Monster Hunter Freedom 2: All you need to know!

[InsomniacsDream]

This is a review on the extremely popular MHF2 roleplaying game for the Playstation Portable. I suppose i will just put everything into different categories, and go from there.

First off, the graphics. They are amazing! I have never seen a PSP game that rivals MHF2 in terms of graphics besides Syphon Filter: Logan's Shadow.
Everything is flawless, from the textures to the weather. That's right, MHF2 has actual moving clouds, and changing weather patterns. The mountains off in the distance are actually still 3D which adds to the greatness of this game. The amount of armor pieces and weapons are great as well. There are over 1,500 items overall. A few of the armor sets are just re-skins of previous ones, but the re-skins look very professional. Although there is only one town in MHF2, it looks perfect. The snow, the people, the buildings, it's all exceptional. The graphics rival the PS2's, minus the smoke effects. Due to low RAM, the PSP can't quite handle as much on screen action as the PS2, but it does well anyways.

Now on to the gameplay. It's challenging, yet fun. Many people i know have spent countless hours playing this game, without putting it down. I myself have played upwards of 4 hours without even a 15 minute break. The goal of the game is to become a great hunter, while upgrading your gear as you go. In the end you are practically unstoppable, destroying everthing in your path. The game starts you off slow, making you collect herbs etc as part of a "mission." This helps you get used to how to interact with your world. You can also complete training missions accepted in town, which help you to fight a certain monster. Later on in the game, you must take down MASSIVE monsters, often 20 times the size of your character. As you progress through the game, you will upgrade a small farm on the outskirts of town, known as the "Poke Farm." This tiny farm will help you collect the needed materials to craft your armor/weapons. You are also required to keep your character well fed and warm/cool during missions. You have two bars to watch on your screen, your health and stamina. Stamina goes down when you sprint or attack with certain weapons, health goes down as you get damaged. Stamina can also be effected by being too hot/cold, like i said earlier. When choosing missions you have the option of doing it alone, or with friends too. I'm not going to say anymore because i don't want to spoil the whole game!

Now about the sound...The sound in MHF2 could use a little work. You will often find yourself in town listening to the same song loop at least three times before going on to your next mission. If you are on custom firmware you can get the plugin that allows you to listen to your own music while playing though. The weapon/creature sounds are OK, but not great either. The problem is you just get tired of hearing them OVER and OVER. This is a matter of opinion though, so don't give up on the game just because of the sound.

Replay value? The best of any PSP game (Besides maybe Crisis Core or FF: War of the Lions). The fact that people have got 400+ hours out of this game explains enough. It never gets old when you get that next set of armor, or that one ultimate weapon. You will often find yourself playing this game until...The next morning?

Final thoughts:
Graphics - 8/10
Gameplay - 9/10
Sound - 6/10
Replay Value - 10/10

Total - 8.3/10

If you are a fan of RPG's, this is for you. If you like a challenge, this is for you. If you need a PSP game to play since your computer is dead, this is for you. If you just want a well-rounded game, try this out!

[pspdude201]

nice review. Whats your total score of the game? Id give it a 8.3

[RavagedInferno]

YES! great review, and A good rating too! I used to play this game NON-Stop, (I'm at 3 star quests from Village Elder) but, Now......I don't have anyone to play with and Its confusing to set up Xlink.. .

[chevro1et]

Yea, I just migrated from MHF2 to MHP2G (with an English patch) and love the series. The extras and the streamlining in 2G really make things feel more polished. Things like combining in the box (without having to put anything in your items list, you can combine 99 potions at once if you want), buying items directly to the box, the auto x99 stacks in the box regardless of the item, sorting blade/ gunner armors in the armor shop, etc, etc. New monsters/ armors/ weapons, upgrades to existing weapons, felyne companion fighters (which can take on alot of different roles), yea, super fun.

[InsomniacsDream]

Oh i meant to ask someone, what is the difference between MHF2 and the Japanese version? I know it's got a slightly different name, but are there any other changes? I saw the patch for it and wondered; if people took time to translate the game, it must be worth it...Can someone explain to me the differences please?

[iedwardsIII]

Good review but you're definitely wrong about graphics being a 10/10.
I can name plenty of PSP games that came out before and after MHF2 that have better graphics.

Here are the differences as stated by wikipedia.

