Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak is just around the corner, with fans currently taking part in a demo on PC and Switch to get ready for the launch of this "massive expansion." The initial Sunbreak offerings should include more than enough to keep people occupied, from hunts with brand-new monsters like Malzeno to returning favorites like Gore Magala, not to mention the addition of Switch Skill Swap and other mechanical features. However, the promise of ongoing content releases is just as exciting.
As with Monster Hunter World: Iceborne, Capcom has announced that a series of Free Title Updates will come to Sunbreak. The first is scheduled for August, featuring the return of the Forlorn Arena map and Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate's "Rare Species" Lucent Nargacuga. These Rare Species are just one classification of variant monsters that have appeared in the Monster Hunter franchise, ranging from common subspecies to creatures that are unique to each title - such as Generations' Deviants. Any number of variant monsters would be fun to see return with Rise's Title Updates, but a few might stand out.
Molten Tigrex
Another Rare Species in the vein of Lucent Nargacuga, Molten Tigrex was introduced in Monster Hunter 4. It stands out from the basic Tigrex species for its imposing size, dark coloring, and access to Blastblight. Molten Tigrex also leans into the sense one is fighting a steam-powered train, one which starts slow but ramps up through multiple enraged states that add attacks from other variants. This species is fought exclusively in the Tower Summit arena map, where players can also encounter the Silver Rathalos and Gold Rathian - who similarly appear in Freedom Unite's original version of Forlorn Arena (called Tower 3).
Espinas Rare Species
Espinas is a particularly unqiue addition to Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak given it originates from the MMO spin-off Monster Hunter Frontier. Frontier has a huge catalog of exclusive monsters introduced between 2007 and closure in 2019, so Espinas should only be the start of its merger into the mainline series - adding extra variants would help even this one monster feel more established. Variants like Zenith Espinas might be more interesting, but the concept of "Zeniths" as a whole likely deserve its own reintroduction.
Sand Barioth
More common subspecies for older monsters should also appear in Free Title Updates after Sunbreak adds subspecies like Magma Almudron and Aurora Somnacanth. One which hasn't been seen since Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate is Sand Barioth, despite the basic Ice-elemental species reappearing in Generations, World, and Rise. Sand Barioth isn't hugely different from its base counterpart, but swapping out snowstorms for dust devils makes for an interesting enough fight. It also notably appeared in 3 Ultimate's Sandy Plains map, which was recreated as an open-world environment for Rise.
Ruby Basarios
The Gravios and Basarios lines of Flying Wyverns tend to be controversial thanks to their rocky hides and abundance of status-inflicting laser blasts or close-range explosions. Yet Ruby Basarios is an interesting case in that it leans hard into status conditions, but is balanced by its overall rarity. Beyond the Monster Hunter Stories RPG franchise, Ruby Basarios has only appeared in Monster Hunter 4's Everwood: a roguelike feature in which hunters could attempt randomized variations of a few set terrain types. Giving this variant more time in the spotlight would be great, especially for its Sleep-inflicting weapons like the Lullaby Facemelter Hunting Horn.
Voljang
While Rare Species and more Apex, Zenith, or even Deviant variants would all be fun to see, Origin Species are one concept from Monster Hunter Frontier G that would be great to see in a mainline title. As their name suggests, the current four Origin Species monsters are meant to have inherited more traits from their ancestors. Given Rajang's infamy as a challenging high-rank monster, reintroducing the fire-spewing, devil-horned Voljang could be a great place to start. However, others like Teostra's icy Origin Species Toa Tesukatora would be just as interesting. From there, Capcom could consider expanding upon the concept with brand-new forces of nature introduced in Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak's Free Title Updates.
Monster Hunter Rise is available now for PC and Switch. Its Sunbreak expansion launches on June 30, 2022.
