansions to budget for...