Capcom is back with the final two videos showcasing the impending release of the Iceborne expansion for Monster Hunter World. Of course, if you’ve been following my coverage so far, these aren’t relating to new monsters, or even the new map – it’s for the updated moves on all of your favorite weapons, now that a new mechanic has been introduced to the game. Check out my previous coverage for all things relating to Iceborne’s newest mechanics, including the all-new Clutch Claw tool, the Great Sword and the Long Sword, the Sword and Shield, and Dual Blades, the Hammer and Hunting Horn, the Gunlance and the Lance, the Charge Blade and Switch Axe, and of course the Insect Glaive and the Bow.
We now have the final two weapon mechanic videos, this time showcasing the updated Heavy Bowgun and Light Bowgun. Check out the videos below.
First off, we have the Heavy Bowgun, another slow but heavy hitter akin to something like a Great Sword. The footage starts off with the Heavy Bowgun’s Clutch Claw attack, which in turn allows the Hunter to unload a heavy barrage on the monster part targeted. According to Capcom, this attack is the only mounting attack that can deal significant damage enough to soften the monster part, that is to say, weaken it for possible part breaks.
Another new mechanic shown is actually a returning one, notably absent during the launch of Monster Hunter World. I’m talking, of course, about the Scope, which lets you shoot the Heavy Bowgun in first-person mode. Apparently, the re-introduction of this feature adds the Super Critical Range, an updated Critical Distance mechanic. If you managed to shoot a monster at this given range, you will deal the most amount of damage possible with this weapon, something which is compounded by the inclusion of the Scope.
Next up, we have the Light Bowgun, and the video shows the many new mechanics involved with its use of Mods. We see one of the Mods with the Hunter sliding and reloading at the same time, which opens up new exciting possibilities in terms of traversal for the Light Bowgun.
Of course, the video also showed some gameplay with the Clutch Claw, which sees the Hunter bury a Wyvern Blast on the leg of a Diablos, followed by her jumping away while shooting at the explosive for an amazingly stylish finish. The Mods go in-depth at this point, showing that you can actually get one that allows you to plant Wyvern Blasts while sliding away, which is great as an escaping tool from monsters that like to use their bodies to attack in front of them.
Monster Hunter World: Iceborne releases on the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One on September 6, 2019. The PC version on Steam launches sometime during Winter of this year.
