1st look at MH Tri

So I picked up my copy of MH tri at my local EB, rushed home, installed my Wii and started rocking up the long anticipated tri.

(Boring history begins)
So I first encountered MH series whilst at Japan June 09. Tri was due to be released during Aug the same year. Since MH was really a big thing (probably THE big thing), there were alot of publicity surrounding it. I heard of MH series from an otaku friend of mine, but never paid much attention. Very coincidentally, I got a copy of 2G in a bundle with a PSP. Though never played 2G even today, it planted enough curiosity in me, which eventually lead me to purchase a copy of MHFU. And yes, I got hooked ever since.
(boring history ends)

I clocked about 4 hours last night into the game. It is still as addictive as the previous instalments.

Graphics
Graphic is a lot better rendered than MHFU, though quite low res compared to the standard of hardcore gaming lately (PS3/XBox360). Hardly Capcom's fault, as Wii was never known for graphic superiority. Texts are a bit small for my liking, since I needed to sqint a little bit from time to time (though this could be due to my shortsightedness). Environment is beautiful, as to MHFU. Quest hug, the Mogo village is a lot smaller than Pokke, which is a plus IMO (since you don't have to spend 10 seconds running from one end to another. Cut scene is fully 3D animated, which is a plus.

Control
You may choose to use the nunchucke (awkward) or Wii classic controller (finger hooking FTW). You still need 2 DPads/analogue sticks (one for moving, one for camera, unless you use L trigger for centering of the camera). Good news is that finger hooking haters can use the two sticks. Bad news is that finger hooking hurts a lot now, since the stick and D pad are on different elevations. One change I dislike about Tri is that, the dodge after GS swing will use the PoV of the character, rather than camera.

For example, you have your character facing the camera, did an overhead smash, and held down LEFT in the analogue stick while tapped X. Now, instead of rolling to the LEFT of the camera (RIGHT of the character), it rolls to the LFFT of the character. This left me rather unsettling, and dodging in the wrong place at the wrong time. I have yet tried another weapon than GS. Hopefully it can be fixed one way or another.

Edit: I fail. This can be changed via options.

Underwater control is slightly difficult, but definitely a fun new way of expanding the MH horizon. So hope we could have done that in MHFU. No longer need to bring 10 sonic bombs to Plessy hunts, or avoid hitting it in water.

Gameplay (May contain minor spoilers. Read at your own risk)
Well, MH was never known for epic storylines, spoilers really matters not. Maps are a lot smaller, which means it feel as if the battle is a lot fast paced. Underwater hunt is ridiculously fun and well designed.

New moves were added to GS (and other melee weapons, so I was informed), and adds a new dimension to the game. Yes, I did enjoy knocking out that poor kelbi and carved the horn off it (this is actually quite clever). Yes, I did try to knock out the great Jaggi, failing miserably and THEN realised I was provided with 2 flash bombs. (Should have just used hammer instead). And yes I did encounter the great Lagorise (signature monster for Tri, much like Tigrex for F2 and Naruga for FU). But this is so over done... even in FU there was a gathering mission where you could encounter Tigrex.

NPC dialogues are a lot better designed. They actually have a personality/sense of humour now (not like the dry one's black belt instructor used to have in FU). One slight disappointment was the lack of starter weapon. In FU, you were given a full set of starter weapon, and you are free to choose any one to your liking. In Tri, you were given a SnS and a GS. I guess this decision was made to not overwhelm new players, so I can kind of understand it.

Concluding remarks:
Definitely awesome. Capcom is trying to break into the US/Eur market with Tri. I felt the advertisement campaign was a bit unorthodox. The game is definitely solid (so far). I have yet gone into the realm of online play, which Capcom was kind enough to waiver the fee for non-Japanese players.