Hitting dragons in the face, yet again

I always find it surprising when I realise that I've been playing Monster Hunter for several years. Somehow it still seems like such a young series, and yet I've been playing it for almost four, maybe even five years. Being a Capcom game, it's obviously had it's fair share of releases, expanded editions and ports, but I still feel like I've only ever scraped the surface.

For reasons I never quite grasped, I didn't take very strongly to Monster Hunter 3 on the Wii. Something about it felt... off. As if it was lacking a special ingredient. I am fairly sure this is a reaction that is purely my own, as it did very successfully, and has already spawned two expanded editions. Neither of those have been translated yet, and as it's been out for a year or so in Japan, I picked up a cheap(ish) second hand copy of Monster Hunter Portable 3rd.

First thing I noticed is that it's actually a lot easier than 3 on the Wii. At least, I am fairly sure that is the case, as I struggled to do the early quests on that, and yet I'm nearing end game on Portable 3rd. I am fairly sure I have not dramatically improved without playing the game, so it seems like the most natural conclusion to come to. Not that I am complaining, as it's actually let me feel I've got into the game properly for possibly the first time, despite having played five different editions already.

Aside from that, it's more of the same really. Which I definitely find a good thing, I like that Monster Hunter doesn't try to keep reinventing itself, or overcomplicate itself with lots of hidden criteria, which is how I felt God Eater and Lord of Arcana worked, which were both attempts in what seems to be a hunting genre.

So, Monster Hunter Portable 3rd has done a good job of reinvigorating my interest, which had been almost completely dulled after 3. The concerning thing about this development, is that I've found myself interested in 4, which is going to be on the 3DS. If I end up getting tempted enough, it's going to be an expensive risk, which is almost exactly the case I had with 3.

More thought may be required.