"New for this expansion is new monsters, new weapons, a whole new area called Ocean of Trees, G-Rank missions, and the option of hiring a Felyne Warrior to help the player on missions. The maximum HR that can be achieved is 9, weapons and armour now go up to rarity 10, weapons now have a new sharpness level "purple". Monster Hunter Portable 2nd G also allows for players to install all media files to the memory stick - further improving loading times."

[InsomniacsDream]

First off, please name the games, i'd really like to know. (i'm not being sarcastic lol)
Second, i rated the graphics 10/10 simply because they are so flawless. I have yet to encounter a fault with them. Sure there are games that rival it (crisis core for one), but the ones i have played that DO rival it have many other problems in the graphics department. Anyways, i love the feedback on my review, keep posting!
Also, remember that my review is also somewhat biased, like any other review out there...So it's sort of a matter of opinion if you think there is something better graphics wise

[iedwardsIII]

Games:
Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops
Silent Hill: Origins
God of War: Chains of Olympus

Most definitely more that I can't remember. Don't get me wrong, I love Monster Hunter, I've spent over 200 hours on this game. I have many if not all of the best longswords, bows, and armor. But when it comes to the graphics, while they are spectacular because it shows so much, they just aren't as spectacular as some of the graphics and animations of the games listed above. And I'm sorry but when GoW gets a 10 in graphics, how can MHF2 get the same?

[InsomniacsDream]

OooOoooOOoOo i forgot about those...Yes God of War and Silent Hill have great graphics, although MGS is behind all of these in my opinion. But yeah you are correct, those are very nice games as far as graphics go. I still say MHF2 is 10/10, and so are those games lol. GoW and Silent hill don't have weather, that i know of, but MHF2 does

[iedwardsIII]

You do realize that it's just repeating a drawn image pattern right? If that's what your basing graphical prowess on then the homebrew game Kurok should receive a 10/10 also.

The only real game that does weather well is the anticipated Far Cry 2. Giving a game a 10/10 for weather and not textures/animations/colors is a joke. And if you're still serious about a 10/10 in the graphics department for MHF2 then reading your reviews is a waste of time because all it is, is extremely biased opinions that just throw away the relevant facts.

[RavagedInferno]

Originally Posted by iedwardsIII

Good review but you're definitely wrong about graphics being a 10/10.
I can name plenty of PSP games that came out before and after MHF2 that have better graphics.

Name them, cause the three you named came out AFTER MHF2, and PO isn't in their league.

[iedwardsIII]

Hey Ravaged Inferno, why don't you read. I said before and after. And seeing as how this review came after all of them were released it doesn't really matter. And portable ops has way better textures and animations. If any of you want to argue about MHF2 graphics just look at the fruit stand in Pokke village and say that's a 10/10.

Maybe you should also learn to type because I only posted three games and only two of them came after MHF2. Portable Ops was before and is definitely in flat fruit stand MHF2's league.

Anyway, I'm eating now but I'll edit this later with the games.

[Switchblades]

Originally Posted by iedwardsIII

Hey Ravaged Inferno, why don't you read. I said before and after. And seeing as how this review came after all of them were released it doesn't really matter. And portable ops has way better textures and animations. If any of you want to argue about MHF2 graphics just look at the fruit stand in Pokke village and say that's a 10/10.

Maybe you should also learn to type because I only posted three games and only two of them came after MHF2. Portable Ops was before and is definitely in flat fruit stand MHF2's league.

Anyway, I'm eating now but I'll edit this later with the games.

Agreed, PO had better graphics and texture shading than MHF2. MHF2 is just the repetition of the same backdrop being brought on over and over and over and over again. The graphics section of this review could even be centered on MHF1 seeing how there was actually no improvements in the graphics department between F1 and F2 but a few maps were added.

[InsomniacsDream]

Meh i don't want to debate or make anyone mad...It's just a review, you don't have to believe a damn thing in it. It's only supposed to help with understanding the game, and what i thought about it. PO has great graphics too, and if you prefer them over MHF2 then okay Oh and about the weather, sure it's the same thing moving over and over, but what about the cool snow and rain effects? Just saying, i liked them as well, and have not seen that in many games.

[iedwardsIII]

The rain and snow effects are exactly the same type of thing...
Myself and others have seen that in many games.