Capcom revealed new information on what's to come from the Monster Hunter franchise at the 2021 Tokyo Game Show in September 2021. The PC port of Monster Hunter Rise, and its upcoming paid DLC expansion, Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak, were among the top announcements of the event.
This expansion promises to build upon the foundation of one of the best multiplayer games on PC with more challenging quests, a setting to explore, new gear to collect, and new monsters to slay. This DLC is scheduled to be released sometime in the summer of 2022. In the meantime, here is everything you need to know about Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak.
What is Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak?
Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak is a paid DLC expansion to Monster Hunter Rise, the newest mainline title in Capcom's Monster Hunter franchise. The expansion focuses on the same cycle of hunting giant monsters and using their body parts to forge powerful gear to tackle bigger foes.
The premise of the original Monster Hunter Rise had you protect the peaceful Kamura Village from monsters driven mad by a mysterious phenomenon called The Rampage. Sunbreak takes shortly after this event and it sees your player character journey to a far-away outpost named Elgado at the behest of Fiorayne, a knight of the Royal Order.
When you arrive, you discover the kingdom in which Elgado resides is under threat by frequent monster attacks. The local wildlife has been increasingly unstable, attacking everything in sight for no discernable reason. The only clue so far as to what has been causing this disaster is the mysterious Elder Dragon, Malzeno.
What new features will Sunbreak bring?
As with previous expansions to Monster Hunter titles like Monster Hunter World: Iceborne and Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate, Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak will bring new features to the base game. For starters, it will feature Master Rank, a difficulty ranking that contains tough missions that make High Rank quests look easy by comparison. Master Rank quests will also reward players with new weapons and armor sets more powerful than the High Rank versions and with new designs to match their might.
There will also be new locales to explore and a new base of operations filled with characters to interact with. One of the new confirmed maps is the Citadel, a mountainous/forest area that has a ruined castle within that Malzeno is reported to roost at.
Monster Hunter Rise had a unique quest type called The Rampage where you defended the gates of Kamura village from waves of monsters in tower defense-esque missions. There is no current information on whether these Rampage Quests will return or whether Sunbreak will replace them with a new type of quest altogether.
What new monsters will Sunbreak have?
Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak will feature all the monsters of the base game while adding original monsters and fan favorites to the roster. In contrast to Rise's new monsters that were inspired by ancient Japanese yōkai, Sunbreak's new monsters are more akin to creatures of European folklore.
For instance, the flagship monster of Sunbreak, Malzeno, seems to be themed after vampires. It lives in a dilapidated castle, it only comes out in the dead of night, and it is seen biting the neck of a Rathalos in the debut teaser trailer. The second new monster, Lunagaron, is a dog-like Fanged Wyvern that transforms to become more wolf-like while exposed to the light of a full moon, just like a werewolf.
Source: Capcom
As for returning monsters, we have the Shogun Ceanataur. This is a giant crab monster that debuted all the way back in Monster Hunter 2 on the PlayStation 2. It attacks its prey with razor-sharp claws and sometimes uses the skulls of other monsters as a shell, like a Gravios, for example. Monster Hunter Rise will also see the return of Astalos, an electrical, dragonfly-like Wyvern that was originally one of the flagship monsters of Monster Hunter Generations.
Will Sunbreak have multiplayer?
Just like with the base game, you can play with your friends via 4-player online co-op. Quests in Monster Hunter Rise are divided into Village Quests and Hub Quests. Village Quests are offline-only quests meant for solo players that also act the game's story mode. And Hub Quests are where you can play with your friends online, but they can be played solo and offline as well.
The difficulty of Hub Quests scales around how many players there are during a hunt. For example, if there are two players in a quest, the monster will have more health than they did when there was only one player. Monster Hunter Rise also allows players to bring an NPC ally with them in multiplayer hunts. A big dog called a Palamute that will help you travel faster, for example, or a Palico, a humanoid cat that can deploy traps or healing items for the party.
Are there any pre-order bonuses?
There will be a pre-order bonus where you can obtain the Loyal Dog Costume layered armor set for the Palamute and the Striped Cat Costume layered armor set for the Palico.
Are there any special or limited editions?
There will be a Deluxe digital version to purchase that contains the base game and several cosmetic items:
- The Dragonsbane Layered Armor set for the player
- The C Hound Layered Armor set for Palamutes
- The F Devout Layered Armor Set for Palicos
- The "Take Aim" Gesture set
- The "Fight" Pose set
- The Elegant Eye facial makeup
- The Fluffy Curls hairstyle
What will the PC specs be?
As an expansion of an existing game, Sunbreak has more or less similar PC specs as the base version of Monster Hunter Rise.
Minimum PC spec requirements:
| Category | PC specs |
|---|---|
| OS | Windows 10 (64-bit) |
| Processor | Intel Core i3-4130 or Core i5-3470 or AMD FX-6100 |
| Memory | 8GB RAM |
| Graphics | NVIDIA GeForce GT 1030 (DDR4) or AMD Radeon RX 550 |
| DirectX | Version 12 |
| Network | Broadband internet connection |
| Storage | 30GB available space |
Additional notes: The game will run at 1080p/30 FPS when the graphics settings are set to "Low." System requirements are subject to change during game development.
Recommended PC spec requirements:
| Category | PC specs |
|---|---|
| OS | Windows 10 (64-bit) |
| Processor | Intel Core i5-4460 or AMD FX-8300 |
| Memory | 8GB RAM |
| Graphics | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 (VRAM 3GB) or AMD Radeon RX 570 (VRAM 4GB) |
| DirectX | Version 12 |
| Network | Broadband internet connection |
| Storage | 36GB available space |
Additional notes: The game will run at 1080p/30 FPS when the graphics settings are set to "Average." System requirements are subject to change during game development.
Will it feature cross-platform play between PC and console?
Capcom has confirmed via Twitter that the PC versions of Monster Hunter Rise and Sunbreak will not feature cross-platform play or even cross-platform save features with the Nintendo Switch version.
However, it is aware of the growing demand for cross-play support in Monster Hunter titles. So, it is probable it will try to implement cross-play support in future Monster Hunter games.
Will Monster Hunter Rise or Sunbreak ever come to Xbox?
There has been an exclusive report from Insider Gaming (which has been been made official by Capcom) that Monster Hunter Rise will be receiving Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, and PlayStation 5 ports on Jan. 20, 2023, while Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak's current-gen ports will be coming during Spring 2023.
They are reported to receive the visual and performance improvements of the PC version such as 4K resolution and 60fps enhancements along with 3D audio. Also, it said that the Xbox versions will be coming to Xbox Game Pass.
What is the launch price and availability?
The price of Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak will be $40 at launch, and it will be available for purchase on the Nintendo Switch's integrated store and PC via Steam. To access Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak's content, you will need to buy the base game and complete the in-game, 7-Star Hub Quest: Serpent Goddess of Thunder.
What is the release date?
Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak on PC will launch at the same time as the Nintendo Switch version on June 30, 2022.
