Monster Hunter: World - Iceborne Release Date, Price And Trailer

Capcom's Monster Hunter: World, the latest installment in the Monster Hunter franchise, will be getting a paid DLC called Iceborne. Since the game revolves around hunters working as a team to track and capture massive beasts, players can expect to see a whole roster of exciting monsters to face off against. The new creatures included the DLC are all native to the wintry location known as Hoarfrost Reach, where the expansion story will take place. Along with this new locale comes a different set of challenges for players to face, such as heavy snow and freezing cold. 

Iceborne will also include new equipment, weapon combos, and game mechanics, such as the ability to ride smaller monsters and have your Palico revive you with a Vigorwasp. Monster Hunter: World – Iceborne will be released on Xbox One and PlayStation 4 consoles in September 2019. PC players, on the other hand, will have to wait until later.

Monster Hunter: World - Iceborne will be coming to Xbox One and PlayStation 4 consoles on Sept. 6, 2019. PC players, however, will have to wait until the holiday season to play the DLC. As of right now, no official date has been announced for when the expansion will be released on PC. This comes as no surprise considering that the original Monster Hunter: World did not become available for PC until more than six months after it was released on consoles. Unfortunately, it looks like PC fans will, once again, have to wait a little longer. The Windows port won't be reaching desktops until January 2020.

The content should be exactly the same, however, so as long as you're patient, you'll get to play the whole thing. We do know that in order to begin the new Iceborne storyline, players must have completed the main story and reached Hunter Rank 16 or above.

Capcom announced that all future Monster Hunter: World content would be free when the game was first released back in January 2018. However it seems they changed their mind with the Iceborne expansion. Since then, the official Monster Hunter: World website has been taking pre-orders for the expansion ... for a sizable fee.

Right now the expansion can be pre-ordered for $39.99 for players who already own the game. A Master Edition bundle including the full Monster Hunter: World game along with the DLC is also available for pre-order for $59.99. The full bundle pre-order can be processed through several different merchants including the Capcom store, Amazon, Gamestop, and Best Buy. The standalone expansion can be purchased through either the PlayStation Store or the Xbox Games Store, depending on your console. A Steam version will be arriving sometime later.

Several different trailers have already been released for the new expansion. The gameplay reveal trailer initially stirred up the most excitement, giving players their first glimpse into all the new features and wildlife coming to Monster Hunter: World. Since then, many more specialized trailers have been released. These short trailers each focused on a specific part of the new expansion, such as heavy weapons, light weapons, technical weapons, and the expansion's story. 

The most recent trailer offered a more in-depth look into the new Hoarfrost Reach locale and all the features that come along with it. This comprehensive video even included several short tutorials on how to use new gadgets such as the clutch claw and flinch shot. The trailer also gave more details about Seliana, the Research Commission's new headquarters in the Hoarfrost Reach. Just like Astera, this new settlement will include a Workshop, Resource Center, and Canteen.

The main storyline of Monster Hunter: World revolves around the Elder Crossing, when the most powerful creatures, known as Elder Dragons, migrate to the region known as the New World. The story begins with the Hunter studying Zorah Magdaros, an Elder Dragon as massive as a Mountain, who is revealed to be dying. The hunters hatch a plan to capture Zorah Magdaros, but their efforts are thwarted by another Elder Dragon named Nergigante. Nergigante plans to feed on Zorah Magdaros after he has perished, but Hunters are able to drive it away so Magdaros can safely pass away in the ocean.

This leads to a chase after Nergigante to the Elder's Recess, an area deep in the Everstream full of stored bio-energy, which causes the Elder Dragons distress and disrupts ecosystems. The Hunter finally defeats Nergigante and therefore calms the other monsters. However, the story is not over, as the source of energy within the Elder's Recess is revealed to be a baby Elder Dragon named Xeno'jiiva. After the infant Elder Dragon is defeated, the Hunter is given the opportunity to stay in the New World to continue their research.

Iceborne features a new campaign set after the events of the Monster Hunter: World main storyline. The DLC also includes a new area to explore named Hoarfrost Reach, and players will unlock different parts of the region as they progress through the campaign. Capcom developers have confirmed that the fully unlocked Hoarfrost Reach area will "be the largest region in Monster Hunter: World so far." Since Hoarfrost Reach has an Arctic Tundra Biome, the cold weather will drain players stamina faster. The only way to remedy the effects of the freezing climate is by making a Hot Drink or warming up in a hot spring. Trudging through heavy snow will also slow down a character's movement. 

In each Monster Hunter: World location, there are always several harmless native creatures lurking about, and Iceborne is no exception. One example of the new endemic life are Stonebills, a type of bird. Another creature you can run into wandering the map is the Rime Beetle. Resembling dung beetles, these insects roll around snowballs that contain Crystalburst, a new type of slinger ammo.

A higher difficulty setting called Master Rank is being added to Monster Hunter: World around the same time as the expansion in order to make missions more challenging for ambitious players. Reminiscent of the G-Rank from previous Monster Hunter games, this rank pits hunters against more deadly versions of the Monsters they can find around the world. 

