Japanese video-gamers love monsters, and they’ve got the franchises to prove them. Pokemon has been successfully transplanted to the point where it might be considered an American icon as much as Japanese, and Monster Rancher enjoyed a brief period of success. Monster Hunter is a more mature series than either of those, and coincidentally also the one that hasn’t caught on as easily. Monster Hunter 2 for the Playstation 2 did have some success, but something still wasn’t clicking. Now comes Monster Hunter Tri, and this time might be the charm.The most obvious thing about the game is that it is big, in so many ways. First, there are the monsters you’ll hunt. The models fill the screen and provoke wonder and fear (I have to kill that thing?) in equal parts. An early encounter with a Wyvern named Lagriacrus makes this point for the game very succinctly. The game’s scope is also huge. Considering all the exploration and customization possible, it’s very easy to spend over a hundred hours with the game. And that’s not even counting online play. (more…)