In Japan, portable gaming reigns supreme. With the market full of A-rank titles like Dragon Quest IX and MGS: Peace Walker, gaming on the go is a mainstay that far overwhelms anything on a console. Last December, CAPCOM released a new Monster Hunter title to help capture the hearts (and hands) of that player base. At first glance Monster Hunter Portable 3rd appears to just be a port of the wii hit released earlier that year, Monster Hunter Tri. However, within moments, you can see that the similarities are only cosmetic.

First off, allow me to state that the Monster Hunter series is most definitely NOT for a casual audience. Aside from the few optional weapon tutorials, the games makes no effort to hold your hand and teach you how to play. So much of this game is based on trial and error that you won’t know how to take down a hunt without first studying both the monster and yourself. Coupled with the fact that the game is still currently a Japanese exclusive, this most definitely isn’t a game you can just rent and hope to finish in a weekend. more »