The Monster Hunter franchise is known for its seemingly insurmountable monster battles, but equally beloved by fans are the wild weapons and armor that the players craft to take on the deadly beasts. Screen Gems and Toho's upcoming Monster Hunter film has plenty to live up to, and the new gear rings true to its predecessors. They're big and recognizable -- no doubt meant to endear itself to long-time fans.
When firing up a game, players are introduced to an almost overwhelming slate of weapons to try, and all have their quirks that totally change the player's style. The new movie trailer reveals a handful, and many of them are classic weapons familiar to fans. Tony Jaa, as a resident of this dangerous new world, introduces two of them during the trailer's first fight with a Black Diablos in a slight departure from series norm.
The Hunter's Bow
Jaa's character relies on the massive bows that quick hunters prefer. It's the iconic Hunter's Bow players mastered in Monster Hunter 2, featuring its rigid bone limbs, tripled ornamental strips on either side and metal arrow grip holding it together in the center. They're early weapons, easy to upgrade and use with specialized coated arrows, loaded with plenty of raw power -- a bone weapon staple -- and deadly in a capable hunter's hands. In fact, in that generation of games, a bow with the mobility and distance it offered was a great choice for new players to learn the Diablos fight.
The Giant Jawblade
Jaa also brings the stranded soldiers another iconic weapon seen in previous set photos: a slow but damaging greatsword known to fans as the Giant Jawblade. This massive, two-handed destroyer is made of brute-sized bones and dragonbone relics held together with a steel handle, and it's one of the most recognizable weapons from Monster Hunter World. A second greatsword is briefly spotted later in the trailer -- a fire-type that, if they're following hunter convention, could be made from Rathalos parts. That would make the Flame Blade a possible suspect, or perhaps the fan-designed Wyvern Ignition Impact. Hopefully the next trailer will make this weapon's identity clearer.
The Matched Slicers
Though it's hard to get a clear look at them in action due to how speedy this particular weapon type is, lead actress Milla Jovovich gets to sport a pair of dual blades. They're likely based on the Matched Slicers, a weapon that's been around for a couple of generations, but whose appearance recalls the recent Monster Hunter World version. She's been training hard, because she quickly shows she's capable of lighting them up into a rapid-dash inferno of action that looks like the demon mode that comes with that style of weapon.
The Slinger
Finally, the most iconic weapon shown is the one any good hunter never leaves base camp without: the slinger, a tool and last-ditch line of defense strapped to the hunter's offhand. With this mastered, a monster can be stunned, blinded, left temporarily deaf, or get a whole bunch of smelly nastiness up its nose before it gets the chance to chow down on a pinned hunter. It can also do a fair amount of damage on its own when loaded with special ammunition. The one shown seems like it's forged in the classic style, without the new clutch-claw capability.
Future clips will hopefully show off more of the weapons the movie's hunters need to claim victory. The ones shown so far are familiar and fun, and the trailer shows just enough of their power to tease fans while not spoiling any possible future monster reveals. Here's hoping for a cameo of some of the most truly bonkers weapons -- things like the infamous Speartuna greatsword or even a whole giant chicken leg still on the bone.