Monster Hunter Now community want lock on skill changes that are ruining hunts

James Busby
A Hunter climbing onto Anjanath's head in Monster Hunter World

The Monster Hunter Now lock on skill is incredibly useful for melee weapons, but the game’s community wants changes to how it functions. 

Being able to lock onto specific monster parts is incredibly beneficial in Monster Hunter Now. Not only does it enable you to target a monster’s weak points, but it can also lead to those all-important part breaks. 

In fact, breaking a monster’s body part can lead to more material rewards in the game, which means you have more chances of securing rare items like Primescales. It’s because of this, that so many of the best Monster Hunter Now weapons benefit from having access to the lock on skill. 

However, there can be times when using the lock on skill in Monster Hunter Now can be a little tricky, which has led to players wanting changes. 

Monster Hunter Now community calls for changes to lock on skill

“The lock on system absolutely drives me nuts,” said one player. “I lose so many hunts because of fumbling lock on. I just wish there was a UI slider. If I could make the lock on button and the lock on targets like 25-30% bigger I think the majority of my issues with it would be solved.”

Others commented on how they dislike that the lock on skill is tied to specific armor pieces and not a default feature, with one player stating: “I’d settle for it being a baseline feature instead of an armor skill. If it’s a solution to the mobile controls / limited movement just have it be part of the baseline mechanics. Only three pieces of armor with it? Come on.”

Well, one player has come up with a new design that could make using the Monster Hunter Now Lock On skill more easy. Posting on the official Monster Hunter Now Reddit page, they outlined some UI changes to the game’s current lock on screen. 

“I’ve seen a lot of people complaining online and in real life about lock-on having small targets,” said the player. “People often fat-thumb the wrong target, especially when the monster is very active, and they can’t click the parts they want to focus on. This results in losing valuable time.”

OverClockedPG has showcased how an action wheel D-pad could make selecting specific monster parts more accurate. “You would press the target button and slide your thumb in the direction you want for the corresponding part, then release. We might as well keep the old system for players who prefer it.”

It’s certainly a nice idea and one that would prove useful for those who find the current Monster Hunter Now lock on feature too fiddly. Hopefully, Niantic can address this issue in a future update in order to make the process of selecting monster parts smoother.

About The Author

James is Dexerto's Associate Games Editor who joined the website in 2020. He graduated from university with a degree in Journalism, before spending four years freelancing for GamesRadar+, PCGamesN, RPS, LoL Esports, Red Bull Gaming, and many more. You can find him covering everything from CoD, Apex Legends, Genshin Impact, and Monster Hunter. Need to get in touch? Email James at james.busby@dexerto.com.