“I wish I had a time machine”, I murmured during an online call with some friends. I could feel their anticipation of what I was about to say next. Give up on writing to become a woodcutter? “So I could see fewer ‘Khazan has fallen’ screens”, most burst into laughter followed up by “Lucas, you should stop playing those games”. They are not wrong. “First Berserker: Khazan” was the next one in a long line of “souls likes”, “Nioh-likes”, “punishment machines”, however you want to call it. Yes, dear reader, it is one of those games. Yeah, you know the one. The type of action RPG that had a massive surge in the past decade. Stamina meter, punishing bosses, character customization, learning attack patterns and—hopefully—beating a boss after 30 or 40 attempts. The thing is, “First Berserker: Khazan” is both this type of game, and isn’t.
If you haven’t jumped on the Monster Hunter train by now, you’re certainly aware of its incredible rise to status and fame in the West over the series’ past several releases. Capcom’s continued bid to make the Monster Hunter franchise more approachable and playable to more people, while constantly refining the grand formula has resulted in what is probably the most tightly balanced version of Monster Hunter yet. I would go as far to say that it’s the best Monster Hunter ever, if it wasn’t constantly getting in its own way. Instead, it’s a baffling mix of incredible fun and handwringing boredom that eventually reaches its potential after a whole lot of stumbles.
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