This is a series that celebrates great UI in games, especially when they still hold up stunningly in greyscale. And today I’m going to discuss Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin.
As it’s what a player first see of a game, the title screen conveys not only the what of the game. (It’s a game about Monster Hunter RPG and it’s about ruins.) It also sets the tune for the story. The “ruin” in the subtitle echoes the ruin in the background, and I know will be expecting an adventure.
All the interactable elements on the map are labeled when you are in its reach. Same as Marvel’s Midnight Sun, I like the graphical representations of the markers.
The weapons in the game are broken down to three types damages, slash, pierce, and blunt. You get to experiment with what type of damage is more effective with which parts of the monster. The UI keeps a record of the weapons you have tried so you don’t need to guess again. I like how obvious the winning type of weapon looks on the screen.
The quick time events during the battles are intense! And I love the instruction of what to do during the quick time event is on the screen.
The combat result screen is the only UI in the game that doesn’t follow a strict alignment. It’s fun. And also because the result screen is in between the combats and the game view, it can afford to look more like in the game space.
To contract with the result screen, the menus are gridded and provides a nice contrast with subtitles and body areas.
The last screen for today is the egg hatching screen. I love the combination of 3D and UI. It really gets me to think about how can I find opportunities to incorporate 3d elements into the UI.
I always love a great “un-boxing” experience. If you pay attention to the patterns on the eggs, you would know what monstie is in the egg. When you hatch an unfamiliar egg for the first time, it’s so satisfying.
