Here's how every Monster Hunter game runs on Switch 2 – MH Rise Sunbreak, MHGU, Stories, and Stories 2

Following my feature on the Tales of series, I'm now tackling the Monster Hunter franchise going over every single entry in the series currently playable on Nintendo Switch. This includes Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak, Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin, Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate, and Monster Hunter Stories. Despite most of these games starting out as Nintendo or Nintendo Switch exclusives, some of them weren't great experiences at launch.

Revisiting some of these and just being able to get back to my saves on hardware where the frame rate is stable has been great. As with the other articles in this backward compatibility series on Switch 2, I will be covering performance, visuals, load times, and what I'd like from a potential upgrade.

How does Monster Hunter Rise Sunbreak run on Nintendo Switch 2?

Monster Hunter Rise (and Sunbreak) on Switch was very impressive for the hardware, but it struggled in some maps during multiplayer to the point where I ended up hating hunting in the Flooded Forest. With Sunbreak, some monsters just pushed the system too much with various effects and the scope. Shagaru Magala and even Amatsu come to mind as the ones I had the most fun hunting despite the major performance issues. On Nintendo Switch 2, performance is much more stable across the board with improved load times. Visually, it is still more or less the same though, but as the version of the game I put in the most time, I'm glad to have Sunbreak at a more stable frame rate with faster load times.

Speaking of load times, for my test below, I mashed A to speed up the process on both Switch and Switch 2. The game was installed to my Switch 2 internal storage and the Switch SD card. I've used this same setup for testing all the games below. 

What we want from a Monster Hunter Rise Sunbreak Nintendo Switch 2 upgrade

I don't think it will get one, but I'd love a boost to 1080p in handheld and 1440p in docked mode with potentially mouse controls for specific weapons. As of now, backward compatibility helps make the frame rate more stable with faster loading.

How does Monster Hunter Stories 2 run on Nintendo Switch 2?

I still think Monster Hunter Stories 2 is the most-impressive Capcom release on the original Switch with how amazing it looked. Yes, it had a very unstable frame rate, but it was stunning on the Switch OLED and remains a visual showcase for the system like the original game was on 3DS. On Nintendo Switch 2, Monster Hunter Stories 2 gets a massive frame rate bump with it even hitting 60fps often. It isn't a locked 60fps because I noticed some hitching in the bits I tested, but it is a superb portable experience when it comes to performance. Visually, it is still the same as it was before, but it doesn't look as soft as Rise. On the load time side of things, I've tabulated my results below.

What we want from a Monster Hunter Stories 2 Nintendo Switch 2 upgrade

Monster Hunter Stories 2 would really benefit from a resolution bump taking it to 1080p in handheld mode and 1440p docked. Monster Hunter Stories 2 remains a gorgeous Switch game, and I'm glad it finally hit a stable frame rate, but in an ideal world we'd also see a visual upgrade.

How does Monster Hunter Stories run on Nintendo Switch 2?

You might wonder why this is worth testing given it is a 3DS remaster with new content, but it actually didn't run at a locked 60fps on Switch. On Switch 2, whatever minor performance issues it had or unstable frame rate in parts have all been sorted. There isn't much else to say for this one. You can see the load time differences below.

What we want from a Monster Hunter Stories Nintendo Switch 2 upgrade

The only visual improvement I would like to see in a potential Switch 2 upgrade is anti-aliasing really. Obviously it would get a resolution bump in a potential upgrade, but anti-aliasing would go a long way. There are a few too many jagged edges when playing this Switch version even on a Switch. 

How does Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate run on Nintendo Switch 2?

Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate is a game I clearly like a lot. If I didn't, I wouldn't own three physical copies of it as you can see above. The game itself should have been 60fps on Switch 1, but it was capped at 30fps. It also had some very blurry UI elements that always annoyed me. On Switch 2, it is still capped at 30fps and while it still feels good to play, the blurry elements stick out more. As for load times, there isn't a major difference here, but I always thought Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate loaded fast enough on Switch already. 

What we want from a Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate Nintendo Switch 2 upgrade

Capcom really needs to uncap the frame rate in Monster Hunter Generatiosn Ultimate or do a proper Switch 2 upgrade for a potential game anniversary release. Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate deserves better than being capped at 30fps with some blurry assets.