This new dynamic difficulty setting will not require players to purchase Iceborne and includes a third difficulty setting specifically for hunting parties consisting of two players. Another feature arriving with Master Rank is an automatic difficulty-scaling mechanic. This feature will allow Monster Hunter: World to make adjustments in order to reduce the difficulty of a fight if players either leave or are disconnected during a hunt. This means that if your fellow hunters drop out, you will no longer be facing off against monsters that are intended to be taken down by a group of players.

In addition, even within the same setting, the difficulty will be rateched up for Iceborne. Developers say this is to bring the experience more in line with Monster Hunter games of old.

Each of the 14 existing weapon types will be receiving improvements that complement their unique playstyle. For example, a move called the savage axe slash will be added to the Charge Blade. This attack causes the weapon's axe blades to spin wildly as hunters deliver a flurry of blows that increase the amount of damage dealt with each swing of the axe. 

The Hunting Horn is another weapon gaining some new moves. Players wielding the Hunting Horn will now be able to perform the Echo Waves attack in order to either deal damage to downed monsters or buff their teammates. Hunters who prefer to use ranged attacks will be happy to hear that the Bow will be getting an entirely new attack known as thousand dragons. This offensive assault combines slinger ammo and arrows to deal massive damage to enemies. These are just a handful of the new improvements and combos that will be added to the different weapon types with Iceborne.

The Slinger has been outfitted with new features such as the Clutch Claw and the Flinch Shot. The Clutch Claw allows players more direct control when grappling onto large monsters. Depending on your weapon type, attacks while clinging to monsters will either soften the monster's hide or cause them to drop slinger ammo. 

Clinging to monsters also provides players with more opportunities to control the fight. By using a claw attack on a monster's head, hunters can force monsters to change direction. After a clinging attack, players can use the Flinch Shot to stun monsters by unloading all of their Slinger ammo at once. This barrage of slinger ammo will send monsters charging away from the blast, and can be used to slam monsters into walls or drop them off cliffs for devastating damage. The slinger mechanics have also been adjusted so that it can now be fired while the player wields any weapon.

The Iceborne expansion will of course include a new roster of monsters native to the tundra environment of Hoarfrost Reach. This includes smaller monsters such as the Cortos, a new type of wingdrake that can be used to hitch a ride across the map. The expansion also includes a number of large monsters such as the brute Wyvern Banbaro. This monster's thick coat allows it to survive in the icy climate, while it's gigantic antlers can hurl boulders and trees as it charges at Hunters. 

Another large creature that can be found in Hoarfrost Reach is the Beotodus. This piscine Wyvern can swim through snowbanks, and usually inhabits areas where snow is deep and therefore Hunter movement is slower. Some monsters will even be returning from past Monster Hunter games, such as the herd creature Popo and the deadly flying wyvern Nargacuga. The most exciting beast that will be arriving with the expansion is the new Elder Dragon Velkhana. This monster is rumored to be able to freeze its prey with an icy blast of breath and will be the main antagonist of the new story. 

The Iceborne expansion also comes with an entirely new way for players to travel across the map. By selecting the new "Raider Ride Call" from the item bar, hunters will now be able to summon Tailrider monsters that they can mount and ride around the map. Although players will not be able to directly control the monster they ride, they can set waypoints for the Tailrider monster to follow. Hunters can set a destination by placing these waypoints at locations on the map or use them to find specific monsters. 

If you drop a pin on a large monster, your Tailrider will start tracking your quarry. If no destination is set, the monster will automatically start following nearby tracks. While the mounted monster does the legwork of tracking via the Scoutflies, you will be free to prepare for the hunt while on the move. While riding your Tailrider, you can still gather materials, use items, and even fire your slinger. Each region has its own unique Tailrider monster, although they are usually a variant of smaller creatures such as Jagras, Shamos, and Girros.

It turns out that hunter weapons and gadgets are not the only aspects of Monster Hunter: World getting an upgrade with the DLC. Your loyal hunting partners known as Palicoes will also be receiving a variety of new content. This includes entirely new moves and Master Rank gear for your cuddly companions. Some of the new Palico equipment, such as the Tigrex Whammer and Felyne Tigrex Mail, will need to be crafted using materials gathered from monsters around Hoarfrost Reach. 

Another Palico improvement is the new Vigorwasp Revival feature. Palicoes have always been able to heal players on the battlefield by using their Vigorwasp Spray, but now they will actually be able to wake up unconscious hunters. Shown briefly, your fuzzy companion can revive you by lobbing a glob of Vigorwasp goo on top of you if a monster knocks you out. Hunters still need to tread carefully though, as the Vigorwasp Revival will be limited to one use per hunt.

Hunters themselves will be receiving a variety of new armor and decoration options, some of which can be acquired by simply purchasing the Iceborne expansion. The Master Edition and expansion-only version will both include a number of bonus cosmetic items such as the Silver Knight Layered armor, three emotes, two sticker sets, two unique character customization options, and a room decoration. Players who preorder the expansion will also receive the Yukumo layered armor, regardless of which edition they chose. 

Many of the other Iceborne armor sets can be acquired by gathering materials from monsters indigenous only to Hoarfrost Reach, such as the Banbaro or the Beotodus. Some of these new armor sets include the Direwolf Armor Set, Legiana Armor Set, Girros Armor Set, Banbaro Armor Set, Beo Armor Set, and Anja Armor Set. Another addition is the fact that mantles are also now available to be upgraded with decoration slots, although these decorations will only be active while the mantle is equipped.