The tutorial phase is a slog, and even afterwards there are some parts of the game that drag; however, MHW’s gameplay is fantastic. Speaking as someone who played this game first and then got into older Monster Hunter games later on, this really is a great place to start. The QoL changes are good, the game is beautiful visually, and the selection of monsters and MHW originals is pretty great. I do really, really enjoy how the monsters are portrayed more than anything, but that tends to apply to all Monster Hunter games. Regardless, this game is well worth the purchase.