The Capcom Games Showcase gave us a lot of new content to digest, but the reveals for the upcoming Sunbreak expansion were the highlight for Monster Hunter fans.
Sunbreak is the upcoming G-Rank expansion for Monster Hunter Rise, and is a massive expansion that will add a new level of difficulty to the game, new features and a whole new plotline to enjoy.
These features include new Skillbind attacks to combat monsters and NPC hunts where rather than battle a Monster alone, you can now go along with your favoured NPC from the game.
This makes the prospect of Sunbreak fascinating, and until this point, the general sentiment for Sunbreak has been positive, with many hoping for a greater challenge than what was offered in the base game.
During the Capcom Games Showcase, however, Monster Hunter fans got a look at some of the monsters that will be coming with the expansion – and it was surprising to say the least.
The two standouts were the reveal of Gore Megala and Espinas, two monsters that most were not expecting to see in another Monster Hunter game.
Gore Megala
The master of Frenzy and the flagship of Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate, Gore Megala is one of the most iconic monsters in the franchise.
Due to the number of people whose first game was 4 Ultimate, Gore Megala is potentially the most well-regarded flagship monster in the series. His reveal will have been a pleasant surprise to many – myself included.
You would think that given his popularity, Gore Megala would have been brought into more games than just 4 Ultimate but due to the nature of his unique mechanic, the Frenzy Virus, it simply wasn’t feasible or expected. Simply put – he would steal the show.
In-game, the Frenzy Virus results from Gore Megala spreading a black, mist-like substance that corrupts other creatures, resulting in hyper aggression and potentially wiping out entire ecosystems.
In 4 Ultimate, the entire plotline of the game revolved around combating Gore Megala and the Frenzy virus due to the threat it posed to the natural world.
Therefore, introducing him in any other game is difficult if one wants to maintain in-game continuity.
For instance, he did appear in Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate but he was just another random hunt with no greater significance, which was fine since the game was intended as a round-up of the greatest hits.
It will be interesting to see whether Rise is also including him just for the sake of it or if his Frenzy Virus will have a tangible impact on the setting.
His reveal also raises the question of whether or not his final form will be included in Sunbreak at launch or with later updates as well – his final form being Shagaru Magala, a golden dragon-like monster whose power and ferocity are legend.
Espinas
While Gore Megala’s inclusion was unexpected it was still within the realms of possibility as he came from a mainline game.
Espinas, on the other hand, is the flagship monster of Monster Hunter Frontier, an MMO spin-off game that many fans in the west have never even played.
Most veterans up until this point have written off ever seeing a monster from Frontier appear in a mainline game, but now we know Espinas is in Sunbreak.
Espinas, mechanically speaking, is far easier to include than Gore Megala since he is just a cool Flying Wyvern-type monster – as strong as an Elder Dragon, but still just a regular monster with no ecosystem-destroying traits.
While exciting, his inclusion also presents a far more intriguing possibility – the addition of more monsters from Frontier.
Frontier has one of the franchise’s largest rosters of unique and exciting monsters. Hence, the potential to see more of them appear in generation 5 with modern graphics and mechanics is an exciting thought for Monster Hunter fans.
Other monsters
During the reveal, we also got to see Daimyo Hermitaur – a giant crab monster from the second generation of the Franchise, a fire-based subspecies for Rakna-Kadaki,- the spider monster introduced in Rise, and some footage of the Dragonfly Wyvern Astalos – another fan favourite and one we knew was being included.
We also know that Lucent Nargacuga will be one of the monsters included in the first of many post-release free title updates, which will continue to expand Rise’s roster this year and next.
Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak will be released on Switch and PC on 30 June 2022, and if you’re interested, you can check the game’s demo out.
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