American fans of the Monster Hunter franchise will soon be once again turned loose upon an unsuspecting population of exotic prey.

Capcom previewed its new soon-to-be-imported Monster Hunter Tri on Tuesday, November 17^th. Pheonix Wright: Ace Attourney for the Wii was also on display, as was Monster Hunter Freedom Unite. The event was set up like a mock class/school, and allowed attendees to test the battle demo with a series of pre-generated characters.  It was well-attended, although for the most part the development team of the game could not attend.

The latest entry in the popular hack-’n-slash knows where the bread and butter of its gameplay remains: beating the life out of powerful quarries with a variety of interesting weapons. This hearty fare is garnished with a wide range of new additions, from online and split-screen multiplayer to what producer Ryozo Tsujimoto, who spoke at the press event, promises is the franchise’s most robust single-player story system to date, accompanied by an NPC companion named “Cha-Cha.”

Admittedly, that doesn’t say much, since Monster Hunter Tri remains fundamentally a casual experience.  Each hunt the battle demo included posed a similar scenario: choose a monster to hunt down, pursue them through a narrow but beautiful series of wild canyons, and once brought to bay, harry them to their death with repeated attacks within the time limit. Each beast has specific weaknesses, quirks and attacks, and they will flee to other areas of the map if pressed.

The game is more about choreographing your party’s assault than solitary heroics, since each weapon is fairly simple to wield. Unfortunately, there is no easy way to tell how hurt your prey is, so players are never certain whether they are about to win or barely scratching the beast. Slain monsters, whether your quarry or other creatures randomly encountered in the field, in turn drop body parts that can be combined to produce new weapons and armor, much of which has an intriguingly barbaric, animalistic appearance.

Of the new features, the weapons and stages were the ones most on display in the demo. Our old friend the sword is present in one-handed, two-handed, and katana variations, all ready allies in a fight. The exotic switchaxe, a weapon morphing from axe to two-handed sword, is conceptually interesting and flexible but sluggish, while the various bowguns were potentially devastating but required strong tactical awareness. Most weapons are designed for specialized tactics, and some monsters have specific vulnerabilities to particular weaponry. Underwater combat was also on display in the form of a mighty leviathan that switched between aquatic and terrestrial environments; this was, as in many games, competently handled but still far more disorienting than battle on land.

On the whole, Monster Hunter Tri’s battle demo seems solid enough, but without access to the promised new single-player or online hub, and thus the ability to test out its crafting system, promised “Cha-Cha” companion, or advancement, it felt like a very incomplete look at the game. After all, half the fun of the series seems to revolve around gradual advancement and bashing together new and ever-more-imposing-looking weapons and armor. We’ll have to wait for that until the game makes its way to the States in spring, when it’ll be sold for around $50.