I’ve spent time with Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection beyond the demo that dropped on Nintendo Switch 2 following the Partner Showcase last week. At least I’m relatively sure. Weird inside baseball about games media coverage: occasionally this thing happens where you are doing a preview of a game and then a company drops a demo that is almost exactly what the preview you’re working on is about. This is one of those times. If you have a Switch 2 (or another console this game is coming to), you can go check out the demo right now. It seems to be a pretty generous one. If it indeed lines up with what my preview based on the full release is, it should be about five hours or so of gameplay. If you’d rather see what’s on the tin here, then read along for my three early takeaways from Monster Hunter Stories 3.

#1. Higher Production Values

The last time I touched a Monster Hunter Stories game, it was the Switch port of the 3DS original (when I reviewed it). To say there’s a gap between that bog-standard 3DS port and this Switch 2 (and not Switch 1) third entry would be an understatement. It feels like it’s a galaxy forward. The Switch 2 version runs at 30 fps and is relatively stable in my time with it. Voice acting is all over the place and a major emphasis on the story is ever present. You play as a prince of a kingdom who’s mom mysteriously disappeared with one of two twin Rathalos when they were a kid. The other of those Rathalos is left with you. You’re a ranger with a whole slew of side characters around you that have their own quest lines as you progress through the game. It’s not the most compelling plot in the world, but the overall direction and presentation is enough to keep me paying attention.

#2. Exploration is Important

The demo you can play only has one major area, but I was able to play around in a second major area as well. So far, these open areas feel more lived in, drawing some amount of inspiration from modern open world games to the point where you can find Korok-esque Poogies (pigs) in the world. You can climb towers to then go into a first-person view and drop markers on the map for interesting areas to explore. You can hop directly into Monstie Dens (no prelude dungeon required) to pick up new eggs and get new creatures. It’s very easy to just get lost roaming around the world, picking off some of the side quests as you build up and refine your monstie army.

#3. Quality of Life is a Focus

I bounced off of Monster Hunter Stories 2 pretty quickly, but a lot of that friction seems to be whittled away in 3 so far. I mentioned it before, but the Monstie Dens you go into from the overworld that get you eggs are no longer generic boilerplate dungeons. Instead, you just immediately pop in near the nest and try to grab your egg. At least early on, it’s very easy to make your selection and leave, but if you take too long, the monster in residence will come after you. That’s just one of many elements that have been way more streamlined in this third entry. You can easily funnel your extra Monsties into a neat Habit Restoration action where you release them into the wild. That will result in you getting better versions of some of those Monsties and also can lead to both new Monsties and new variants of existing ones becoming available. Some of the systems feel overwhelming, but it strives to be like Pokemon where, if you really care about EV and IV training, you can go deep into that. But if you just want to catch the cool creatures and fight some turn-based battles, you can do that too. Here’s hoping Monster Hunter Stories 3 keeps up with its approachability and versatility when it comes out on Switch 2 in March.